 Hello and welcome to the International Daily, roundup by People's Dispatch where you bring major news developments from across the world, our headlines. Death toll in Beirut blasts reaches 100 over 4000 injured so far. Today marks a year of India stripping Jammu and Kashmir of its statehood and autonomy. Columbia's top court orders the house arrestor, former President Alvaro Uribe and COVID-19 deaths across 700,000 close to 250 deaths are reported every hour worldwide. We begin with Beirut blasts where at least 100 people are reported to have been killed and over 4000 injured in the explosions that rocked Lebanon's capital on Tuesday afternoon. The country's prime minister, Hassan Diab stated that the blasts were caused by more than 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate that was stored in a warehouse in the area. The blasts devastated the port destroyed nearby buildings and caused significant damage to those further away. Reports have suggested that its impact has failed as far as the island of Cyprus. The city's airport, which is about 10 kilometers away, was among the buildings which suffered extensive damage. Reports say that the hospitals in the area have been flooded with the injured with many running out of space to treat patients. Journalists on the ground also reported that a few hospitals have been damaged while authorities are working to find survivors in the blast zone. It is also reported that the blasts destroyed silos that contain 85% of the country's grain and large amounts of medical supplies. The estimated damage amounts to up to 5 billion US dollars and over 200,000 people in the city are expected to be rendered homeless. For a country that is reeling from a debt crisis, widespread unemployment and the fallouts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the blasts will only add to its problems. We now go to Kashmir where today marks the first anniversary of the abrogation of sections of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. The erstwhile state of Jermaine-Kashmir was stripped of both its statehood and its constitutionally-guaranteed autonomy. The state was also bifurcated to form two centrally-administered territories with no self-government. A very harsh communications block-down also would put in place and political leaders were arrested. In this feature video, we bring you some of the implications of this issue. On 5th August 2019, the Government of India revoked Article 370 against the wishes of Majority in Kashmir. As Indian Home Minister, Amit Shah made the announcement in front of cheering Indian parliamentarians and a minuscule opposition, Kashmir Valley was put under an unprecedented siege to crush dissent. The protests were quelled and thousands were arrested. In just a day, BJP changed everything in Kashmir. A year has passed since then, but Kashmir is caught in the moment. To be very honest, I think this year has been a catastrophe to all of us at a personal level and political level also. People are in shock. The mainstream is completely in disarray and we are shocked to the extent that you see sadness all over Kashmir. There's no celebration, there's nothing happening actually. People are silent. And there's a constant state of mourning that people are yet to recover, that this has happened to us. So there is huge anxiety, there is huge anger also and silence in Kashmir. Of course there is fear. Of course there is a lot of fear. But large skilled detentions have contributed to fear and also to silence. People are scared to talk. Last time I spoke I was detained for six months and then for six months I continued to be under house arrest. So I'm taking a huge risk when I'm talking to you. I don't know what is the ramification of talking in the movies in New India, the model which she is talking about. A year has passed since the 70-year-old law was removed in Kashmir and the region was bifurcated into two union territories. Article 370 was considered to be central to Kashmir, a formally princely state's accession to Indian Union in 1947 when a vast majority of Muslims joined the newly created Pakistan. The removal of Article 370 has been a rallying cry of the Hindu right-wing party BJP, so when it came to power for the second time in India following the 2019 parliamentary elections, it laid its eyes on Kashmir, a prized territory in the Himalayas. To remove the law which was referred to as the tunnel between New Delhi and Srinagar, the government had to do something about the opposition in Kashmir. It did so by converting the entire region of Jammu in Kashmir into an open-air jail. All movement was restricted and communication lines were severed. On 5th August last year, without knowing what was about to happen, the people of Kashmir woke up in a severe clampdown. The government was about to make a big decision about the people of Kashmir, but none of them had any clue. As the decision was announced in New Delhi, a young 17-year-old boy, Usaib Altaf, was being murdered on the streets of Kashmir to maintain peace and calm. Kashmir was under