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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Sectarian clashes in Syria leave at least 30 dead and scores injured

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At least 30 people were killed and around 100 were injured in sectarian violence that exploded in Syria’s southernmost As-Suwayda Governorate, the Middle Eastern country’s Ministry of Interior said Monday morning.

The ministry said the violence had erupted in “recent hours” and the casualty toll was based on preliminary estimates.

“These unfortunate armed clashes broke out between local armed groups and tribes in the Al-Maqous neighborhood of As-Suwayda city, stemming from accumulated tensions in previous periods,” the ministry said in a statement.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported the death toll at 37.

The violence is the latest between tribes and other minority groups since the former dictator government of President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December, and rebel leader Ahmed al-Sharaa was named interim president.

The ministry said it confirmed the that Ministry of Defense forces will begin “a direct intervention in the region to end the conflict, stop clashes, restore security and pursue those responsible for the events and bring them to justice.”

It blamed the escalation in violence on the absence of local institutions, which has led to a breakdown in security and in the local community’s ability to contain the situation.

“We stress that the continuation of this conflict only serves chaos and increases the suffering of our civilian population,” the Ministry of the Interior said.

Source: United Press International and agencies



from The Times Of Earth https://ift.tt/XvQ6H4I

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