The process of re-energizing the SEN was then initiated, gradually restoring power to certain areas of the country with the goal of expanding and connecting them to eventually reach the thermoelectric plants and restart them. However, a new total disconnection thwarted the progress that had been made.

“Today at 6:15 a.m., the National Electrical System experienced a total disconnection. The Electric Union is working on restoring it,” the state-owned Electric Union (UNE) reported on social media.

On Friday morning, the SEN collapsed due to a failure at the Guiteras thermoelectric plant, one of the country’s main power generators. This caused a complete blackout across the country. The situation had already been labeled as an “energy emergency,” as President Miguel Diaz-Canel had said on Thursday.

This week, the supply of electricity has been reduced by up to 50 percent on some days. As a result, authorities halted all non-essential state labor activities starting Friday, including ministries and schools. Diaz-Canel also stated that “there will be no rest” until electric service on the island is restored and emphasized that the situation is “tense and complex.”

Due to the U.S. blockade, which restricts the influx of foreign currency to Cuba, the SEN is in a very precarious state because of fuel shortages and frequent failures in thermoelectric plants, which have been operating non-stop for over four decades.

Power outages have been common for several years, but since the end of August, the situation has worsened, reaching levels similar to the worst moments, such as in 2021 and 2022.

In recent years, the Cuban government has rented several floating power plants to alleviate the lack of generating capacity. Frequent blackouts are damaging Cuba’s economy, which contracted by 1.9 percent in 2023 and is still below the levels of 2019.

Venezuela Expresses Unconditional Solidarity with Cuba Amid Energy Crisis

La semana pasada, una firma británica que evalúa universidades a nivel global, la QS World University Rankings, posicionó por primera vez a la Universidad de Puerto Rico, nuestra universidad pública, como la primera en el Caribe. 

¡Pero cuánta ironía refleja este dato! Porque desde que el Congreso estadounidense aprobó la Ley Promesa en el 2016 que impuso una Junta de Control Fiscal en Puerto Rico, se le ha recortado tanto al presupuesto de nuestra primera institución que se perdió el programa de Neurocirugía de la Escuela de Medicina por falta de presupuesto. En un país donde escasean los profesionales de la salud, y sobre todo, los especialistas. 

Esa Junta que supuestamente venía a estabilizar la economía luego de que gobiernos corruptos endeudaran a la colonia por más de $74 mil millones, sin embargo, ha demostrado que su verdadera tarea es la de destruir a Puerto Rico para hacer de esta colonia un lugar mucho más idoneo para que se implementen las barbaridades que respondan a los intereses de capitalistas extranjeros. Y para eso intentan acabar con la institución que no solamente ha sacado de la pobreza a miles de familias boricuas al proveerles grados de educación superior, sino que ha sido un importante centro de investigación en diferentes ámbitos científicos y sociales. Es una piedra angular del desarrollo como país.

De hecho, por su importancia, en el 1966 se había aprobado la Ley 2 de Autonomía Fiscal para que la universidad tuviera una fuente constante de ingresos. Recibiría el 9.6% de todo el dinero que entrara al Fondo General que recibe el estado.

Desgraciadamente, aunque esa ley sigue vigente, la junta de gobierno de la UPR se convirtió en achichincle de la Junta de Control Fiscal y cambió el plan fiscal de la universidad de manera que la fórmula no sea efectiva y por lo tanto, se redujo el presupuesto, incluso a menos de la mitad.

Por eso, ahora nos unimos al reclamo de la comunidad universitaria y del pueblo en general. Exigiendo que el gobierno de PR respete la ley y reponga el presupuesto a la UPR, y que garantize también la autonomía fiscal a la Universidad de Puerto Rico.

Desde Puerto Rico, para Radio Clarín de Colombia, les habló Berta Joubert-Ceci

The inclusion of Cuba on the state sponsors of terrorism list has severely limited the island nation from accessing funds and the international market.

The Ministry of Energy and Mines in Cuba announced on Friday, October 18, that the National Electrical Energy System experienced a complete blackout due to an unexpected outage at the Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Power Plant. They also reported that the Electrical Union and relevant authorities were diligently working to restore full service. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel addressed the situation, emphasizing, “We are prioritizing our attention to solving this critical energy issue for the nation. There will be no rest until full service is restored.”

