International
UN General Assembly president: Gaza situation “catastrophic, unthinkable, shameful”
The President of the UN General Assembly, Dennis Francis, described the situation in Gaza on Monday as “catastrophic, inconceivable, shameful,” with 30,000 deaths reported from bombings and fatalities now occurring due to starvation.
Francis spoke during the opening of a special session of the Assembly called for the United States to explain its latest veto on February 20th at the Security Council — the third since the Gaza war began — on a resolution demanding an unconditional and immediate ceasefire.
Expressing unequivocal support for the ceasefire, Francis said he was “shocked and horrified by the killing or injuring of hundreds of people” during a food distribution last week.
In his speech, he went beyond usual diplomatic balances and did not hesitate to name Israel: “Israel’s restrictions on humanitarian access (to Gaza) have dramatically reduced the flow of vital aid,” lamenting that assistance entry dropped by 50% from January to February.
Francis was responded to by U.S. Deputy Ambassador Robert Woods, who once again justified their latest veto, arguing that a resolution for a ceasefire would have jeopardized the “intense efforts” the U.S., Qatar, and Egypt are making for a “temporary ceasefire” conditional on the release of hostages held by Hamas.
The Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour, displaying photos of emaciated Palestinian children due to lack of food, and ending his speech with a choked voice, protested that “Israel believes itself above the law, and until that belief is shattered, it will continue to act as a lawless state.”
Mansour lamented that there are people “with a much higher tolerance for Palestinian deaths than Israel’s” who consider Palestinians “an inferior race and find it difficult to see us as victims.”
“In the eyes of Israel, Palestinians have three options: displacement, subjugation, or death. Ethnic cleansing, apartheid, or genocide,” he concluded.
As for Israel’s representative, Gilad Erdan, he reiterated that the only acceptable terms for a ceasefire are “the elimination of Hamas: violators, mass murderers should never have free access to the UN.”
Furthermore, he attacked the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) as an instrument of Hamas and therefore stated that it “must be defunded and dismantled.”
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
International
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating two explosions that occurred early Wednesday, one on a road in the southern part of the country and another under a bridge in Guayas province. These incidents follow the car bomb explosion in the coastal city of Guayaquil, also in Guayas, which occurred the day before and left one person dead and 30 injured.
Press reports indicate that one person was injured and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion on the Cuenca-Girón-Pasaje road in the south.
“Besides yesterday’s explosion in Guayaquil, we have received reports of explosives placed on bridges along the Guayaquil-Machala and Machala-Cuenca routes to disrupt traffic,” said Roberto Luque, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
On his X social media account, Luque reported that authorities have been deployed to the sites to assess the damage and determine the current condition of the structures.
“What they haven’t achieved with their call for a strike, some are trying to achieve through terrorism,” he stated, referring to the 24 days of protests organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) against rising diesel prices and other demands.
The protests, called at a national level, have Imbabura province as their epicenter. Roadblocks have also been reported in the northern part of Pichincha province, whose capital is Quito, while activities in the rest of the country continue normally.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
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