- 2 days ago
* Colombia elects national congress for the 2026-2030 term
* Dozens of civilians killed or injured in Israeli bombings
* Dozens of civilians killed or injured in Israeli bombings
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00:14Venezuela holds the first National Public Consultation of 2026 this Sunday, March 8th,
00:19a direct democracy exercise to solve communists needs. And in Colombia, legislative elections
00:28are underway where citizens elected representatives to the Senate and House of Representatives for the
00:332026-2030 term. And Israeli forces bombed southern Lebanon and the suburbs of Beirut multiple times,
00:45leaving dozens of civilians dead or injured.
01:07Hello, welcome to From the South. I'm Luis Alberto Matos from Telecom Studios in Caracas, Venezuela.
01:12We begin with the news.
01:29Venezuela celebrates the first public consultation of 2026, a democratic process where the people
01:34choose the projects that best meet the needs of each commune. From the early hours of Sunday morning,
01:39Venezuelans go to the polling stations to vote on thousands of projects proposed by the communes.
01:44With more than 36,000 projects, 67% are focused on economic transformation and the optimization of
01:50public services, while 33% seek to strengthen local enterprises and production chains.
01:55The National Public Consultation seeks national development through a communal state
01:59framed by democratic and protagonistic participation.
02:17And on March 8th, Venezuela celebrates the first public consultation of 2026, characterized by citizen
02:22participation, popular power, and self-governance of the communes. Let's take a closer look at
02:27this democratic exercise in the following work.
02:33Venezuelans are called to participate in the first national public consultation of 2026 on March 8th,
02:39with figures that promote direct democracy. 5,336 communes or communal circuits, 10,210 voting centers,
02:48and 11,476 polling stations, according to data from the National Electoral Council. The event coincides with
02:56the International Women's Day, reiterating their leading role in the process of economic and social transformation.
03:04Each communal circuit selects up to two winning projects, the first and second most voted for direct state funding,
03:10eliminating intermediaries and transforming votes into tangible works. Venezuelans, age 15 and over,
03:16are eligible to vote in the election process. 36,416 projects have been submitted by more than 47,000
03:25active communal councils. 67 percent, some 24,398 initiatives, promote the government's seven
03:33transformation vision, with Transformation II, Humane Cities, focusing on public services such as water,
03:39electricity, and transportation, affected by unilateral coercive sanctions. The remaining 33 percent,
03:45with approximately 11,997 initiatives submitted, activate Transformation I, Economy, with entrepreneurship
03:53and productive chains for local sovereignty. The 10 municipalities with the highest participation
03:58gained extra funding for youth projects, rewarding mobilization.
04:04In 2025, under the administration of President NicolĂĄs Maduro, four public consultations were held
04:09on February 2nd, April 27th, July 27th, and November 23rd, laying the foundations for 2026. The Federal
04:17Government Council transferred 71 percent of resources directly to the people, financing 35,037 projects,
04:25from six consultations, with a community-bound network expanded from 140 to 1,836. Governorates led 502
04:36structural works. 327 mayor's office managed 751 projects in roads, health, and education, demonstrating
04:46impeccable efficiency of 96 percent of the parts of the people's power, 92 percent on the part of
04:52governorates, and 89 percent of the part of mayoralties. March 8th is the first consultation of the year,
05:00strengthening the management of popular power, and deepening the direct financing of community
05:04projects throughout the country. And Venezuela's Minister for Commons, Ăngel Prado highlighted the
05:13importance of this public consultation as it demonstrates the power of the people to bring
05:16their projects to life and sets an example of participatory democracy for the world.
05:24There was and is a schedule proposed by the National Electoral Council, which was accepted
05:30in the 5,336 territories where voting is taking place today. And it has been truly splendid,
05:36very colorful campaign, with a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of leadership, a lot of participation,
05:42a lot of activities, and well, it is a message to the world that Venezuela is standing strong,
05:47and that we continue to defend our democracy, our model of democracy.
05:53Minister Ăngel Prado emphasized the power of the management of the commune,
05:57democracy's accountability, which reflects the honesty of the organized people and the trust
06:01placed in President NicolĂĄs Maduro's plan for 2024.
06:06At these meetings, accountability is given for projects implemented with previous resources
06:11for the consultations we conducted during 2024 and 2025. And I can assure you that there is moral
06:17to solvency, especially in that leadership, which is mostly made up of women who have done things
06:23right, worked with honesty, being accountable, delivered their work for their communities.
06:28And that is why there is great credibility in this method proposed by President NicolĂĄs Maduro,
06:34starting in 2024, which is to execute a good part of the nation's budget with the power of people,
06:41always trusting in our people.
06:44In this context, Venezuela's acting president, Dr. Rodriguez, called on citizens to go out and boot
06:49on the first public consultation of 2026. Through a message shared on her Telegram account,
06:54Rodriguez shared, let's enthusiastically participate in the first 2026 public consultation.
