By Global News Service

Credit Line: from the Peoples Dispatch / Globetrotter News Service

Headlines in This News Package:

– UN Security Council Rejects Resolution Demanding Immediate Ceasefire in Gaza

– Ecuador Elects New Right-Wing President Linked to Big Banana Business

– Tanzanian Farmers Are Paying for “Conservation” With Their Land and Lives

– Tens of Thousands of Pakistanis Hold Solidarity Protests for Palestine

UN Security Council Rejects Resolution Demanding Immediate Ceasefire in Gaza

On October 16, the UN Security Council (UNSC) failed to adopt a resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israeli war in Gaza. The U.S. and its allies in the UNSC voted against the move, dashing all hope for relief for millions in the besieged Palestinian territory.

The draft resolution prepared by Russia condemned all “violence and hostilities directed against civilians and all acts of terrorism,” and demanded “an immediate, durable, and fully respected humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza.

Speaking before the vote, Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour appealed to the countries in the council to be guided by the principles of international law without exception.

“Do not dare say Israel is not responsible for the bombs it is dropping on their heads,” Mansour said. He denied Israeli claims that Gaza is a military operation instead of a full-scale assault on innocent civilians.

The resolution received just five votes, with China, Russia, Gabon, Mozambique, and the United Arab Emirates voting in favor. Three permanent members, all of them NATO members, the U.S., the UK, and France voted against the resolution along with Japan. Six other countries abstained.

The U.S., France, and the UK have endorsed the Israeli “right to self-defense” and are completely backing its war in Gaza.

U.S. President Joe Biden is set to visit Israel on October 11 after Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the region trying to garner support for the Israeli war in Gaza.

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Ecuador Elects New Right-Wing President Linked to Big Banana Business

Daniel Noboa, son of one of the wealthiest men in Ecuador, was elected as the new president of the Andean nation on October 15.

The 35-year-old Noboa of the right-wing National Democratic Action alliance accepted his victory, saying, “Today we have made history. Ecuadorian families chose the New Ecuador. They chose a country with security and employment.”

The other candidate, Luisa González, ran for the left-wing Citizen Revolution Movement (RC) party. She aspired to be the successor to former president Rafael Correa, who governed Ecuador for 10 years and managed to bring stability and prosperity to the country.

González congratulated President-elect Noboa and thanked the Ecuadorian people for their support.

On the same day as the elections, outgoing President Guillermo Lasso congratulated Noboa for his victory against the Citizen Revolution Movement.

In May, Lasso cut his four-year term short and implemented the Cross Death mechanism, a provision of the Ecuadorian constitution. This procedure permits the president and the National Assembly to call for anticipated elections and ends the terms of both Executive and Legislative powers in the country.

In the first round of these historic and widely anticipated elections on August 20, the Citizen Revolution Movement swept the legislative side of the elections. The RC obtained 39.37 percent of the votes or 54 seats. However, the right-wing forces won the majority of seats in the unicameral parliament.

However, there were irregularities in the voting system for Ecuadorians living abroad. The results will be official in the upcoming days.

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Tanzanian Farmers Are Paying for “Conservation” With Their Land and Lives

Located in Tanzania’s Southern Highlands, the district of Mbarali in the Mbeya region has long been considered the country’s “rice basket.” However, since October 2022, smallholder farmers in the area have been unable to cultivate enough grain even to securely feed themselves, let alone produce for the market.

These farmers are among 21,252 people in Mbarali who are facing eviction from their land under the guise of a “biodiversity conservation” project—namely, the expansion of the Ruaha National Park (RUNAPA)—being undertaken by the Tanzanian government with funding from the World Bank.

There is a history of displacement of communities along the Great Ruaha River, which runs through Mbarali. But what is unfolding now in the district dates back to a government notice (G.N. 28) issued in 2008 when the government initiated plans to expand the area of RUNAPA. Local villages were among the areas demarcated for this expansion, as well as the Usangu Game Reserve and the Ihefu wetlands.

Speaking to Peoples Dispatch, Esther (name changed), who has been at the forefront of the struggle in Mbarali, stated that at the time, residents of one ward as well as one village and two hamlets in a separate ward in the district were slated for removal. She said those removed were not given compensation and were left to fend for themselves.

“Over 90 percent of elders [among the displaced] have died since 2008 because it was difficult for them to move and adjust to a new environment,” Esther said.

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Tens of Thousands of Pakistanis Hold Solidarity Protests for Palestine

Tens of thousands mobilized in the southern port city of Karachi, Pakistan, on October 15 in solidarity with Palestine. While denouncing the Israeli bombardment on Gaza that has killed close to 3,000 people including 1,030 children, the protesters carried the banners of “Free Palestine” and expressed their unwavering solidarity.

Jamaat-e-Islami, an Islamist political party, organized the march but the solidarity march subsequently gained widespread support across civil society and from trade unions. The demonstration was supported by trade associations, including Sindh Farmers Front, Pakistan Steel Labor Organization, and National Labor Federation, along with other religious and political groups. The protesters chanted slogans such as “Labbaik ya Gaza, Labaik ya Aqsa (here I am Gaza, here I am Aqsa)” in unison.

The demonstrators denounced the Israeli aggression that escalated after Hamas militants broke the siege and attacked military installments and settlements.

“The state belongs to Palestinians,” the protesters shouted.

According to protesters, the disregard for ongoing war crimes in Gaza reflects the double standards of the international community.

Pakistan is among the few countries in South Asia that has maintained a clear position on Palestine’s sovereignty and condemned Israeli occupation. The country never recognized the legitimacy of Israel ever since it was created in 1948.

The massive rally was just one of many that have taken place in solidarity with the Palestinian cause across Pakistan. On October 13, thousands attended protest rallies in the cities of Karachi, Peshawar, Lahore, and Islamabad.