By Friday evening, the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MINEM) reported progress in the phased restoration of the electrical system. According to their report, partial generation had begun at ENERGAS, Cuba’s gas company, which was supplying energy to the thermoelectric plants. Micro-electrical systems in Villa Clara, Holguín, Granma, and Guantánamo were also back online.

Engineer Lázaro Guerra Hernández, the Director of Electricity at MINEM, provided an update during a press conference, noting that the restoration efforts started immediately after the Guiteras outage. He mentioned that they were beginning energy distribution to the Santa Cruz del Norte Thermoelectric Power Plant, and a generator was to be activated at the Mariel floating power plant, which was currently directing fuel for power generation in the area. Guerra Hernández stressed that while the restoration process is careful and systematic, they are committed to speeding it up as much as possible.

The day before the blackout, the general director of the National Electric Union (UNE), Alfredo López Valdés, had addressed the nation in a televised broadcast about the ongoing electrical sector crisis. He pointed out a significant challenge for the power grid: the difficulties in securing fuel and a long-standing fuel deficit, which he attributed to many of the electrical grid issues.

López Valdés also laid out a comprehensive plan to tackle these challenges, highlighting the need to optimize thermoelectric plants and micro-electrical systems while ensuring they have adequate fuel supplies for operation.

The blockade’s role in the blackout

A major obstacle for Cuba in securing enough fuel for its electrical grid is the series of sanctions and coercive measures imposed by the United States. The blockade leads to substantial economic losses, estimated at $13 million a day, and restricts Cuba’s access to markets and financial transactions.

In November 2019, the Trump administration sanctioned the Panamericana Corporation, a Cuban company involved in purchasing liquefied natural gas for public use, arguing it was “owned or controlled by, or acting for or on behalf of, Cubametales,” which was designated for operating in Venezuela’s oil sector. Treasury Deputy Secretary Justin G. Muzinich stated, “Cuba has played a direct role in preventing the return of democracy to Venezuela.” The Treasury Department made it clear that since Cubametales’ designation, the company has faced significant difficulties as businesses avoided transactions with it, prompting Cubametales to suggest Corporacion Panamericana S.A. as an intermediary.

The Treasury was adamant: Cuba should not be afforded the opportunity to acquire fuel for its needs due to its failure to distance itself from Venezuela in line with Washington’s expectations. In January 2020, shortly after the sanctions on Panamericana, the Cubapetroleo Union announced in a released statement that “throughout 2019, the U.S. Government imposed new and successive sanctions on companies, shipowners, vessels, and insurance firms to hinder the delivery of fuel to our nation.” They clarified that following the sanctioning of Panamericana Corporation, “The Company’s suppliers refused to fulfill deliveries slated for late December and early January… efforts to procure LNG from other markets have not succeeded. We continue working to import LNG.”

Democratic President Joe Biden, who took office shortly after the imposition of sanctions on Panamericana, did not significantly change U.S. policy toward Cuba. He maintained the additional 243 sanctions enacted under Trump and continued to designate Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism, further tightening the nation’s economic constraints and trade capabilities.

The nationwide blackout in Cuba highlights the significant impact the blockade has on the population, prompting many solidarity organizations to renew their calls for President Biden to lift these damaging restrictions.

Reporting by People’s Dispatch

Oct. 18 — Late last night the COSCO Dockers Union in Piraeus Port, ENEDEP, alerted its members and the unions of the area that a container transferring bullets to Israel was to arrive in Piraeus port so as to be shipped to the Murderer-State of Israel. Immediately the dockers and the local unions BLOCKED the port and did not allow the container to enter the ship “Marla BULL.” The Unions and workers called openly the working class of the area to come to the port and stop the crime saying “The dockers state it clearly, we will not stain our hands with the blood of the people” The massive, immediate action of the people lasted all night, FORCING THE SHIP TO DEPART WITHOUT THE WEAPONS! The Unions, that are also preparing strikes for Collective Contracts demanding better wages, confirmed that class unions struggle goes hand in hand with solidarity with the peoples and steadfast, in practice opposition to imperialism! THE PEOPLE WILL WIN! WORKERS HAVE THE POWER! FREE PALESTINE!

