The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has endorsed a Palestinian request to qualify for full membership in the UN, urging the UN Security Council to “reconsider the matter favorably.”
In a vote held on Friday, the 193-member UNGA conducted a global assessment of support for the Palestinian bid to attain full UN membership, which had been blocked by the United States in the UN Security Council the previous month. The assembly passed a resolution on Friday with 143 votes in favor, nine against (including the US and Israel), and 25 abstentions. This resolution does not grant full UN membership to the Palestinians but acknowledges their eligibility to join.
The UNGA resolution “affirms that the State of Palestine … should therefore be admitted to membership” and “recommends that the Security Council reconsider the matter favorably.”
Although the UNGA lacks the authority to confer full UN membership, the adopted resolution on Friday will grant the Palestinians certain additional rights and privileges starting from September 2024, such as a seat among UN members in the assembly hall, although they will not have a vote in the body.
The official opening of the Jaguar Station at Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve marks a significant milestone in conservation efforts. The new reserve was made possible by the generous support of dedicated partners such as the GEF Small Grants Programme – Belize, and the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Climate Change.
The establishment of the Jaguar Station provides rangers with a secure base to enhance surveillance and protection of the Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve. This is a significant development for conservation efforts. The ceremony, held in western Belize, celebrated the establishment of the Jaguar Station, replacing the former basic accommodations that posed challenges for the reserve’s rangers.
The construction of this state-of-the-art facility totaled $450,000.
Twelve Belizean chefs recently completed the Diploma in Culinary Arts Program. According to the Belize Tourism Board (BTB), this achievement was made possible through the collaborative efforts of the BTB, the Ministry of Education, and the esteemed partnership with Florida International University / Accelerating Leaders.
BTB says, “After months of dedication and hard work, our culinarians have mastered various culinary skills including cold food preparation, meats and seafood, soups, stews, and sauces, food and kitchen safety, cultures and cuisines, introductory food science, and menu design.”
Tonight, we begin the news with a recurrent issue that has become a serious concern for anyone who does not have access to a generator – power outage. Earlier today parts of the country experienced a power outage that lasted almost six hours. But while Belize Electricity Limited has reasoned that load-shedding, which is even distribution of the power outages, is necessary to maintain the stability of the national grid, it did not offer a reason for the extended blackout. The outage was beyond annoying, especially for people whose job sites and homes are not equipped with generators to beat the heat. B.E.L. has not given notices of the continuous “load-shedding”, which suggests that the outages are not planned. It mentioned in a notice that its teams continue to work to restore power with the help of its Westlake gas turbine. Prime Minister John Briceno says he will be northbound on Saturday to meet with CFE representatives in Cancun, Mexico.
Prime Minister John Briceño
Prime Minister John Briceño
“BEL’s mandate is transmission and distribution and I know that in many instances, BEL was trying to also produce energy, but that’s not their mandate. What has failed is the process in the previous government with the PUC and I know that the PUC and BEL have always been having this struggle and my message to both of them is we have to stop this foolishness and we need to be able to work together and I believe that we’re seeing that now. The PUC, BEL and the Ministry of Energy all have to be able to work together. So on Saturday, after the funeral of the late Honourable Mike Espat then I’ll fly to Cancun to meet with AMLO and officials from CFE to see how they’d be able to stop the blackouts in Belize. As the CEO of BEL has explained, we have two engines that are going to be commissioned. One is this week, which is about 30 megawatts and once we do that, then we would be able to hold out own. Fortunately, we have already bought a 21 megawatt [engine] that is already stationed in San Pedro. That should be commissioned by the end of the month. Once we have that, that would give us a capacity of about 51 megawatts of electricity. It means that is CFE would need to cut off Belize, these generators could take over without anybody losing electricity and then once CFE can provide to us then we can shut down these engines and get again from Mexico. I know some people ask why would we buy from the Mexicans. We buy from the Mexicans because it is cheaper than using the diesel engines. So we have a plan. I understand the frustration. Myself get upset when my house gets blackout because my house gets blackout too.”
Reporter
“You don’t have a generator?
Prime Minister John Briceño
“I don’t have a generator (chuckles) so I understand the frustration and it has a direct impact on all the work that we’ve been doing these three years, in tourism, the economy, the call centres, in agriculture, production, so we cannot afford this.”
The Prime Minister said that the country is experiencing power outages because of the rapid rate of the country’s growth. He described it as being victims of our own success.
Prime Minister John Briceño
“BEL projected the level of energy that we’re using, we would have been using it in 2028. We are a victim of our own success. The economy has grown so fast that we’re consuming so much energy for 2028 in 2024 and that is why we’re caught in this, but no excuses. We have to make sure to fix the problem.”
As you heard last night, developer David Gegg said that someone from the previous government solicited campaign financing from him prior to the 2020 general elections and informed him via message that it would be the requirement for him to receive environmental clearance for the project. Gegg said that he did not facilitate the stipulation, but after having several meetings with the relevant parties, he felt certain that the project would materialize and hired the law firm of Morales-Peyrefitte to draft up the Definitive Agreement.
