 Hello and welcome to International Daily Roundup by People's Dispatch where we bring you major news developments from around the world. Our headlines. Protesters demand justice as Lebanon marks one year since Beirut port blast. Teachers in Ecuador enter fourth week on hunger strike for education reform. And in our video section, we take a look at the national model Monday protests held in the US. In our first story, we go to Lebanon which marked one year since the Beirut port blast on August 4th. Thousands of people helped protest in the capital city to demand justice for the victims and survivors. At least 218 people were killed and over 6,500 were injured in an explosion in 2020. The blast was caused after hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate being stored at the port ignited. It was later found that the material had been improperly stored for 7 years. Banks, government offices and most commercial activities remained closed on Wednesday as Lebanon observed a day of mourning. People gathered near the port carrying photos of the victims in the Lebanese flag. Protesters also gathered outside the parliament building which was soon attacked by riot police using tear gas, water cannons and batons. At least 84 people were also left injured. People have also denounced what they are calling an obstruction into the investigation into the blast. Protests were previously held outside the interior minister's residence in July. At the time, investigative judge Tarek Bitar had requested the immunity granted to politicians and security chiefs be lifted. However, the request was denied by Interior Minister Mohammed Fahmi. Bitar's criticism had been dismissed after he charged three ministers and caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diya with criminal negligence. The ongoing unrest in Lebanon is taking place against a backdrop of a severe economic and political crisis. Mass power outages and shortages of food, fuel and medicines are being reported. During the protests on Wednesday, people raised the slogans used during the 2019 mass anti-government uprisings. In our next story, we go to Ecuador where over 30 teachers have entered their fourth week on hunger strike. The protest action began on July 12 to demand the implementation of the organic law of intercultural education. The reform will modify around 80% of the existing education system. It will increase the share of the education budget in the GDP to 6%. The law also includes guarantees for inclusive and quality public education and provides free internet and education institutions. It will employ special education teachers for students with disabilities at all levels. The basic salary of teachers will also be increased from 817 US dollars to 1,086 dollars. Despite being passed unanimously by the National Assembly in March, the law has not been implemented. It has been suspended due to a lawsuit filed by the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute. It is in this context that the National Union of Educators called the hunger strike. The action began in four cities and is now spread to 11 provinces with around 80 people on strike. They are demanding that the Constitutional Court ratify the law and order its implementation. The hunger strikers have also denounced the salary cuts imposed by the government during the pandemic. Thousands of teachers were also dismissed from their jobs. With the hunger strike crossing its 24-day mark, the health of several protesters has started to decline. Solidarity protests have been organized in several areas including Gaya Kil, Santo Domingo, Potopaxi and other places. A certain protest outside the IES building in Quito was also violently repressed by the police. Teachers have denounced these violence in attempts by the right-wing government to have the law annulled. And for our final story, we go to the US where the National Moral Monday protest was held on August 2nd. Hundreds of people took to the streets in Washington DC to denounce voter suppression laws. They also reiterated demands for a $15 an hour federal minimum wage. The protest was called by the Poor People's Campaign as part of the season of non-violent, moral direct action. Here is a video feature on Monday's protests. Faith, leaders and low wage workers took to the streets of the US Capitol on August 2nd in defense of voting rights and for a minimum wage of $15 per hour. The National Moral Monday protest was organized by the Poor People's Campaign as part of their season of non-violent, moral direct action. Hundreds participated in the civil disobedience action organized outside the Capitol. Around 200 protesters were arrested by the police including renowned ministers and civil rights activists Reverend Barber, Reverend Liz Theoharis and Reverend Jesse Jackson. The protest's key demands are to pass all provisions of the For the People Act. The For the People Act aims to combat voter suppression, reduce the role of money in politics and limit gerrymandering by state governments. The For the People Act will also standardize federal election rules and reform the Federal Election Commission. It also limits states' ability to redistrict without federal approval, reformed campaign financing provisions and set up new ethics rules for major federal posts. End the filibuster. The bill has been stored in the 50-50 Senate because of the filibuster and thus Democrats can't push the legislation through without Republican support. Filibuster is a political procedure which allows members of Congress to delay the passing of a vote or law by debating over it for an extended period of time. The third demand is to fully restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The historic law passed on August 6, 1965 was one of the key victories of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. It prohibits state and local governments from passing laws or policies that could deny citizens the right to vote based on race. The law was significantly debilitated in the ruling in 2013 and voters' rights advocates argue that today voters have even less protections than they did when the law was passed. The fourth demand is to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour. Social movements have been long demanding a federal minimum living wage for $15 per hour. The Poor People's Campaign's season of nonviolent moral direct action comes at a time of increased attacks by conservatives on the voting rights of marginalized communities and a deep economic crisis in the country, first and foremost affecting working-class people. They mobilized just days after the country's eviction moratorium had expired, which put at least 3.6 million tenants at risk of eviction until its emergency renewal on Tuesday, August 3. According to the Poor People's Campaign's research from 2019, more than 140 million people in the United States are below the poverty line or one crisis away from being below the poverty line. With the economic impact of the pandemic, this number has grown exponentially.