07:00We citizens are masters of our own destiny, choosing and self-managing community projects.
07:05Long live Venezuela.
07:06We go back tochnitten by an exciting Latino election in activity.
07:11What are you going to do now?
07:1180% to chce kickoff the universal party.
07:1580% to chce greaseáťc
07:26That's it.
07:36They want to explore questions from the lucha****.
07:40In Colombia, legislative elections are underway where citizens will elect their representative
07:44to the Senate and House of Representatives for the 2026-2030 term.
07:48More than 41 million Colombians are eligible to exercise their right to vote in more than
07:5313,492 polling stations nationwide.
07:56In addition, citizens will also vote in the Consultations on Solutions, the Great Consultation
08:00for Colombia and the Front for Life, where the presidential candidates who will participate
08:05in the elections on May 31st, will be selected.
08:08Voting is expected to conclude at 4 p.m. local time.
08:17Colombian President Gustavo Petro highlighted the deployment of police forces nationwide to
08:22protect the popular vote.
08:27Demonstrate to the very last, especially in something called the decision of Colombian society
08:32today, we also began a week ago, 10 days exactly, with a second element that had not existed
08:40in the history of Colombia, that the national police actually takes to the streets to ensure
08:48the transparency of the vote against crimes, against the suffrage, crimes committed by the
08:54citizens who have gone so far as to make people in several regions of Colombia, believe that
09:03buying and selling votes is normal in politics, leading them to believe that Colombian politician,
09:14culture itself, consists of a market for buying human beings, their mindsets, and their decisions.
09:21The Colombian president indicated that more than one million citizens committed to protecting
09:26the vote amidst complaints and irregularities.
09:34Today, one million citizens have decided to protect voting.
09:39They will have problems, I imagine.
09:42Such large numbers are not easy.
09:46They are not perfect, but one million citizens protecting voting, the people protecting voting
09:53until the final stage, even comparing vote counting records with the actual results from the polling
10:00stations will allow Colombia to take even great care with its decisions, whatever they may be.
10:10A people that take care with its decisions is a democratic people.
10:16Before having democratic institutions, a democratic culture is needed among the population.
10:27In this context, Colombian President Gustavo Petro exercises his right to vote early in the morning.
10:32President Petro urged the Colombian people to go to their assigned polling stations to elect their legislative representatives.
10:37More than 400 international observers arrived in Colombia with the aim of ensuring the transparency of the process
10:43in light of the head of state's allegations of possible attempts at fraud.
10:47The Colombian president reminded citizens that voting is a key tool for democracy and for defining the country's direction.
11:04I just voted for the Senate and chamber of deputies, so I invite other Colombians to follow this path, deciding
11:14in Colombia.
11:18Today, basically, who makes the law is fundamental, who makes the law they make it as the constitution requires for
11:26the general interest,
11:28that is, for the people of Colombia.
11:32To that end, I invite all citizens to choose who, men or women or party, can represent the general interest
11:41of the voter.
11:50In other topics, in Norway, various social organizations gather in front of the national parliament to demand the end of
11:56the U.S. blockade and aggression against Cuba.
11:58The rally was organized by the Norwegian-Cuba Friendship Association and brought together dozens of people in the city of
12:04Oslo
12:05on the slogan, Not to Yankee Military Aggression,
12:08protesters called for greater cooperation from the Norwegian government towards the people of Cuba.
12:13Cubans residing in Norway also joined the event as a show of support for the nation.
12:25And Cuban President Miguel DĂaz-Canel rejected on Saturday the summit convened by the United States and right-wing governments
12:31in the region,
12:31asserting that it represents an attack on regional sovereignty under the precepts of the Monroe Doctrine.
12:37Precisely through his telegram channel, DĂaz-Canel stated,
12:56Concluding by stating,
12:58It is an attack on the proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a zone of peace,
13:03an attack on the aspirations of regional integration,
13:06and a manifestation of the willingness to submit to the interests of the powerful northern neighbor
13:10under the precepts of the Monroe Doctrine.
13:32At least 25 people died in Kenya due to heavy rains and flooding that occurred between Friday afternoon and Saturday,
13:38especially in Nairobi, where most of the victims were reported.
13:42Nairobi authorities confirmed that the victims died from drowning and electrocution,
13:46warning that the death toll could rise.
13:48In response to the emergency, air traffic was suspended or diverted to Mombasa,
13:52while the army joined the rescue efforts.
13:54President William Ruto deployed a multi-agency team to evacuate citizens in imminent danger
13:59to safe areas in the face of persistent rain.
14:14And in the Dominican Republic, in response to the advance of an active drought,
14:18the authorities have issued warnings of heavy rains in several regions.
