Amna Nawaz:
In the days’s other news: Winds are expected to intensify as firefighters battle the growing wildfire outside of Flagstaff, Arizona. The so-called Tunnel Fire has forced more than 2,000 residents to evacuate their homes. So far, the blaze has burned over 20,000 acres. That’s an area larger than Manhattan.
The World Health Organization said today that global COVID-19 cases dropped by nearly a quarter last week. Infections have been declining around the world since the end of March.
We will talk with White House COVID response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha after the news summary.
The total number of Americans collecting unemployment aid hit its lowest mark in more than half-a-century, underscoring the robust U.S. job market. The Labor Department reported the number of new jobless claims inched down last week to 184,000. That is down 2,000 from the previous week. Those weekly applications for unemployment aid have remained below pre-pandemic levels.
The U.S. Supreme Court today upheld a law that allows Congress to deny disability benefits to residents of Puerto Rico. The court said those supplemental income security payments for the disabled and elderly can be denied because residents of the U.S. territory don’t all pay federal taxes. Justice Sonia Sotomayor was the sole dissenting vote.
In a separate opinion, the High Court also unanimously sided with a California family seeking the return of a painting by Camille Pissarro confiscated by Nazis during the Holocaust. The case was sent back to a Los Angeles court to decide the matter based on California law.
A federal judge has temporarily blocked Kentucky’s new abortion law that halted the procedure at the state’s two remaining abortion clinics. The measure passed by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The clinic sought to overturn the law and ask that it be blocked while the legal challenge is pending.
The Federal Aviation Administration is reviewing a communications breakdown after a parachute stunt caused panic at the U.S. Capitol last night. The failure to notify U.S. Capitol Police about an airplane carrying U.S. Army Golden Knights to the Washington Nationals’ baseball stadium prompted warnings of a probable threat and a brief evacuation at the Capitol complex. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also vowed to launch a congressional review.
An explosion at a Shiite Muslim mosque in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif has killed at least 11 people and wounded 40 others. The Islamic State, or ISIS, claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes during the holy month of Ramadan.
One local resident described the devastation he witnessed.
Ghulam Reza, Resident of Mazar-e-Sharif (through translator): The incident that occurred at the mosque was heartbreaking. I was at the market and arrived as fast as I could. Unfortunately, the toll of casualties and injuries are more than our expectations.