siege, a strict lockdown was imposed. The media was not able to cover Usaib's death. Authorities later claimed Usaib was a protester. The State was a place where invasions would come and go. The public held no favour on us. The courts themselves claim that the world would be a mess if there has been no justice. I am afraid to use words today because unless my friend has not come, then we won't be able to say a word. We have received the bribe from Azal since we were born. Since then, we have seen Kashmir as a bribe. We have never seen that. We have done something for Kashmir. Everyone is like this. We say everything to spread our heart. Nothing else. Two days after the abrogation of Article 370, on 7th August, 2019, Shabazz wrote a poem, Kalam Khune Dil Me Tu Bo Kar Lik Hoon Ga. Wudamgut ke marna, hamari wo aahe. Wo sare janaze wo laashon ke ambaar. Me mozu banaakar yeh sab kuch likhoon ga. Me avaz bankar sabhoon ki likhoon ga. Wo jaanu ka jisne bhi soda kiya hain. Me on dushmanon ko jagane ki khadir. Me murda dilon ko uthaane ki khadir. Kalam Khune Dil Me Tu Bo Kar likhoon ga. Me sab kuch likhoon ga. The poetry of young men in Kashmir is smeared in blood, violence and war. A young poet from Palwama, Shabazz writes often on these lines. He feels compelled to write about pain, the loss and death due to the ongoing situation in Kashmir. The thing I was compelled to write was that there was a close friend who broke my mind. He broke my mind here. He was shot in an encounter. Then he lived for a few hours. He was a civilian. He was studying in his 10th grade. So that was the life story that I can never forget. On a personal level, I will say that I am going to hit you tomorrow. I swear. Because the situation is the same. If someone tells the truth, the next day I will say that there will be no name on Safai Kardas. His name will be erased from Safai Husti. So now who is involved in this? Who is not? I will not want to say that. I will say as a poet that if we write and write for ourselves, then it is a challenge for us too. Flowers in the garden have remained in bloom. They have grown in the garden of Arman. The dead are coming out of every place. Now there is the rain of people in the sky. The people of the people of the people of the people of the people of the people of heaven are burning our Kashmir. They are burning our Kashmir. The August 2019 lockdown plunged the state into a sharp downward spiral. By the end of December 2019, the economy of the valley was in dire straits. Economic losses reported by traders and rights groups crossed over 40,000 crores or 5.4 billion dollars. The economy of the valley has already reached 505. 505 is the biggest asset in China. 505 is the lowest US dollar in China. 505 is the highest US dollar in China. If you look closely you can see the rise of the development of the państic economy. In terms of development of the MAXX, Before the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. Their lives have been deeply impacted since. When the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. When the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. When the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. When the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. When the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. When the lockdown of 5th August 2019, the two brothers sustained their families on their own. What compounded the situation for people in Kashmir was another lockdown imposed right when 5th August lockdown was beginning to ease. The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic further pushed the people in the region towards the wall. In March, the government released two former chief ministers of Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah. But both did not talk about politics. They refused to talk about Article 370 until the rest of the political leaders were released from detention or the pandemic was over. On July 31st, authorities again booked former chief minister Mehbub Amufti of the PDP, that is People's Democratic Party under Public Safety Act or PSA, continuing its onslaught on the mainstream politicians of the valley. For the mainstream politicians, such crackdown was something which was totally unexpected, especially after they advocated Indian rule in Kashmir for decades to people who have been opposing it. The anger is so much that you actually feel it is difficult to get dignity in the democratic process which we used to advocate at a point. And this is not happening because democracy has failed. This is because the pattern which is the Indian democracy is being confined and put in a position where Muslims are rendered irrelevant. Muslims are rendered stateless in their own country. We have done a huge disservice to ourselves when we did not at the right time raise such issues. We could have anticipated we were part of a mainstream. If we felt that this is not changing, we should have definitely introspected. But again, I say that in a democratic setup, it's numbers which matters. We tried to experiment with