How did Caleb White die? Pinson Valley High School basketball player, 17, collapses on court during workout
Basketball player for his high school in Alabama, Caleb White, reportedly passed away after collapsing post a school workout
2023-08-12 09:18
Army identifies soldiers killed when their transport vehicle flipped on way to Alaska training site
The U.S. Army has identified two soldiers who were killed Monday when their transport vehicle flipped while driving on a dirt road leading to a training site in interior Alaska
2023-10-06 01:53
Debt limit deal is in place, but budget deficit is still a multi-decade challenge for US government
Even with new spending restraints included in the congressional debt limit deal, the U.S. government’s deficits are still on course to keep climbing to record levels over the next few decades
2023-05-31 03:52
Who is Dr Mod Helmy? The WWII hero in today's Google Doodle
Today’s Google Doodle is a reminder that some human beings are truly extraordinary. The design, which you’ll see if you head to the search engine’s homepage, is a celebration of Dr Mohamed “Mod” Helmy – a man who risked his life to save Jewish people during the Second World War. Dr Helmy was born in Khartoum, Sudan, on 25 July, 1901, to an Egyptian father and a German mother. At the age of 21, he moved to Germany to study medicine, swiftly proving his skills as a talented physician and becoming head of urology at Berlin’s Robert Koch Hospital (now known as Krankenhaus Moabit). Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter However, Adolf Hitler’s rise to power in 1933 was to turn his happy life upside down. Dr Helmy was forced to watch, powerless, as his Jewish colleagues were all fired from the hospital. And whilst he was initially kept on, he was soon subjected to discrimination and persecution for being a North African, and lost his job, too. He was also banned from marrying his German fiancée Annie Ernst (although, we’re pleased to say, he was able to do so some years later). In 1939 and again in 1940, the doctor was arrested along with other Egyptian nationals. And although the Nazis released him when he became gravely ill, he was under strict instruction to report to the police twice a day as proof he was unfit for internment. Despite being targeted by the regime himself, Dr Helmy continued to speak out against Nazi policies and, after being demoted to the role of doctor’s assistant, he made the most of his limited position by writing sick notes to help innocent people escape hard labour. He also repeatedly risked his life to help his Jewish friends. When Berlin’s deportation of the Jews began and his family friend Anna Boros was in need of a hiding place, Dr Helmy brought her to a cabin he owned in the neighbourhood of Buch. This became her safe haven until the end of the war, as Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Center, notes in its biography of the doctor. At times of danger, when he was under police investigation, Dr Helmy would arrange for Boros to hide elsewhere. “A good friend of our family, Dr Helmy…hid me in his cabin in Berlin-Buch from 10 March until the end of the war,” she wrote after the war. “As of 1942 I no longer had any contact [with] the outside world. The Gestapo knew that Dr Helmy was our family physician, and they knew that he owned a cabin in Berlin-Buch. “He managed to evade all their interrogations. In such cases he would bring me to friends where I would stay for several days, introducing me as his cousin from Dresden. When the danger would pass, I would return to his cabin. “Dr Helmy did everything for me out of the generosity of his heart and I will be grateful to him for eternity”. Dr Helmy also helped protect Boros’ mother, Julianna, her stepfather, Georg Wehr, and her grandmother, Cecilie Rudnik. Thanks to his courage and resourcefulness, all four of them survived the Holocaust. He remained in Berlin until his death in 1982. In 2013, Yad Vashem posthumously bestowed its Righteous Among the Nations award on Dr Helmy. He was the first Arab rescuer to be awarded the prestigious title. The Google Doodle artwork was created by Berlin-based artist Noa Snir to honour his Egyptian and German background and capture his open-hearted nature. Speaking about her work on the project, Snir told a Google Q&A: ": I found the story of Mod Helmy very moving. I come from a Jewish background, and the thought of individuals outside of the Jewish community risking their lives to help others during WW2 is something that personally gives me hope about humanity. "I think Helmy's case is an especially interesting one as he himself suffered persecution due to his background and ethnicity, and that still didn't stop him from helping as many people as he could. It's unfathomable to me, this type of courage and integrity." She added that she hoped people would view her Doodle and reflect on the fact that "even in one of the darkest moments in world history, there were truly remarkable people who made acts of extreme courage and solidarity". "I think we should all aspire to be the Mod Helmy's of the world, or ask ourselves how we can take example from him in whatever small way we can," she said. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-07-25 16:24
U.S. court strikes down Florida transgender health rule
By Daniel Trotta A U.S. judge on Wednesday struck down a Florida rule and a statute that banned
2023-06-22 10:47
US officials investigating after Molotov cocktail thrown at Cuban Embassy in Washington
An investigation is underway after at least one Molotov cocktail was thrown at the Cuban Embassy in Washington, DC, Sunday night, though US officials say no one was hurt in the incident nor was significant damage done to the diplomatic outpost.
2023-09-26 06:52
US lawmakers race to avert nightmare of Thanksgiving shutdown
US lawmakers were set to vote Tuesday on a stop-gap funding bill as the government teeters on the brink of another shutdown crisis at a time of deep divisions...
2023-11-15 00:57
Who is Aaron Pennington? Manhunt underway for 'armed' US vetern after wife found shot dead at home
In Gardner, Massachusetts, a manhunt was underway for Aaron Pennington after the fatal shooting of his wife Breanne Pennington
2023-10-24 17:15
Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Russia marks WW2 anniversary with new attacks on Ukraine
(Reuters) -Russian cruise missiles exploded in the air over Kyiv on Tuesday and tanks and soldiers assembled in Red Square
2023-05-09 15:59
Conservationists say Cyprus police are lax in stopping gangs that poach songbirds
A conservation group in Cyprus says that police have been lax in cracking down on criminal gangs who illegally trap songbirds to supply restaurants
2023-10-11 23:26
North Carolina state House speaker sued for damages over alleged affair
North Carolina’s state House speaker is being sued for damages by a local elected official who alleges the powerful Republican ruined his marriage by having an affair with his wife
2023-06-21 08:59
Aaron Judge says toe ligament is torn and he's not ready for baseball activities
Two days after the New York Yankees said Aaron Judge possibly could start baseball activities this weekend, the slugger said he has a torn ligament in his right big toe and is not quite ready
2023-06-25 04:52
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