David Gegg
David Gegg, Portico Developer
“Having provided all the necessary documents to all parties, and with our environmental studies nearing completion, and having no reason to believe that they would not pass muster, we retained the services of the law firm of Morales Peyrefitte LLP, as a Definitive Agreement was now needed. That firm was recommended to me as a firm that had experience with the drafting and negotiating of agreements with the government. I, at that time, instructed Mr David Morales to draft the Definitive Agreement in conjunction with attorneys from Boskalis in the Netherlands. After several months and after amendments were made by the relevant parties, the draft Definitive Agreement was forwarded on June first, 2021 to Ministers Panton, Peyrefitte, and Contreras.”
Manuela Rash and her children are homeless tonight. The family lost their house and belongings in a fire that erupted on Tuesday afternoon in Trio Village, Toledo District.
Rash told News Five “I lost my house and all my kids need and want I am really in need of help. everything was lost in my house with my beds, clothes, kitchenette stuff andetc.“
For now, Rash and her children are residing in the church’s kitchen.
The cause of the fire is being investigated.
If you would like to assist, you can contact Rash at 665-8557. Deposits can be made to Belize Bank account number 103741010220001.
Amid escalating gang violence in Haiti, a transitional council tasked with steering the country towards stability is undergoing significant changes. Instead of a single council president, four seasoned politicians will rotate leadership every five months, marking a departure from traditional Haitian politics where power is centralized.
This surprising shift aims to foster shared governance and unity within the council, a rarity in Haiti’s political landscape according to experts.
The four members set to share leadership duties include Edgard Leblanc Fils, Louis Gérald Gilles, Leslie Voltaire, and Smith Augustin. These adjustments come after internal conflicts threatened to derail the council shortly after its inception on April 25. Initial disagreements emerged when four council members unilaterally announced a council president and prime minister, sparking widespread surprise and debate.
The next step for the council involves selecting a new Cabinet, a process expected to involve intricate negotiations with influential political figures.
Against a backdrop of unprecedented gang violence that has ravaged the capital, Port-au-Prince, Haiti grapples with dire humanitarian challenges, including food shortages and escalating crime. The recent release of thousands of inmates following prison attacks has further exacerbated security concerns.
The situation remains urgent, requiring decisive action to address the root causes of violence and ensure justice and security for all Haitians.
Majid Khan, a former courier for Al Qaeda, is unable to open a bank account in Belize, because of his past.
Khan began resettling in Belize in February 2023 after being released from Guantanamo Bay where he was detained for 15 years.
He pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges in 2012.
After the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Mr. Khan joined Al Qaeda, agreed to become a suicide bomber and delivered $50,000 that would be used in a deadly hotel bombing in Indonesia.
According to the NYT, Majid has been unable to open a bank account, because of his past. No bank would do business with him. “Life is a test,” he said, describing himself as a glass-half-full guy.
At Belize’s insistence, the United States paid for his home, car and phone and provided a stipend.
“He has yet to sync with Belizean laissez-faire,” said the leader of his mosque, Kaleem El-Amin.
“I need to get patched up,” he said. “Mentally, physically.”
Prime Minister John Briceño met with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday when several issues were discussed. One of the priority topics during their meeting was the supply of power by CFE Mexico to Belize. As Belizeans are aware, the Belize Electricity Limited has had to undertake numerous load shedding exercises because CFE has indicated that it is unable to supply Belize during its peak hours. This has left many Belizeans across the country in darkness for scheduled periods. According to Prime Minister Briceño he was in Mexico on a medical trip with his wife when he reached out to the President’s office to get a phone call with him. The president’s office arranged for them to meet, and a discussion was had about what can be done to address Belize’s energy crisis. We asked PM Briceño about that meeting when we caught up with him this afternoon in Corozal.
Prime Minister John Briceño
Prime Minister John Briceño
“Well first of all I went on a private visit to Mexico but I figured that when I was on my way I would try to get a hold of him and we get along very well so I was hoping to see if he can help us to stop the load shedding in Belize. But I think Mr Mencias rightly pointed out, the seed was planted ten years ago and the previous government did nothing. We have been doing something. We have managed to convince the Saudi to lend us seventy- two million dollars to do a sixty megawatt solar plant. But this us not something you say here is seventy two million dollars, nobody gives that US. There is a whole process and we have been working with them and one of the Saudi company that will be able to come in to build the first twenty. What Mr. Mencias explained to us is that the grid can’t hold sixty megawatts in one spot so we have to break it up in three twenty megawatts plant. The first one is going to be built by Bomba. We expect that will be commissioned by July August of next year. We have been working with the World Bank, borrowing about a hundred million dollars to be able to set up a battery bank. With this battery Bank there is certain times when CFE energy goes to two three cents a kilowatt, around two three o’clock in the morning when there is hardly any use for it so we could buy fortwo or three cents and store it in these battery banks and send it to the grid with the hopes of maintaining the price and hopefully with time to be able to reduce the price.”
