International
Death toll rises to seven after the passage of tropical storm Oscar in Cuba
The Cuban government raised the death toll to seven on Tuesday after the passage of the tropical storm Oscar in the eastern end of the island.
The island president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, reported in his X account that the seventh fatal victim was located in the town of Imíaz, in the province of Guantánamo, the most punished by the meteorological phenomenon.
“We deeply regret and convey our deepest condolences to family and friends. We point out the effects for each area, the actions that will be taken as soon as it is possible to start the recovery phase, as well as the necessary resources according to the protection of the people and the compensation of the damage in the shortest possible time,” wrote the Cuban president.
A number of rural communities still incommunicado after the passage of the storm has made it difficult for the authorities to make an initial assessment of personal and material damage.
Thousands of homes affected in Cuba by storm Oscar
The Government and the official media have added that, in addition to the loss of life, there are more than a thousand homes affected, damage to state infrastructure and considerable damage to agriculture.
Early Tuesday, the Cuban state press reported that there are 6,000 people affected and about 4,000 “family nuclei” mainly by the floods, which have caused river overflows and sea penetrations in low coastal areas.
Oscar entered Cuba as a category 1 hurricane (out of 5) on the Saffir-Simpson scale on Sunday afternoon and spent just over 24 hours on the island, accompanied by strong winds, heavy rains and tides.
According to the Insmet, it made landfall near Baracoa (east) at 18:10 local time on Sunday and left Cuban territory in the vicinity of Gibara (east) around 19:20 local time this Monday.
In that sense, Civil Defense decided this Tuesday to declare the return to the phase of “normality” in the eastern provinces of Santiago de Cuba, Granma, Holguín and Las Tunas “as it did not have any effects.”
Fifteenth tropical storm
Oscar is the fifteenth tropical storm of the current cyclonic season in the Atlantic and the first to hit land in Cuba.
The U.S. weather services The US and Cuba warned months ago that this season of hurricanes in the Atlantic, which runs from June 1 to November 30, was going to be especially active.
The last time a major hurricane hit Cuba was in September 2017 when Irma advanced parallel to the north coast of the island and caused ten deaths and material losses officially valued at 13,185 million dollars.
International
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
The United States has announced new limits on the legal length of stay for foreign students and journalists, marking the latest tightening of immigration policies under President Donald Trump.
The changes, outlined in an administrative rule published on Thursday, are expected to take effect in September, unless Congress blocks the measure.
Under the new policy, holders of student visas will be allowed to remain in the United States for no more than four years.
Foreign journalists will be limited to 240-day stays—approximately eight months—with the possibility of applying for extensions of the same duration.
The policy imposes even stricter rules on Chinese journalists, whose visas will be capped at 90 days.
More than 100 international news organizations and press freedom groups, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), criticized the measure in an open letter, arguing that it would reduce both the quantity and quality of international coverage of events in the United States.
The Republican Party, led by President Trump, currently holds a majority in Congress and has pledged to curb both illegal immigration and certain forms of legal immigration.
Previously, the United States generally issued student visas for the full duration of an academic program, while foreign journalists could receive visas valid for up to five years.
Central America
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
The Nicaraguan government announced on Thursday that it is severing diplomatic relations with Italy following criticism from the Italian government over Nicaragua’s long-standing decision to shelter Alessio Casimirri, a former member of the Red Brigades convicted in Italy for the 1978 kidnapping and murder of former Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani criticized the administration of co-presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo on Wednesday for continuing to provide refuge to Casimirri, who was sentenced in Italy to six life terms for his role in Moro’s abduction and killing.
In a statement issued Thursday, Nicaragua’s Foreign Ministry said it was ending all diplomatic relations with Italy, describing Tajani’s remarks as “unjustified, aggressive, and irresponsible.”
Tajani made the comments during a gathering of conservative leaders from Europe and Latin America held in Madrid.
“We have absolutely nothing in common with the positions of extremist governments such as Nicaragua, a country that continues to harbor dangerous Red Brigades terrorists like Alessio Casimirri,” Tajani said, according to Italian media.
The diplomatic break marks a new escalation in tensions between the two countries over the decades-old case involving Casimirri, who has lived in Nicaragua for many years despite repeated calls from Italy for his extradition.
International
U.S. Strikes Hit Areas Near Strait of Hormuz as Tensions With Iran Escalate
Several U.S. strikes targeted areas near the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, according to Iranian state media citing local authorities, as hostilities between the United States and Iran intensified.
Officials in Iran’s Hormozgan Province said the island of Qeshm was struck multiple times by what they described as U.S. missiles during the evening. The reports were carried by the Iranian news agencies Fars and Tasnim.
Iranian state television also reported that the Bandar Abbas region, located on the Iranian coast overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, was the target of what authorities described as an “enemy U.S. air attack.”
According to local officials quoted by state television, no casualties have been reported following the strikes.
The reported attacks come amid renewed military tensions between Washington and Tehran, although U.S. authorities had not immediately commented on the reported operations.
U.S. to Limit Visa Duration for Foreign Students and Journalists
Nicaragua Cuts Diplomatic Ties With Italy Over Red Brigades Dispute
U.S. Strikes Hit Areas Near Strait of Hormuz as Tensions With Iran Escalate
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