FTS 12.30
*3 European countries to recognize Palestine as Independent State
*Argentina: United opposition installs education budget commissions
*3 European countries to recognize Palestine as Independent State
*Argentina: United opposition installs education budget commissions
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NewsTranscript
00:00In Iran, the leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei, has held several
00:15meetings with some of the heads of government who were coming to the Persian capital to
00:20join the millions of Iranians honoring the memory of President Ebrahim Raisi and his
00:25eight deceased comrades.
00:28Spain, Norway and Ireland are set to formally recognize Palestine as an independent state
00:36on May 28.
00:43And in Argentina, opposition deputies managed to install budget and education commissions
00:48to increase university funds.
00:57Hello and welcome to From the South.
00:59My name is Belén de los Santos.
01:00I'm from the Telesor studios in Havana, Cuba.
01:03We begin with the news.
01:05In Iran, the leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei, has met with
01:09some of the heads of government coming to the Persian capital to honor the memory of
01:13President Ebrahim Raisi and his eight martyred comrades.
01:18In that respect, the first delegation to arrive in Tehran was the Palestinian resistance,
01:22followed by officials from Iraq, Qatar, Egypt, China and others, while several international
01:28representatives are on their way to attend the ceremony, which will take place at 4 p.m.
01:33local time on Wednesday.
01:40Within this context, the leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei,
01:45led the prayers over the bodies of President Ebrahim Raisi and his comrades in the presence
01:50of millions of people accompanying the funeral procession.
01:54The eight coffins of the victims of the plane crash were received by local people and representatives
01:58of international and religious delegations at the University of Tehran.
02:03The martyrs were mourned by attendants with flowers, pictures and pledges of eternal loyalty,
02:09with the crowd also expressing messages of solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
02:20In this context, the President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, sent his condolences
02:25to the people of Iran following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi.
02:32We express our condolences to the people of Iran for the death in an accident of the President
02:50of Iran and the foreign minister of this republic, of this nation.
02:59So far, this is the information we have.
03:07Our deepest condolences for the death of these leaders, the President, the foreign minister
03:16and other members of the government of Iran.
03:21Likewise, Russian President Vladimir Putin also expressed his solidarity with the people
03:26of Iran over the death of President Ebrahim Raisi.
03:32The death of President Raisi is a great loss, first of all to Iran and the Iranian people,
03:37of course.
03:38Please convey my deepest condolences for this tragedy.
03:41In fact, he was a very reliable partner, a simple man.
03:56And we move on to other topics.
04:03Spain, Norway and Ireland recognized Palestine as an independent state on Wednesday.
04:08The measure will be formally adopted by the three countries on May 28th.
04:12The Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Carstor, gave a press conference in Oslo in which he
04:17assured that there can be no peace if Israel and Palestine do not have their own state.
04:23Just before, the Norwegian Foreign Minister, Espen Barth, had assured that if the Israeli
04:27Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, touched Norwegian territory, he would be arrested
04:32in accordance with the decision of the Criminal Court of Justice.
04:40So this is both to say that we will recognize Palestine as a state, which has been long
04:44in the making and at the moment is right, but that the context in which we do that is
04:49support for this regional comprehensive peace vision.
04:55In this regard, Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, announced that his country will join
05:00those in the world that recognize the Palestinian state.
05:06I would like to inform you that after having reached a consensus decision between the two
05:10parties that formed the pro-resistance coalition government and echoing the majority sentiment
05:15of the Spanish people, next Tuesday, May 28th, Spain will approve in its Council of
05:21Ministers the recognition of the state of Palestine.
05:28On the other hand, Pedro Sanchez also assured in a clear message to the European government
05:34that in defense of human rights can have no double standards.
05:40Therefore, we cannot allow, we, the countries that defend human rights and the international
05:46order based on rules, we are obliged to act in Ukraine and in Palestine without double
05:50standards, we are obliged to do everything in our power, sending humanitarian aid as
05:56we are doing, assisting refugees and displaced people as we are doing, but also using all
06:01the political levers to say loud and clear that we will not allow the destruction by
06:05force of the possibility of the two states, which is the only just and sustainable solution
06:11to this terrible conflict.
06:16And in the meantime, the Irish Prime Minister, Simon Harris, declared that this was a historic
06:21day in the search for peace and security for Palestine and Israel.
06:25It is a statement of unequivocal support for a two-state solution, the only credible path
06:32to peace and security for Israel, for Palestine and for their peoples.
06:40In this context, the Palestinian government and one state thanked the European government
06:44that decided to recognize the independence of its state.
06:48In this regard, President Mahmoud Abbas affirmed in an official statement that his government
06:52appreciates the contribution of this decision to the Palestinian people's right to self-determination
06:58in their land and to the adoption of real measures to support the implementation of
07:02this two-state solution.
