5 vital stories to know this week [6/23]
From record heat causing the deaths of hundreds of Muslim pilgrims in Mecca to significant changes in abortion laws two years after Roe v. Wade was overturned, here are five things to know this week.
Over 1,000 pilgrims died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, officials say
As the scorching heat of the summer begins, temperatures are drastically increasing worldwide – including in Saudi Arabia, where millions of Muslims are traveling for The Hajj, a pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca that many Muslims must take once in their lifetime. After temperatures in Mecca soared above 115 degrees, over a thousand Muslims on their Hajj journey tragically died from severe heat, thousands more collapsed, and countless are still being treated for heat-related illnesses. This comes as Muslims celebrated Eid-Al-Adha last week and the world grapples with climate change's ongoing affects that are propelling global temperatures to record levels this summer.
Palestinian soccer player and family killed in Israeli airstrike in Gaza
Palestinian soccer player Ahmad Abu al-Atta and his family were killed in their home by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) said. Abu al-Atta, who played as a defender for the Gaza Strip team Al-Ahly Gaza, died along with his wife Ruba Esmael Abu al-Atta, a medical professional, and their two children after the airstrike hit their home in Gaza City.
More than 300 athletes, referees and sports officials have been killed since the start of the war on Gaza in October 2023 with all sports facilities in Gaza demolished, according to the President of the Palestinian Olympic Committee Jibril Rajoub.
In May, the global soccer governing body—FIFA—ordered an urgent legal evaluation of a proposal by the Palestinian Football Association (PFA), backed by the Asian Football Confederation, to suspend Israel from all club and national competitions over the war in Gaza. FIFA said it would address the issue at an extraordinary meeting of its council in July.
Donate to families of Palestinian soccer players
Apple doubles down on artificial intelligence, announcing partnership with OpenAI
Two weeks ago, Apple announced a partnership with OpenAI that will integrate ChatGPT into IOS, iPadOS, and macOS, allowing users to use AI’s capabilities–including image and document understanding—without needing to jump between tools. Siri can use ChatGPT when helpful, but users will be asked permission before Siri can use AI. The tools will also enable transcriptions for phone calls, AI photo retouching, and summarizing messages, articles, or documents from web pages.
Reports: Apple and Meta are potentially planning on an AI collaboration, per the Wall Street Journal.
A woman is accused of attempting to drown a 3-year-old Muslim child in a possible hate crime incident
A 42-year-old woman in Texas has been charged with attempted murder and injury to a minor after trying to drown a three-year-old at an apartment complex pool and making Islamophobic statements, according to Texas police. Witnesses told officers “a woman who was very intoxicated had tried to drown a child and argued with the child’s mother,” police said in a news release on May 19.
The Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations identified the family as Muslim and Palestinian and called on state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate the incident “as a hate crime and take all precautions to keep the Muslim family and the Muslim community safe.”
“We are American citizens, originally from Palestine, and I don’t know where to go to feel safe with my kids,” the council quoted the mother, identified only as Mrs. H, as saying. “My country is facing a war, and we are facing that hate here. My daughter is traumatized; whenever I open the apartment door, she runs away and hides, telling me she is afraid the lady will come and immerse her head in the water again.”
The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Here’s the state of abortion rights now in the US.
This month two years ago, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade–the landmark case which ruled that the Constitution generally protected a right to have an abortion. Now, the state of abortion in the U.S. has dramatically shifted with Republican-led states increasing legislation that calls for abortion bans while liberal-led states are pushing to protect reproductive rights. [Guttmacher Institute]
14 states–including Alabama, Texas, and Tennessee have total or near total bans on abortion.
Despite restrictive policies, the number and rate of abortions in 2023, hit their highest point in a decade.
States without total abortion bans saw a 26% increase from 2020
More than 171,000 patients traveled for an abortion in 2023.