the numbers and we tried not to become part of hate politics. You talk in Punjab, in Haryana, in Maharashtra, you talked about the Constitution of the 35A Constitution of Kashmir. Every Kashmir issue is used in every place in India in the election. But except Kashmiri, every person will do this policy. Our problem, our issue. But we say, you be quiet, be a comedian, you can't talk. But in every election in India, Kashmir will talk. We were in detention and we saw how BJP, Congress, all parties, in Maharashtra, they used to speak in every village on the issue of Kashmir. On 307, 370. They talked in Haryana, in Uttarakhand. In Uttarakhand, they tried to sell this. People were not relating to this issue because it's a totally different issue. But my point is that if you can't shut your mouth, then why are you stopping us? If you can talk about this, then why don't we do it? So this is happening in a democratic country where everything, to every descent, democracy was a solution. That's what we thought always. The violence in Kashmir has not ebbed. The war has not ended. In the first six months of year 2020, over 120 militants have been killed in operations across Kashmir region. A majority of them locals from South Kashmir. There have been over a dozen civilian killings and major militant attacks against security forces. For people here, the situation has only worsened. The war in Kashmir continues, leaving scores dead, properties destroyed and the livelihoods spoiled. Those who survive are left with perpetual heartache dealing with the unbearable losses. When it happened in 5 August, you're pushing people to violence. Then you say that these people have gone mad. People here are not mad. You have been locked up for a year in your house. You have been made like a jail. You have been securitized. Every opinion is thought policing. Someone is tweeting on Facebook. One segment of society is allowed to abuse Kashmiris. Abuse Muslims. One segment of people is criminalized if they show the descent. I'm not defending any anti-state. But the point is that your definitions have to be equal. The childhood I lost, I will go back to that childhood. I would like to spend that childhood peacefully. Without encounters. All the atrocities that have been committed against us. We will say that this is the kind of atrocity that has been committed against us since our childhood. So I will go back to all those things. Uribe will remain under house arrest for the remainder of the judicial process. Uribe has currently over 270 cases against him including that of corruption, bribery, human rights violations, drug trafficking, money laundering and other grave offenses. He has enjoyed complete immunity from any punishment so far. His right wing rule in the country was marked by massive human rights violation and terror. Uribe's detention is a form of preventive custody to ensure that a suspect does not escape or tamper with evidence. Suspects are also put in preventive custody when they are considered a danger to society. Uribe's defense team said that it would appeal the order. Hours after the decision, President Ivan Duque came out in defense of Uribe, posting a video on Twitter condemning the court's decision. Duque is a member of Uribe's Democratic Center party and was groomed by Uribe himself to be the candidate to the right wing coalition in the 2018 elections. Social movements on the other hand have hailed the decision of the court. They held protests demanding that the due process of the lobby followed in this case and against the impunity Uribe has enjoyed all these years. In 2018, Colombia's Supreme Court launched an investigation into the former president for his alleged illegal interference in another probe initiated by left-wing senator Ivan Cepeda in 2012. Cepeda announced accused Uribe of having links to right-wing paramilitaries in the country. He specifically accused Uribe and his brother Santiago of forming the metro block of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia. That's the AUC. That's a paramilitary group in the country. Our next story is an update on the COVID-19 pandemic. The global fatalities have crossed 700,000 as of today. The number of reported infections stands at around 18.7 million and close to 12 million have recovered so far. The United States leads the fatality count with over 160,000 deaths. This is followed by Brazil with 96,000, Mexico with 48,000, the United Kingdom with 46,000 and then India with nearly 40,000 deaths. Close to 6,000 people are dying of COVID-19 related complications on an average day. This translates to nearly 250 deaths an hour. The number of fatalities is expected to rise as levels of infection in many countries are seeing a sudden hike. This is because of the outbreak slowly spreading to rural parts of poorer countries where public health infrastructure will not be in position to deal with it. That's all we have time for today. We'll be back tomorrow with major news developments from across the world. Until then, keep watching People's Dispatch. Thank you very much.