07:05In the meantime, the Palestinian leader also called on the countries of the world that
07:09have not yet recognized Palestine as a state to do so in accordance with the solution based
07:14on resolutions of international legitimacy.
07:20Meanwhile, in Rafah, southern Gaza, thousands of Palestinians have been under heavy shelling
07:30and crossfire for the last 12 hours.
07:32The attacks occur as Israel is engaging in hefty clashes with the Palestinian resistance
07:38while in the Talal Sultan town.
07:40The few agencies in the area also reported heavy shelling by the regime.
07:45The current situation in the Gaza Strip continues to escalate despite repeated warnings from
07:50humanitarian organizations, the Palestinian media, and the Gazan leadership.
07:56Neither the United Nations nor the international community have taken action to avert the catastrophe
08:01that thousands of Palestinians are experiencing.
08:04In this setting, even the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees,
08:10which used to have an unwavering presence, has been forced to suspend food distribution
08:15due to insecure conditions.
08:23And on Tuesday, the spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General Stefan Duharric
08:28recalled that U.S. President Joseph Biden that the decisions of the global institutions
08:33must be respected.
08:34Duharric answered in this way to the U.S. President's criticism of the ruling regarding
08:39Israel declared by the International Court of Justice prosecutor.
08:43Earlier, the head of the White House and Israel's main partner in the genocidal operation against
08:49Gaza referred to the veredict as outrageous, paying more attention to the comparison between
08:54Hamas and what Biden calls the Hebrew State than to the nearly 40,000 Palestinian deaths.
09:07And the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities of the University of Chile is nowadays the
09:12first institution of higher education to break academic relations with its Israeli counterpart
09:17in repudiation of the genocide against the Palestinian people.
09:21The decision was taken in the context of the takeover of the central house by students
09:26protesting against the massacre committed by the Tel Aviv army, especially in Gaza,
09:32which has already claimed the lives of more than 35,000 people, mostly women and children.
09:38A statement from the dean's office of the faculty disseminated on social networks announced
09:43the suspension of the cooperation agreement signed in 1999 with the International Center
09:49for University Teaching of Jewish Culture and the Institute of Judaic Sciences of the
09:55Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
10:02And now let's take a short break, but remember you can join us on TikTok at TELUS or English
10:06where you will find news in different formats, news updates and much more.
10:11Other stories coming up, stay with us.
10:30Welcome back to From the South.
10:33Libertarian government in Argentina suffered a heavy defeat this Tuesday.
10:37The opposition deputies managed to install budget and education commissions to increase
10:42university funds.
10:43With 152 votes of the Peronist Union for the Homeland, the left front and center parties,
10:50they defeated the right wing Together for Change and the ruling libertarians who could
10:54only add up to 81 votes in a session that lasted more than five hours.
10:59The initiatives presented by the opposition are meant to declare the budget emergency
11:04and update the financing items for the national public universities in the country.
11:15When we are brought here to discuss laws that have to do with the university, as if the
11:19university were an island, we are very surprised, because those of us who are moved, when we
11:26of boys and girls who have to stop studying because they can't pay the rent, because they
11:31were fired from their jobs and can't continue working to pay for their studies.
11:36We know that the cuts that are being made to the public university and that we are trying
11:40to deal with today, and we don't know yet if it will be successful or not, is not an
11:46isolated act.
11:47It is part of the brutal cuts that the government of Argentina is carrying out.
11:54And with Spain, Argentina's teachers and police protests continue in the province of
11:58Misiones to demand wage increases.
12:01The mobilization rejects the neoliberal policies of Mele's government that affect provincial
12:06budgets.
12:07The demonstrators confirmed on Monday that no agreement had been reached with the authorities,
12:12so they would continue with their demands.
12:15The police agents' requests include the payment of the wages that they are owed and a salary
12:20increase of over 100 percent to reach the basic food basket and improve the overall
12:26income in face of the current inflation.
12:29The mobilizations could affect the national commerce since Misiones is a logistic node
12:34in the triple border with Paraguay and Brazil.
12:42The Argentinian Healthcare Workers' Union also reached its second day of protest through
12:47informative assemblies to demand a salary increase.
12:50A statement from the Federation of Argentinian Healthcare Workers' Association, FAATSA,
12:56stated that there are 300,000 employees at national level who have no recognition or
13:02claims of any kind from the business sector and that their salaries have lost purchasing
13:07power due to the country's economic situation.
13:10The representatives of this union state that after numerous meetings with the employers
13:16representatives there is no consensus for the salaries to be in accordance with the
13:22work that they perform.
13:29In other news, congressmen, social leaders and representatives of the Executive of Colombia
13:35alerted to the dangerous messages sent by former President Álvaro Uribe to the military.
13:41At an event held on Tuesday at the University of La Sabana in Cundinamarca, Uribe, who has
13:48judicial proceedings against him for crimes of bullying and procedural fraud, called on
13:54the armed forces to disobey the president, Gustavo Petro, further expressing that the
13:59armed forces could not stand still by government orders.
