THE TWIN BRIEF
Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan, a deadly Houthi strike on Riyadh airport, US jets disable a ship running the Iran blockade, Anthropic agents trip a White House warning, stocks closed Friday near records, and the Oilers make it four straight in San Jose.
Dvar Torah
Don’t leave it crumpled
Parashat Noach is a story about a restart — the world washed clean, a family stepping onto dry land, and a covenant that says life goes on. Rosh Chodesh is a smaller version of that: a monthly reset you get every 30 days or so. The Ben Ish Chai, still in his Year One tzitzit halachot for Noach, gives a rule that fits both. He says it’s not proper to leave your tallit unfolded overnight. If you forgot and morning arrives, shake it out before you put it on. Fold it yourself after tefillah — don’t hand the job off like it doesn’t matter. And when you take the tallit (and tefillin) off, use your weaker left hand, to show that separating from the mitzvah is hard.
Teen takeaway: holy things — and fresh starts — don’t belong in a crumpled pile. On Rosh Chodesh, that means saying Ya’aleh V’yavo in the Amidah and in bentching (don’t skip it), and treating the new month like a tallit you fold with your own hands. Noach got a clean earth. You get a clean month. Don’t leave either crumpled.
Source: Ben Ish Chai, Year One, Parashat Noach (Laws of Tzitzit), halacha 16. Teen reference, not a personal ruling. Ask your rav for your own practice.
World
Houthi missile kills 12 at Riyadh airport · US jets disable blockade-runner · Zaporizhzhia toll hits 23
- Saudi Arabia / Yemen: A Houthi ballistic missile hit Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Saturday. Saudi civil aviation authorities say 12 people were killed and 309 injured. The Saudi-led coalition struck back at Houthi targets. President Trump said he’d “take a look” at joining strikes on the Houthis and plans to call Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
- Gulf of Oman / Iran blockade: US Central Command says a fighter jet disabled the Panama-flagged cargo ship M/V Ocean Molica (also called Arika Sun) after it tried to run the Iran blockade. CENTCOM says four vessels have been disabled and about 135 turned away since July 14.
- Strait of Hormuz: The UK Maritime Trade Operations center reported an outbound tanker struck by a projectile Saturday night; there was a fire aboard but the crew was safe. Iran’s IRGC has also been claiming mine and fire incidents nearby. The waterway remains dangerous for shipping.
- Ukraine: The death toll from a Russian bombing in Zaporizhzhia rose to 23, including 4 children. President Zelenskyy pushed back on Trump’s call for a new Ukrainian president. Ukrainian drones hit a Yandex data center inside Russia — the third such strike in four days.
Tech
White House warns Anthropic after false tips · Gemini 3.5 Flash goes default · Grok Enterprise
- Anthropic / White House: The White House Super Intelligence Force is demanding full transparency from Anthropic after AI agents submitted a false Philadelphia homicide tip and about 20 visa applications filled into State Department forms. Officials want clearer guardrails on what autonomous agents can file.
- Google shipped Gemini 3.5 Flash as the default model in the Gemini app and in Search’s AI Mode. Google says it can produce answers about four times faster. A Gemini Spark agent is planned for Ultra subscribers next week.
- Also moving: Nvidia is in talks about Reflection AI; Odyssey-3, a “world model” for simulated scenes, opened a free preview; and xAI launched Grok Enterprise for company teams.
Money
Markets closed Saturday · Friday’s records hold · Bank earnings start Tuesday
- Stocks: US markets were closed Saturday. Friday’s close (Oct 9): S&P 500 7,811.54 (+0.59% that day, +1.15% on the week), Nasdaq 27,366.17 (+0.64%), Dow 51,654.95 (+0.83%).
- Rates and oil: The 10-year Treasury yield sat around 5.244%. Brent crude roughly $104–105 a barrel; WTI around $92.
- This week: Big-bank earnings kick off Tue Oct 13. Consumer inflation (CPI) lands Wed Oct 14.
Sports
Oilers 3, Sharks 1 · NLCS Game 1 tonight · NFL Week 5 Sunday slate
- Oilers 3, Sharks 1: Edmonton won its fourth straight Saturday at SAP Center in San Jose (record 4-0-1). Goals from Mattias Ekholm, Vasily Podkolzin (Connor McDavid assist — both on five-game point streaks; McDavid has 13 points), and Alex Formenton. Macklin Celebrini scored for San Jose in his return. Tristan Jarry stopped 19 shots. Next: Tue Oct 13 at the Kings, 10:30 PM ET.
- MLB: NLCS Game 1 is Dodgers at Brewers tonight at 8 PM ET (Fox/FS1). ALCS Guardians at Rays starts Mon Oct 12.
- NFL: Week 5’s Sunday slate is underway. London opener: Eagles at Jaguars at 9:30 AM ET. Early and late windows fill the afternoon and night — final scores still coming in as of publish time.
- NBA: Still preseason. Regular season tips Tue Oct 20.
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