14:22The Emergency Operations Center declared a yellow alert for Greater Santo Domingo and San Cristobal
14:27and a green alert for 11 other provinces due to heavy rains and thunderstorms.
14:31The population was also urged to avoid flood-prone areas and stay informed,
14:35as atmospheric instability will persist in the coming days.
14:51Let's now take a break, but before we invite you to join us for another episode of Overlap,
14:57Conversations from Across the World, our special program together with China Academy,
15:01this time on our eighth episode addressing the United States and Israel's war on Iran
15:05and the geopolitical implications of the conflict.
15:07Tune in on Sunday, March 8th at 9 p.m. Coracas time,
15:11and on Monday, March 9th, 9 a.m. Beijing time, only on Telesur.
15:48Welcome back.
15:49Thousands of Iranian women staged a symbolic protest in solidarity with the mothers of the victims of the joint U
15:56.S.-Israeli military aggression.
15:58For this, demonstrators took to the streets of the Iranian city of Boucher, wrapped in shrouds as a gesture of
16:04mourning and defiance.
16:06Gathering public squares, the actions sought to express solidarity with the mothers of the martyrs,
16:10while also expressing their support for the Persian nation's response in defense of its sovereignty in the face of foreign
16:15aggression.
16:22Iranian President Masoud Peshezkyan affirmed that his nation has not vowed and will not vow to the injustice of the
16:28United States and Israel,
16:29urging the people to remain united in the face of current challenges.
16:32In a statement, the President said,
16:44The enemy has naĂŻve perceptions of my statements and seeks to ignite a war between Iran and neighboring states.
17:04Israeli forces bombed southern Lebanon and the suburbs of Peru multiple times, leaving dozens of civilians dead or injured.
17:10Health authorities report at least 20 people killed by the Israeli occupation, most of them children and women,
17:15following an attack on a house in the district of Nabatyeh.
17:19The attack caused significant damage to residential areas in the early hours of Sunday morning.
17:25Rescue teams are working in the affected areas to recover the bodies of missing victims.
17:40And the Islamic resistance announced the execution of the three simultaneous military operations against Israeli targets during the day of
17:48last Saturday, March 7th.
17:50The offensive response to the aggression against Lebanese territory and the southern suburb of Beirut.
17:54The escalation began on Friday, March 6th, when resistance fought and Israeli special forces raid into the Nambi Sheet Mountains
18:01in Beka.
18:01It was emphasized that the actions defend national sovereignty and are strictly limited to military objectives.
18:07In the absence of official reports from Israel on the damage, the region remains on high alert due to the
18:12risk of continued conflict.
18:20And in retaliation for the Israeli aggressions, the Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah, carried out a missile attack on the city
18:26of Kirkiyat-Mona, north of the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel.
18:30Their release images show columns of smoke and flames consuming areas of the Israeli settlement.
18:35This operation constitutes a direct response to the ongoing Israeli aggressions against Lebanon and takes place within the framework of
18:42the original escalation triggered by the joint United States and Israel offensive against Iran.
18:47Hezbollah, thus, reaffirms its commitment to the defense of Lebanese sovereignty and its support for the Palestinian resistance in a
18:53context where the Israeli bombings, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, have caused around 217 deaths and 798 injuries.
19:08And in the U.S., the Trump administration approved the sale of 12,000 bomb casings to the Israeli regime
19:14for $151.8 million without congressional authorization.
19:18According to a statement from the State Department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, the package includes 470-kilogram shells plus
19:26technical, logistical and engineering support services provided by the White House and private defense contractors.
19:32The transaction was backed in the midst of Washington and Tel Aviv military aggression against Iran, leaving military support for
19:39the Israeli offensive.
19:40This new sale of weapons was approved invoking emergency authority to waive congressional review requirements.
19:46It evidenced the U.S. complicity with the Zionist regime's military actions, ignoring the mechanisms of legislative control.
19:58And Kuwait has temporarily reduced crude oil production and refining operations due to escalating regional tensions and security risks around
20:06the state of Hormuz.
20:07In a statement released on Saturday, the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation announced the decision as a precautionary step taken as instability
20:14around the state of Hormuz continues to grow.
20:17The decision comes after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officials declared this week that the weatherway is under control of
20:24Iran's naval forces.
20:26Since the start of the U.S.-Israeli aggressions in the Middle East, the energy market has suffered greatly, especially since
20:31on the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important energy corridors, depends an important portion of crude oil
20:38trade.
20:48Well, like this, we have come to the end of this news review.
20:50You can find this and many other stories on our website at telestoryenglish.net.
20:53So join us on our social media.
20:55We are on Facebook, X, Instagram, Telegram, and TikTok.
20:59For Telestory English, I'm with Alberto Matos.
21:01Thanks for watching.
21:12We'll see you next time.
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