14:03These declarations coincide with the security crisis initiated in Cauca by the dissidents
14:08of the FARC, known as the Central General Staff.
14:13In response, various sectors have reacted to Uribe's words and reminded him that the
14:18armed forces are not deliberative.
14:38In the United States, a tornado described by regional authorities as apocalyptic leaves
14:43several people dead in Iowa.
14:46State police spokesman Alex Dinkla said that so far 12 people have been reported injured,
14:51all of them from the community of Greenfield.
14:54The city has been under a mandatory curfew since 10 p.m. local time on Tuesday, which
15:00will last until 7 a.m. on Wednesday.
15:03The media has also been evacuated from the area.
15:06What is known so far is that the powerful storms that hit the Midwest have caused multiple
15:11tornadoes such as the one that devastated this community of barely 2,000 inhabitants.
15:23Also in Cuba, members of the Force Ranger Corps controlled one of the force fires in
15:27the municipality of San Juan y Martinez in the western province of Pinar del Rio.
15:33Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Pireda, head of the Force Ranger Corps, reported that local
15:38agricultural workers and peasants from the place known as Agua Dulce arrived at the affected
15:45place to help prevent the fire from spreading further.
15:48The rain was also another ally in putting down the flames.
15:52Nevertheless, between 150 and 156 hectares of Pino Garivea Joven were affected by the fire.
16:08We have a final short break coming up, but before we invite you to join our WhatsApp
16:12community for our English-speaking audience, you can scan the QR code on screen to join
16:16directly and also share the link to reach more people.
16:19Join us for instant news coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean as well as the rest
16:23of the world.
16:24Stay connected and informed with Telesur.
16:26Final short break, don't go away.
16:46Welcome back to From the South.
16:48In Vietnam, the parliament approved an appointment issued by the Communist Party with the purpose
16:53of naming Thu Lam, current Minister of Public Security, as the new president of the country.
17:00The poll resulted in 472 votes in favor out of 473 present.
17:05The new head of state sworn in at the parliamentary headquarters.
17:09Thu Lam is 66 years old, holds a doctorate in law and has been condecorated several times.
17:16He pledged his absolute loyalty to the country, the people and the constitution during his
17:22inauguration speech at the National Assembly meeting on Wednesday in Hanoi, the capital
17:27of the country.
17:28President of China, Xi Jinping, already congratulated the parliament of Vietnam and Lam for the
17:33presidency.
17:42In this context, the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, expressed in a post on the
17:46social network X that on behalf of the Venezuelan people, he congratulates Thu Lam, who was
17:52sworn in as president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
17:56In this sense, he also stressed that his government reaffirms its commitment to continue to raise
18:01bilateral fraternal relations to the highest level in the various areas of cooperation.
18:11In other news, one man has died and 30 people have been injured in Singapore Airlines flight
18:16that has to make an emergency landing in Bangkok, Thailand due to heavy turbulence.
18:21The flight, which left London Heathrow Airport on Monday night, was bound for Singapore.
18:26The deceased is a 73-year-old British citizen who was traveling with his wife and allegedly
18:32suffered a heart attack.
18:34The Boeing 777-300ER was carrying 211 passengers and 18 crew members, according to the airline.
18:42Among the 30 injured, seven of them are in critical condition.
18:47Videos posted on social network X show a dozen ambulances arriving on the tarmac to attend
18:54the injured.
19:01In Russia, the military have started the first phase of training on the preparation and use
19:05of non-strategic nuclear weapons.
19:08This exercise was convened by the commander of the Southern Military Region, which is
19:13aimed at maintaining military readiness in view of the statements of Western officials.
19:18It is worth noting that the missile forces are practicing the preparation for the use
19:23of Iskander tactical missile systems, in addition to the aviation, will provide aviation weapons
19:29including Kinzhal hypersonic missiles with special payloads and will proceed to patrol its area.
19:46Two centuries-old sculptures stolen from Thailand were returned to the Asian country by the
19:51Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
19:54The pieces, dating back to the 11th century, are a standing gold plate bronze representation
20:00of the Hindu god Shiva and another annealing image of a woman with gold and silver decorations.
20:07Both sculptures arrived to custom facilities in Bangkok, where experts carried out a first
20:12inspection.
20:14An official ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday to celebrate the return of the sculptures,
20:18which will be transferred for display at the National Museum.
20:22The Metropolitan Museum removed the pieces from the exhibition and announced their return.
20:33And like this, we have come to the end of this news brief, but you can find these and
20:36many other stories on our website at www.tellus4english.net and also join us on social media.
20:42We are on Facebook, X, Instagram, Telegram and also on TikTok.
20:46For Tell Us Your English, my name is Belén de los Santos.
20:49Thank you for watching.
20:52Bye for now.