Unbiased headline news in 4-minutes for Monday June 24, 2024 – More than 1,300 people died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia as the faithful faced extreme high temperatures at Islamic holy sites in the desert kingdom.
Saudi Health Minister Fahd bin Abdurrahman Al-Jalajel said that 83% of the 1,301 fatalities were unauthorized pilgrims who walked long distances in soaring temperatures to perform the Hajj rituals in and around the holy city of Mecca.
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An expanding heat dome had 100 million people across 27 states on alert for extremely high temperatures coast to coast.
On the west coast, Palm Springs, California, is forecast to reach 112 degrees on Tuesday. Fresno, California is forecast to reach 107 degrees, while temperatures in Las Vegas were expected to soar to 109. A cold front headed to the Northeast is forecast to cool things down, but could also bring severe thunderstorms and possible tornadoes.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to double down on his claims that the United States has been withholding weapons deliveries for Israel’s war effort.
Netanyahu told his Cabinet that there was a “dramatic drop” in U.S. weapons about four months ago, without specifying which weapons. He said only that “certain items arrived sporadically but the munitions at large remained behind.” A White House official stated that they are not going to keep responding to the Prime Minister’s political statements.
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The USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived at a naval port in the southeastern city of Busan in a show of force against evolving North Korean threats.
The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier of the Carrier Strike Group 9 entered the naval base in Busan, 199 miles southeast of Seoul, early Saturday, joined by the Aegis-equipped destroyer USS Halsey and the USS Daniel Inouye, according to the Navy.
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Full-time residents of Ruidoso were allowed to return to their village Monday morning.
Federal authorities seek to prosecute whoever started a pair of New Mexico wildfires that killed two people and destroyed or damaged more than 1,400 structures. The FBI said it is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrests and convictions of those responsible for the South Fork Fire and Salt Fire in southern New Mexico.
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A Philadelphia police officer was shot in the neck and is in critical condition, officials said.
The 31-year-old officer was in critical condition and underwent surgery at Temple University Hospital, Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said during a news conference outside the hospital. The shooting suspect and all the people who were in the car are in custody and are considered “persons of interest” at this time, Bethel said.
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A public bus crashed into a building in Seattle on Saturday evening, injuring 11, including one critically, officials said.
The Sound Transit bus ran into the building at the intersection of 5th Avenue and Terrace Street in downtown just before 7 p.m., the Seattle Fire Department said in a statement. Emergency responders arrived at the scene for an “extrication response” and helped all the passengers off, the department said. Each was able to exit the vehicle by themselves, the department said.
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A fourth person has died after the mass shooting outside a grocery store in Arkansas on Friday.
Arkansas State Police said the latest person to die was 81-year-old Ellen Shrum in the shooting. Callie Weems, Roy Sturgis, and Shirley Taylor earlier were also identified as people who died at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce, which is 70 miles south of Little Rock.
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