 Hello, you are watching the International Daily Roundup by People's Dispatch, where we bring you some of the major stories from around the world. Let's take a look at the headlines. Charges dropped against Palestine action activists. Protests against steel plant continue in Odisha in India. Barbados Labour Party secures land-style electoral victory. And the Colombian Code debates decriminalisation of abortion. In our first story, all charges against three activists of the UK-based Palestine Action protest network have been dropped. The case was later to an action at Wine Property Management Ltd in Birmingham on 5th July 2021. The company manages a factory of the Israeli weapons company Elbit. Palestine action activists shut down the company's site to demand an end to its complicity with Elbit and by extension Israel's war crimes. The facility managed by Wine Property manufactures engines used in Elbit's Hermes and Watchkeeper drones. The Hermes drone has played a central role in Israeli surveillance and targeting missions. It was first tested against Palestinians during the 2014 war on Gaza. The three activists who shut down Wine Property's site were charged with criminal damage, aggravated trespass and resisting arrest. However, the Birmingham Magistrates Code dismissed the charges on January 20. As per a statement by Palestine Action, crown prosecutors failed to offer any evidence. This was following serious failings by the police. The ruling follows just three weeks after three other Palestine activists were cleared of criminal damage charges. They argued that their actions were proportionate given Elbit's role in Israeli war crimes. Thursday's legal victory also took place after Palestine Action's efforts led to the shutdown of an Elbit factory in Oldham. The network led 18 months of direct action including occupying and blockading the site and dousing it with red paint. Next we go to the Indian state of Odisha which has been witnessing protests against a major steel plant. People in the village of Dinkia have been resisting the transfer of nearly 3,000 acres of their land to JSW Uthkal Steel Limited. The proposed plant will have a manufacturing capacity of 13.2 million tons of steel per year. Villagers say that the project will impact 40,000 people in Dinkia and neighbouring areas. The land in question is used to cultivate rice and beetle. While protests have been ongoing for two months, violence by police forces escalated last week. On January 14, hundreds of armed police entered Dinkia after beating, after breaking the wooden barricades erected by the villagers. Videos circulated online showed people being beaten with wooden beatings. As per local reports, over 100 people were injured and several others were arrested. Raw connections reported that people had refused to give police access to the beaten mines. Police have been accused of raising the land without the villagers' consent. In the day since the crackdown, activists have reportedly been denied access to Dinkia. Restrictions and entry and exit have also left injured villagers unable to access medical care. Police have arrested several people leading men in the village to flee to avoid persecution. The current protests are taking place after a 12-year long struggle against a South Korean steel giant, Posco. The company was ultimately forced to shut down its plant after sustained protests. Villagers have argued that the transfer of land to JSW steel took place without proper consultation that is mandated by the law. Next, we go to Barbados which held its first general election since becoming a republic this week. Prime Minister Mia Motley had called a snap election on January 19. Over 266,000 people were eligible to vote in the election and initial estimates indicated a turnout of 50%. As per the results declared on January 20, the ruling Barbados Labour Party won all 30 seats in the House of Assembly. Motley has now been elected to serve a second consecutive term. Venice's election was held months after the country officially severed its remaining colonial ties with the British monarchy. Governor General Sandra Mason was elected to replace Queen Elizabeth II as the president of Barbados. Prime Minister Motley has pledged to focus on renewable energy projects, financial security, nutrition and housing. The island country's tourism-dependent economy has suffered heavily due to the pandemic. It has also recorded over 37,000 COVID-19 cases so far. The new cabinet is expected to be announced next week. Meanwhile, she has received support from other leaders in the Latin American and Caribbean region. She has also pledged to maintain a foreign policy based on the principles of multilateralism. And for our final story, Colombia's constitutional court resumed debate on the decriminalization of abortion on January 20. However, the eight-member bench was split four to four on the matter. Colombia legalized abortion under specific circumstances in 2006. This applied to cases of rape, threat to life or health and a fatal abnormality in the fetus. In 2020, a coalition of over 90 groups called Cosa Justa filed a case in the constitutional court. They argued that criminalizing abortion had pushed people to seek clandestine and unsafe services. The group has said that nearly five years since they filed the case, over 45,000 people have been forced to undergo unsafe abortions. The constitutional court was supposed to issue a ruling on the matter last year. However, the nine-judge on the bench requested an accusal reportedly on the grounds of an impediment to impartiality. The request was granted on January 20. The court has agreed to appoint a new judge for a re-vote in the future. But in 2006 and mid-2019, around 350 women were sanctioned or convicted for undergoing abortions. At least 80 among them were girls under the age of 18. Cosa Justa argued that these prosecutions have worsened stigma and fear among patients. If the bench and rules in favor of Cosa Justa, abortion will be removed from the penal court. However, this will not automatically expand the grounds for legal abortion in Colombia. And that's all for today's episode. For more such stories, visit our website, People's Dispatch Note, ORG and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.