Women This Week: Wife of Russian Opposition Leader Vows to Carry on His Work

Yulia Navalnaya Calls for Russia’s Support 

On February 16, the Russian government announced the death of Russia’s most prominent opposition leader, Alexei Navalny. His wife, Yulia Navalnaya, subsequently announced that she would continue his life’s work. “In killing Aleksei, Putin killed half of me, half of my heart and half of my soul,” she continued, “But I have another half left — and it is telling me I have no right to give up,” Yulia said. Although Yulia has largely refrained from personally engaging in politics, friends and associates applauded her decision to continue the mission. “She wants to accomplish the task that Alexei has tragically left incomplete: make Russia a free, democratic, peaceful and prosperous country,” said Sergei Guriev, a family friend and a prominent Russian economist.  

Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza Having Severe Impact on Women’s Health 

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is having a severe impact on pregnant women, new mothers, and their newborn children. Without access to clean water, food, sanitary toilets, or health care facilities, women are being forced to give birth to their children in dangerous places, including tents and public bathrooms. Adequate pre and post-natal care is virtually non-existent, and women are enduring such things as cesarean births without anesthesia—resulting in more severe complications from common conditions.  “Many of the women I saw were severely anemic. They are more likely to give birth early and to lose a lot of blood. That means they are more likely to die,” said Deborah Harrington, a British obstetrician who recently spent two weeks at Al Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza. Women are also struggling to find food, diapers, and clothing for their newborns. “Preterm babies, once born, are also more likely to die.” More than 28,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October 7, with an estimated two mothers dying every hour. 

Alabama Court Rules Embryos Are Children 

This week the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children under state law. This decision will entitle the embryos to protections under the 1872 Alabama Wrongful Death of a Minor Act, which allows parents to sue for the wrongful death of a child. The decision came after three couples sued the state following an event in which their embryos were accessed by an unauthorized person and destroyed. This decision has led at least three healthcare providers to pause certain fertility treatments as they seek to understand the possible ramifications of the law. “We are saddened that this will impact our patients’ attempt to have a baby through I.V.F.,” said the University of Alabama at Birmingham health system, “but we must evaluate the potential that our patients and our physicians could be prosecuted criminally or face punitive damages for following the standard of care for I.V.F. treatments.”