Protests erupt in Havana as Cuba struggles to restore electricity

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By Dave Sherwood and Ayose Naranjo Reuters Scattered protests broke out across Havana on Tuesday evening, with residents banging pots, honking horns and shouting “turn on the lights” as millions ‌of Cubans remained without power amid a six-month-long U.S. fuel blockade. Cuba experienced a nationwide outage on ‌Monday — its third this year — but while authorities said most of the country had been reconnected to the island’s grid by late ​Tuesday, many remained in the dark and without electricity as the island doesn’t have enough fuel. The country’s grid operator UNE said it had reconnected the grid from Pinar del Rio, in far western Cuba, to Holguin in the east. Santiago de Cuba, the island’s second-largest city, remained disconnected and without power, authorities said. The U.S. in January ‌cut off Cuba’s fuel supply, then ⁠imposed fresh sanctions that have prompted an exodus of foreign businesses and a near-complete collapse o...
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Sudan’s warring parties say they are open for peaceful solutions

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Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said they are open for peaceful solutions to a war that has been ongoing for more than 17 months, in response to U.S. President Joe Biden’s call on warring parties to re-engage in talks.

Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said on Wednesday the Sudanese government remains open to all constructive efforts aimed at ending the war, before RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo followed suit with a similar sentiment early on Thursday.

“We reaffirm our commitment to ceasefire negotiations. We believe that the path to peace lies in dialogue, not random violence, and we will continue to engage in peace processes to secure a future free from fear and suffering for all Sudanese civilians,” Dagalo said on X.

However, both men traded blame for a failure to bring an end to a conflict that has killed more than 12,000 people since it started in April 2023, accusing each other of committing abuses. They have not outlined specific steps towards reaching a peaceful solution.

The conflict began when competition between the army and the RSF, which had previously shared power after staging a coup, flared into open warfare.

U.S.-led mediators said last month that they had secured guarantees from both parties at talks in Switzerland to improve access for humanitarian aid, but that the Sudanese army’s absence from the discussions had hindered progress.

“We stand ready to work with all international partners in pursuit of a peaceful resolution that alleviates the suffering of our people and sets Sudan on a path towards security, stability, the rule of law, and the democratic transfer of power,” Burhan, the army chief, said in a statement.

SOURCE: Reuters and agencies



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