Plus: US Supreme Court's new abortion case, and the debate around showers ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
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| Hello. The exhumation of a mass grave at Gaza's Nasser hospital has given some families the chance to retrieve the bodies of their loved ones. Finding out what exactly happened to them is a different kind of challenge, writes Fergal Keane. In the US, the Supreme Court is hearing a new case about abortion access in emergency situations. Holly Honderich explains what's at stake. We're also diving into the debate over the need for a daily shower, and meet an Australian man on a mission to improve the housing market for renters. | |
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| A mother's search for her son's body | | In Gaza, burying the dead has become a complex and often dangerous task. Credit: BBC | Palestinian Civil Defence workers say more than 330 bodies have been recovered from the grounds of Nasser hospital in Khan Younis. Identifying the bodies, establishing what led to their deaths, and giving them a proper burial are no easy tasks. |
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| | | For four days Kareema Elras has moved through the noise, dust and overpowering stench of the mass graves at Nasser hospital. She is the mother of 21-year-old Ahmed, who was killed on 25 January in the city of Khan Younis, in south central Gaza. His body has been missing since then.
On Tuesday, Kareema found her boy. "I have been coming here all the time until now," she said, "until I found the body of my son, my son Ahmed, the cherished little boy, his mother's love. He lost his father when he was 12 years old, and I raised him." Nearby, other families walk along the perimeter of the graves. |
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| QUESTIONS ANSWERED | US top court hears new abortion case |
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| | The Supreme Court will weigh in on abortion access once again, nearly two years after overturning Roe v Wade. Credit: Getty Images | The US Supreme Court has heard arguments in yet another high-stakes abortion case that has potentially sweeping consequences for emergency rooms across the country. |
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| | Holly Honderich, BBC News |
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| Who are the parties involved in the case? | The question is whether a federal law, called the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act or EMTALA, covers emergency abortions, even in states where the procedure is banned. The Biden administration has said yes. It has sued Idaho over its near-total abortion ban. Idaho has countered, saying EMTALA cannot supersede its state law. | What does Idaho's abortion law say? | The law bans abortion from the point of conception in almost all cases, and made performing or assisting in an abortion a felony crime, punishable by up to five years in prison. The law has an exception to prevent the death of the pregnant person. But it does not make exceptions for threats to the mother's health, or for long-term medical complications. | What have been the real-life consequences of Idaho's law? | Idaho's physicians have said the ban has already harmed women who were denied care while suffering from serious pregnancy complications. A group of 678 doctors in Idaho filed a brief that described several cases of women facing high risks of infection, sepsis, kidney failure and infertility who were either sent home from the hospital or transferred out of state to receive care. | | Arizona's 1864 law: Senior Republicans in the state's legislature recently blocked attempts to repeal the 19th Century law banning abortion. Planned Parenthood: A former US Marine has been jailed for nine years for firebombing a California clinic and plotting other attacks to spark a "race war". Other Supreme Court cases: The top court is considering whether a ban on sleeping in public is cruel and unusual punishment. |
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| THE BIG PICTURE | Turner Prize picks four finalists |
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| | | Jasleen Kaur's installation includes a classic Ford Escort covered in a giant doily. Credit: Keith Hunter | Four artists have been shortlisted for the UK's prestigious art award, now in its 40th year. The works by Jasleen Kaur, Pio Abad, Claudette Johnson and Delaine Le Bas have been praised by Turner Prize jury chairman Alex Farquharson as "full of life". |
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FOR YOUR DOWNTIME | The case against showers | Most medics believe there is no inherent physical health benefit to the daily shower. | |
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And finally... in Australia | A 28-year-old has become a high-profile housing advocate by highlighting poor rental conditions. His vigilante-style approach - which includes helping people find vacant homes to squat in, and exposing bad rentals in a public database - has won over a legion of supporters who have dubbed him the Robin Hood of renters, but not everyone is a fan. | |
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The Essential List newsletter | The week's best stories, handpicked by BBC editors, in your inbox twice a week. | |
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