Videos:

https://youtu.be/E2ZS6QzEZ3o?si=KBBPMazrXIl_X2rq

https://youtu.be/GVdKOWMQ-xc?si=Uh3uzHUmQ6viom4D 

https://youtu.be/xQC75HgAxdQ Photos https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBNupa 

Source: Labor Today

Halt the aggression in Gaza, withdraw and release our heroic prisoners from the occupiers’ jails

With all the pride, dignity, and honor, the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, mourns to our Palestinian people, to our entire nation, and to the free people of the world. One of the noblest and bravest men, a man who dedicated his life for Palestine and gave his soul for the sake of Allah on the path to its liberation. He was true to Allah, and Allah was true to him, choosing him as a martyr alongside his fellow martyrs:

We mourn the great national leader, the Mujahid Martyr Brother Yahya Al-Sinwar (Abu Ibrahim), Head of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Commander of Al-Aqsa Flood Battle

He rose as a heroic martyr, advancing and never retreating, wielding his weapon, engaging and confronting the occupation army at the frontlines. He moved between all combat positions, steadfast and stationed on the honored land of Gaza, defending the land of Palestine and its holy sites, inspiring the spirit of endurance, patience, steadfastness, and resistance.

Our great people, our Arab and Islamic nations, and the free people of the world:

The martyred leader Yahya Al-Sinwar lived as a mujahid, and from his youth, he carved his path within the ranks of Hamas, engaging in its resistance operations. During 23 years of imprisonment, he triumphed over the zionist jailer. (https://t.me/PalestineResist/286) After his release in the Wafa al-Ahrar deal (https://t.me/PalestineResist/9470), he continued his contributions, planning and fighting until his eyes witnessed, on October 7, 2023, the day of the great flood (https://t.me/PalestineResist/13228) that shook the depths of the entity, exposing the fragility of its supposed security. The heroic epics of our people and the valor of our victorious resistance followed until he attained the highest rank and the noblest medal, ascending as a witness and a martyr, content with the jihad and sacrifice he offered.

The martyr leader Yahya Al-Sinwar followed in the footsteps of great martyred leaders, including the founding martyr Sheikh Ahmed Yassin (https://t.me/PalestineResist/24405), Dr. Abdelaziz Al-Rantisi, (https://t.me/PalestineResist/6825), Al-Maqadmeh, Abu Shanab, Jamal Mansour, Jamal Saleem, the martyred leader Ismail Haniyeh, (https://t.me/PalestineResist/51032) and his deputy Sheikh Saleh Al-Arouri, (https://t.me/PalestineResist/42038), along with the caravan of martyrs from all our leaders and people. We affirm that these sacrifices will continue to illuminate our path and drive us to more resilience and steadfastness. Hamas remains committed to the promise of its founding leaders and martyrs until the aspirations of our people are fully realized: the complete liberation and return and the establishment of the Palestinian state on the entire national soil with Al-Quds as its capital, by Allah’s will. This will become a curse upon the invading occupiers who are strangers to this land.

Our great people, our Arab and Islamic nations, and the free people of the world:

The martyrdom of Brother Leader Yahya Al-Sinwar, along with all the leaders and icons of the movement who preceded him on the path of honor, martyrdom, and the project of liberation and return, will only strengthen Hamas and our resistance, making us more determined and steadfast in following their path, honoring their blood and sacrifices. A movement that offers its leaders and members as martyrs in defense of the rights of its people is a noble, genuine movement deeply rooted in its people.

To those lamenting the captured occupiers held by the resistance, we say: they will not return except with the cessation of aggression on Gaza, its withdrawal, and the release of our heroic prisoners from the occupation’s jails.

We continue in the path of Hamas, and the spirit of Al-Aqsa Flood will remain a living flame in the hearts of our people.

We remain faithful to your pledge, Abu Ibrahim, and your banner will never fall but will remain high and proudly raised.

Peace be upon you, Abu Ibrahim, the humble, devout, and pious man.
Peace be upon you, the prisoner.
Peace be upon you, the fighter.
Peace be upon you, the martyr.
Peace be upon you, for history will record that you wrote the first line in the war of liberation and the end of the occupation.

