Federal authorities have charged an Iran-backed militia commander with plotting to attack Jewish sites in New York City and Los Angeles.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed on Friday in Manhattan, Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi helped plot at least 18 attacks, several of which were carried out in Europe and Canada since late February, The New York Times reported.

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) will retire from the House after 20 years, following a redistricting push by Tennessee Republicans that carved up his Memphis district, ending his re-election campaign, Cohen announced on Friday.

Cohen, 76, was the first Jewish person to represent Tennessee in Congress, and long stood out as a white, Jewish lawmaker representing a majority-Black district in the South, a rare profile in Congress. Prior to the redistricting move, which was fueled by a recent Supreme Court decision allowing states to eliminate some majority-minority districts, Cohen faced a challenge from far-left state Rep. Justin Pearson.

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) is set to attend a rally with Pennsylvania state Sen. Sharif Street on Monday, a last-minute boost for Street’s campaign ahead of his Tuesday congressional primary in Philadelphia where his challenger, far-left state Sen. Chris Rabb, is favored to win.

Local analysts say that the appearance by Booker — a well-known face to local voters across the Delaware River from his home state — should help Street’s campaign, but were skeptical that it would be enough to help him beat Rabb.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) will enter Tuesday’s closely watched primary against Ed Gallrein, a Navy veteran and farmer backed by President Donald Trump, politically damaged — but it remains to be seen whether he’s taken enough hits to end his career in Congress.

Scott Jennings, a Kentucky-based GOP strategist and CNN political analyst, said that he’s spoken to operatives on both sides of the race who are very confident in victory. “Based on some of the polling I’ve personally seen and heard about, it feels like Massie’s image has been severely degraded by the sustained campaign that’s been run against him,” Jennings told Jewish Insider.

Former U.S. diplomatic officials and Middle East experts called on the Trump administration to fill dozens of ambassador-level Middle East posts, warning that not doing so could carry damaging consequences for U.S. influence and diplomacy in the region, while other former Trump officials argued the administration can manage regional diplomacy in its current format. 

The Wall Street Journal first reported that more than 100 U.S. ambassador posts remain vacant under the Trump administration, including several key posts in the Middle East. The U.S. currently has no formal ambassadors in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq or Kuwait. 

Washington, D.C., will be buzzing with events on Friday evening bringing in Shabbat 250, a national Sabbath marking the 250th birthday of the United States. 

Several Jewish organizations have been planning celebratory gatherings, both in Washington and across the country, to commemorate Shabbat 250 since President Donald Trump encouraged Jewish Americans to observe Shabbat this weekend in his Jewish American Heritage Month proclamation. 

Senior Israeli and Lebanese officials will reconvene on Friday at the State Department to continue peace talks, a State Department official said, after the parties concluded the first day of negotiations in the third round of the U.S.-led talks on Thursday with no further agreements secured. 

The official said in a statement, “We had a full day of productive and positive talks that lasted from 9 a.m to 5 p.m. We look forward to continuing this tomorrow and hope to have more to share then.”

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) plans to force a House vote next week on a war powers resolution blocking any U.S. involvement in or support for Israeli military operations in Lebanon, according to a memo distributed by Tlaib’s office to progressive lawmakers and obtained by Jewish Insider.

Tlaib’s resolution, co-led by Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-IL), aims to prevent any U.S. assistance to Israel in its operations in Lebanon, including intelligence sharing and targeting assistance for operations against Hezbollah. Neither the legislation nor Tlaib’s memo make mention of Hezbollah nor acknowledge its attacks on Israel or its refusal to disarm.