International
The United States keeps Cuba as a sponsor of terrorism despite collaborating with the island
The United States confirmed on Thursday that it keeps Cuba on the list of sponsoring states of terrorism despite the fact that on Wednesday it admitted that it cooperates with the island in some activities to combat terrorism.
“You can cooperate in the fight against terrorism, but we still believe that there are actions being taken that support terrorist activities,” said the deputy spokesman of the State Department, Vedant Patel, at a press conference.
Patel did not answer the question about the specific actions that Cuba must take to remove it from the list of countries that promote terrorism, which was included in 2021 and which generates a series of economic sanctions for the island.
Joe Biden’s Administration keeps Cuba on that list despite the fact that yesterday it removed it from another list, that of countries that “do not fully cooperate with anti-terrorist efforts” (NFCC).
Washington and Havana resumed police cooperation in 2023, including in matters against terrorism, so the State Department decided that continuing with the certification of Cuba as a country that does not fully cooperate “is no longer appropriate.”
The Cuban government said on Wednesday that this decision does not consider it sufficient and demanded that the United States go a step further and definitively remove the island from the list of sponsors of terrorism.
The inclusion of Cuba on the U.S. list in January 2021 was one of the last decisions made by the Donald Trump Administration, between 2017 and 2021, before leaving power.
The United States then justified the measure by saying that the presence on the island of members of the Colombian guerrillas of the National Liberation Army (ELN), who were in Havana to hold peace negotiations with the Government of Colombia.
In August 2022 and after an order from the president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, the Attorney General’s Office of Colombia suspended the arrest warrants against 17 ELN commanders, among which were those who had asked Cuba to extradite.
To determine a country as a sponsor of terrorism, US law requires the Secretary of State to determine that the Government of that nation has repeatedly provided support to terrorist groups.
Cuba had been part of the list since 1982 but came out in 2015, during the rapprochement stage of the then US President Barack Obama, between 2009 and 2017, which was later stopped by Trump.
International
Trump signs order to end federal funding for NPR and PBS
U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to halt federal funding for two public media outlets, PBS television and NPR radio, accusing them of being biased.
NPR and PBS are partially funded by American taxpayers but rely heavily on private donations.
Trump has long maintained a hostile relationship with most media outlets, which he has referred to as the “enemy of the people.”
An exception is the conservative Fox News channel, some of whose hosts have played important roles in the administration of the Republican magnate.
“National Public Radio (NPR) and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) receive taxpayer funding through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB),” Trump said.
“Therefore, I direct the CPB board and all executive departments and agencies to cease federal funding for NPR and PBS,” he added.
The Republican leader argued that “neither of these entities provides a fair, accurate, or impartial portrayal of current events to the taxpayer citizens.”
At the end of March, Donald Trump called on Congress to end public funding for these two “horrible and completely biased networks.”
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
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