May Allah have mercy on you and grant you the highest place in paradise with the prophets, the truthful ones, the martyrs, and the righteous, and what excellent companions they are.

And it is a jihad of victory or martyrdom

Islamic Resistance Movement – Hamas

Friday: 15 Rabi’ al-Akhir 1446 AH

Corresponding to: October 18, 2024 CE

Source: Resistance News Network

On Sept. 26, Hurricane Helene hit near Tampa, Florida, and tore north and then northwest through Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, even reaching the eastern part of Tennessee.

Helene stretched about 400 miles across and sustained 140 mph winds, smashing into homes and leaving millions without electricity. The flooding and devastation from the wind were at a historic level. 

No areas near the path were spared, and the mountain community of Asheville, North Carolina, was utterly destroyed by flooding. A local journalist reported seeing two homes being swept away by raging water that then crashed into each other.

Just two weeks later, Hurricane Milton landed 75 miles south of Helene’s landfall and ripped its way north/northwest across the panhandle and then out into the Atlantic. Work crews were clearing debris from Helene when Milton arrived. 

It’s not unusual for hurricanes to spawn a few tornados. Usually, they’re weak and fizzle out quickly. Not these. The storm yielded a record 38 of them, and they smashed everything in their paths.

As of Oct. 15, the combined death toll had climbed to 268, and there were still 192 people unaccounted for. Damage estimates are all over the map, from $35 billion to $200 billion.

These were two of the most destructive storms in history. “Thousand-year” storms are happening frequently now. Hurricanes, droughts, and cyclones are increasing in severity. Heat waves are more frequent and threaten to make some cities that millions call home uninhabitable.

This is all a product of the capitalist economy. Giant energy companies and their banking partners have pushed the exploitation of fossil fuels, spewed gigatons of CO2, methane, and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and caused global warming. 

They’ve spent millions of dollars to spread misinformation to deny climate change or push the responsibility onto individuals. British Petroleum invented the whole idea of a “carbon footprint,” as if the working class could just change our habits and solve the problem. 

Oil company scientists have known the consequences of continued fossil fuel use for decades. They kept the information secret, ridiculed scientists who sounded the alarm and ignored endless dire warnings from the United Nations.

Fracking for natural gas intensified as the U.S. took over the European market, a consequence of the U.S. proxy war against Russia. During roughly the same period, Biden began handing out new oil drilling contracts like candy on Halloween. 

Instead of yielding to the growing awareness and anger over the global capitalist destruction of the planet, the energy giants have literally stepped on the gas. Emissions of greenhouse gases are now at an all-time high.

Scholarly reports have also revealed that military activity is responsible for a hefty percentage of greenhouse gases. But the U.S. is the motivator of constant military exercises to threaten China, active wars in Ukraine, and now the horrible Zionist genocidal campaign against Gaza and war against the people of Lebanon.

Hurricanes are not only more severe

As the earth’s atmosphere has heated, hurricanes are not only more severe but also intensify more quickly, leaving less time for preparation and evacuations. 

This was particularly so with Helene and Milton. That rapid intensification was noted about Hurricane Otis in October 2023, which slammed into Acapulco, Mexico, as well. High ocean temperatures also fueled a cyclone in February of last year that was the longest-lasting cyclone ever recorded — Cyclone Freddy. It lasted for 36 days, crossed the entire Indian Ocean, and ravaged Madagascar, Malawi, and Mozambique.

Ocean temperatures have reached all-time highs in the last several years, alarming climatologists. 

This phenomenon is creating superstorms. Rising sea temperatures are destroying marine life and acidifying seawater, and sea levels are rising. 

That happens for the same reason that a pot of boiling water rises as it warms. Water expands from heat. 

The Gulf of Mexico’s rise in sea level is nearly twice that of the rest of the world, which means storm surges are worse. Beyond that, the heat and energy from the oceans is being picked up by tropical storms, fueling their rapid development into more destructive, less predictable hurricanes. 

As they develop, the storms pick up much more moisture as they work their way across oceans. It isn’t uncommon now for hurricanes to slow down after landfall and dump rain on a region for sustained periods. What Katrina did to New Orleans and now Helene did to Asheville, North Carolina, are perfect examples of that.

Global warming and climate change can be reversed. Renewables in the form of solar, wind, and geothermal energy are already an important component, even with the question of intermittency, which still needs to be resolved. Electric vehicles can limit emissions from the millions of cars traveling daily. 

The People’s Republic of China has been instrumental in the progress that has been made in those areas. Other technologies and ideas may improve on these or spawn whole new ideas that can lower global temperatures. 

The hard science developed around climate change proves that fossil fuels are the root cause. But another kind of science leads us to the solution: social science. Private ownership of the means of production – the profit system – is a roadblock to our planet’s recovery. Part 2 will explore the role of the U.S. empire in causing global warming and the role China is playing in cleaning up the atmosphere.

Skyrocketing food prices are a corporate conspiracy

McDonald’s filed an antitrust suit on Oct. 4 against the four biggest meatpackers, claiming the outfits conspired to jack up beef prices since at least 2015. The four accused dead animal monopolists — Cargill, JBS, National Beef Packing Company, and Tyson — had total sales of $315 billion last year.

Meanwhile, McDonald’s — the world’s #1 junk food pusher — raked in $25 billion. Its local franchises, which exploit over two million workers, had sales of tens of billions more. 

All these mega-rich corporations are criminal cartels. When they start accusing each other, the working class can learn some of the truth.

According to government figures, food prices rose by 27% between January 2020 (the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic) and September 2024. Many families and individuals are paying even more.

Millions of poor and working people can’t afford to shop at supermarkets anymore. Instead, they’re buying bags of noodles and other food items at so-called dollar stores.

There were nearly 22 million millionaires in the United States in 2021. The same year, 53 million people lined up at food banks across the country to get something to eat for themselves and their families. 

The dramatic increase in food prices wasn’t the result of droughts, although capitalist climate change is harming agriculture. The supply chain issues at the seaports hardly affected grocery prices since most food is produced domestically.

The price gouging certainly isn’t the fault of immigrant workers, who account for a majority of U.S. farmworkers, many of whom are undocumented. Billionaire Trump supporter Nelson Peltz — who controls McDonald’s archrival Wendy’s — refused to pay farm workers more than a penny per pound for picking tomatoes.

Monopoly allowed Cargill, JBS, National Beef Packing Company, and Tyson to boost beef prices. The four outfits now control more than 80% of the beef market. 

Take over the packers and the supermarket chains!

As McDonald’s suit points out, “Conspiracies are easier to organize and sustain when only a few firms control a large share of the market.” 

McDonald’s should know. It’s being sued for antitrust violations for denying the right of employees to work at another McDonald’s location for better wages. This “no-poach” rule is illegal yet common in the corporate world.

As far back as 1888, the United States Senate investigated the meatpackers’ price-fixing in the buying and selling of livestock. Numerous anti-trust suits followed over the decades.

None of these cases stopped the continuing monopolization of meatpacking, poultry production, or any other industry. Nor did antitrust laws stop grocery chains from swallowing each other.

The proposed acquisition of Albertsons by Kroger will create a supermarket monster with 5,000 stores and 700,000 employees. Along with the even bigger Walmart, these outfits will control 29% of U.S. grocery sales.

While the meat monopolies raised prices through the roof, over 59,000 workers in their plants fell ill from COVID-19. At least 269 died. 

During the pandemic, people were urged to keep six feet apart. Meat bosses sneered at social distancing. On many meat and poultry production lines, workers were just two feet away from each other, almost guaranteeing sickness and possible death.

Then, Smithfield Foods CEO Kenneth Sullivan wrote to Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts that “social distancing is a nicety that makes sense only for people with laptops.” In a letter to Senators Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, Sullivan declared, “For better or worse, our plants are what they are.” 

“For better or worse,” hundreds of workers died while the meat monopolists collected billions more in profit. All the capitalist monopolies need to be taken over by the people.

Recent weeks have seen the U.S. war machine substantially escalate its proxy war against Iran via “Israel” and other regional partners. On Sept. 27, the U.S.-backed Zionist regime assassinated Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah, a key Iranian ally and leader in the Axis of Resistance.

United States President and war-monger-in-chief Joe Biden issued a statement in full support of Nasrallah’s assassination and “Israel’s” general escalation against Lebanon. Biden didn’t stop there. He proudly declared that the “United States fully supports Israel’s right to defend itself against Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and any other Iranian-supported terrorist groups.” 

As an apartheid regime built on the back of colonization and genocide, “Israel” has no right to self-defense. The fact is, the people of Palestine and their regional allies will fight for the complete liberation of the Arab world from U.S.-Israel terror. Palestine’s struggle for liberation, whether it be the armed struggle or the political struggle, is a fight for the very survival of a people. 

So when the U.S. president, the face of imperialism, declares that the imperialist military structure will support Zionism in “self-defense,” what he means is that the U.S. will provide the Zionist entity with whatever it needs to fight its masters’ enemies. In this case, that enemy is Iran. Since Biden’s speech, the U.S. military and propaganda machine has only escalated the saber-rattling against Iran.

On Oct. 4, six days after Biden’s statement, U.S. aircraft and warships launched strikes against 12 military and civilian sites across Yemen. Ansar Allah, Yemen’s ruling political party, is a key ally to Iran in the region. Yemen’s strikes against U.S. naval vessels and disruption of Red Sea shipping lanes are a crucial part of the Axis of Resistance’s overall fight to stop the Zionist entity. The U.S. cannot allow this sort of coordination in resistance to threaten its strongest and most profitable military base, known as “Israel.”

As such, the U.S. imperialist class, including the defense industry, big tech, and automotive companies, will support whatever action is needed to secure the Zionist entity, even if this means marching toward war with Iran. 

To that end, the Biden administration has already taken several steps to militarily escalate against Iran. On Oct. 8, State Department Spokesman Mattew Miller clarified the Biden regime’s position on “Israel’s” current war in Southern Lebanon. Miller announced that the regime no longer supports any ceasefire between occupation forces and Hezbollah. Further, the Biden regime is now fully behind the IOF’s ground incursions into Lebanon. Hezbollah is another key player in the Axis of Resistance and a close ally of Iran. 

In its latest move, the Biden regime deployed a THAAD missile system and 100 U.S. troops to occupied Palestine in support of the anticipated Zionist response to Iran’s Oct. 1 ballistic missile attack on the Zionist military infrastructure. 

The Zionist regime’s counter-strike on Iran is being planned in close coordination with the White House and the Pentagon. Such plans could include missile strikes on the Iranian oil industry and other civilian sectors. 

As The Cradle reported, the expanding Zionist war has meant big profits for the Western defense industry. The Quincy Institute published a report: “Israel’s wars mean ‘massive’ returns for U.S. arms company investors.” 

“Investors in weapons stocks have enjoyed record gains over the past year, dramatically outperforming the major stock indexes in a stock rally that analysts are attributing to violence and instability in the Middle East,” the report says.

Military escalation against Iran serves to keep the gravy train rolling at the cost of millions of starving and dying people across the Middle East. As long as that is the case, then the U.S. will continue to fund and coordinate the Zionist war against Iran and its allies. 

Lev Koufax is an anti-Zionist Jewish activist.

Abuja, Nigeria, Oct. 3 — Detained End Bad Governance protesters released on bail after spending 59 days in detention are shown in this video.

This movement began on July 29 of this year using the hashtags #EndBadGovernance and #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria in response to worsening conditions in the country. 

President Bola Tinubu’s government has implemented austerity measures (cutting social services and fuel subsidies, etc.) at the direction of the neocolonial World Bank, dominated by the U.S. and its imperialist junior partners like the U.K., Germany, and Japan.   

As of Oct. 16, Nigeria’s inflation rate was 32.70% based on the Consumer Price Index. 

The World Food Program says that in June-August, 26.5 million Nigerians faced acute hunger, up from 18.16 million at the end of 2023, an increase of 31.5%. 

Instead of working to meet the needs of the people, the government has responded to the protests with repression. State security forces killed at least 21 people and arrested over 1,000. 

The working-class people of the U.S. have more in common with the struggling Nigerian people than we do with Trump and Harris or any billionaire. 

Solidarity with the people of Nigeria!