分类： politics

On the 65th anniversary of the United States’ botched Bay of Pigs invasion, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel delivered a resolute address to thousands of rally-goers in Havana Thursday, confirming the Caribbean island nation has completed defensive preparations for any potential new military attack by Washington amid months of rapidly escalating pressure from the Trump administration.

“We have no desire for military confrontation, but it remains our fundamental responsibility to be ready. We prepare to deter conflict, and should aggression prove unavoidable, we prepare to emerge victorious,” Diaz-Canel stated to the assembled crowd. His remarks came as tensions have surged in recent months: after the Trump administration moved to oust Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and escalated hostilities with Iran, repeated public hints from Trump that Cuba would be “next” have pushed the Cuban government to brace for possible offensive action.

While high-level backchannel talks between the long-time ideological adversaries have been held to de-escalate tensions, US media reports indicate these discussions have failed to produce any meaningful breakthrough. Mariela Castro, daughter of former Cuban President Raul Castro, emphasized that the Cuban people remain open to constructive dialogue with Washington, but will never put their sovereign political system on the negotiating table. She also confirmed that 94-year-old Raul Castro, who oversaw the landmark 2015 detente between the two nations under former US President Barack Obama – a diplomatic shift Trump later reversed – maintains indirect involvement in the ongoing talks. Current reports also identify Raul Castro’s grandson, Colonel Raul Rodriguez Castro, as one of the Cuban negotiators participating in the discussions.

Diaz-Canel acknowledged that the current geopolitical moment is “very grave” but reaffirmed Cuba’s unwavering commitment to the socialist path first proclaimed by Fidel Castro on April 16, 1961 – just days before the original Bay of Pigs invasion. That 1961 operation, launched two years after Fidel Castro’s revolutionary government took power and nationalized US-owned assets and enterprises on the island, saw 1,400 anti-Castro Cuban exiles based in Miami, trained and funded by the Central Intelligence Agency, land at the Bahía de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) roughly 155 miles south of Havana. Over the course of five days of fighting from April 15 to 19, 1961, Cuban revolutionary forces defeated the invasion force, delivering a humiliating intelligence and military setback to the United States.

Six and a half decades later, Cuba once again finds itself the target of US hostility. Following the arrest of Maduro in Caracas, the Trump administration imposed a full oil blockade on Cuba, exacerbating what is already the island’s most severe economic and energy crisis in 30 years. Havana has long pinned its economic struggles on the decades-long US trade embargo, implemented shortly after Castro took power and still in effect today, with the recent oil blockade worsening existing hardships. Diaz-Canel pushed back against US framing that labels Cuba a “failed state”, arguing instead that “Cuba is not a failed state, it’s a besieged state.”

For attendees at the anniversary rally, the spirit of 1961 remains alive today. Eighty-two-year-old Maria Reguiero, who joined the gathering in Havana, emphasized that just as Cubans rallied to defend their revolution six decades ago, the nation stands united today: “We are ready to defend our sovereignty, whatever the cost.”

In a blunt press briefing held at the Pentagon on Thursday, United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a stark warning to Iran: Washington will maintain a full blockade of the country’s ports for however long is required to force a negotiated settlement, and will launch new military strikes if Tehran rejects a diplomatic outcome.

Hegseth made clear the consequences of Iran walking away from talks, stating, “If Iran chooses poorly, then they will have a blockade and bombs dropping on infrastructure, power and energy.”

The blockade officially went into effect at 14:00 GMT this Monday, launching just one day after a new round of peace negotiations in Pakistan concluded without any breakthrough agreement between the involved parties. Dan Caine, the highest-ranking active U.S. military officer, clarified that the restrictions are universal, applying to all commercial and military vessels sailing to or from Iranian territorial ports, no matter what flag they sail under.

Standing alongside Hegseth during the briefing, Caine added that non-compliance will be met with immediate force, but noted that so far, 13 vessels bound for Iranian ports have chosen to alter course and avoid confrontation.

Hegseth also used the briefing to accuse Iranian leadership of attempting to recover and reactivate military equipment that survived five weeks of joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes across the country. Speaking directly to Iranian officials, he asserted that U.S. intelligence is fully tracking all movements of remaining military assets, arguing that Tehran’s efforts to rebuild its capabilities are futile while U.S. military position continues to strengthen.

“You are digging out your remaining launchers and missiles with no ability to replace them — you have no defense industry, no ability to replenish your offensive or defensive capabilities,” Hegseth said.

Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command which oversees all American military operations across the Middle East, confirmed that U.S. forces are using the current lull in active large-scale strikes to bolster their own position. He emphasized that the U.S. military is rearming, refitting, and refining its operational tactics to prepare for any future escalation, noting that no other global military can adapt to changing battlefield conditions as quickly as the United States.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaica’s legal and political spheres are mourning the passing of Hugh Hart, a former government minister and esteemed attorney who died on Thursday at the age of 96, leaving behind a decades-long legacy of public and professional service to the Caribbean nation.

Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness led tributes to the late public servant, who held multiple senior Cabinet positions between the mid-1980s and late 1980s. Holness emphasized that Hart dedicated more than half a century of distinguished work to Jamaica, contributing both to national governance and the development of the country’s legal sector.

Hart’s public service career spanned 13 years as a member of the Jamaican Senate from 1980 to 1993. During his tenure in Cabinet, he served as Minister of Mining and Energy from 1983 to 1989, and additionally took on the role of Minister of Tourism from 1984 to 1989. At the time of his Cabinet service, his brother-in-law, the late former Prime Minister Edward Seaga, led the Jamaican government.

In a social media statement announcing Hart’s passing, Holness noted that the former minister provided steadfast leadership to dozens of core national institutions, laying the groundwork for sustained growth and stability across some of Jamaica’s most economically critical sectors.

“As an attorney, he earned widespread respect for his specialized work in commercial law, and his expert guidance on matters ranging from taxation and real estate to corporate restructuring,” Holness added. “His influence stretched far beyond the walls of the courtroom, leaving a meaningful imprint on national policy and governance practices.”

“Jamaica has lost a committed servant of the people. We honour his life, his work, and his contribution to the nation,” the prime minister concluded.

Born in St Andrew on Boxing Day 1929 to Clinton Hart and Eily deCordova-Hart, Hart’s record of excellence began early in his academic career. He enrolled at Munro College in 1940, where he stood out as a top performer both in academics and intercollegiate sports.

Following his graduation from Munro College, Hart pursued higher legal education at The Queen’s College, University of Oxford. While at Oxford, he earned a Master of Laws degree, and also represented the college in cricket, hockey, and tennis, maintaining his passion for competitive sports.

Hart was called to the Bar at London’s Gray’s Inn in 1953, and three years later, in 1956, he was formally admitted to practice as a solicitor in Jamaica. He went on to become a founding partner of Hart Muirhead Fatta, one of Jamaica’s most prominent commercial law firms.

Independent industry rankings repeatedly recognized Hart’s professional standing: he was named one of Jamaica’s leading commercial lawyers by both the widely respected Chambers Global directory and the International Financial Law Review. His deep expertise in commercial law, corporate finance, and conveyancing also allowed him to pursue his long-held passion for pioneering residential and commercial real estate development across the region.

For more than 30 years, Hart served as a director for multiple property development firms operating in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. He also held leadership roles across key public and private entities, including serving as a director and former chairman of Jamaica Flour Mills Limited, chairman of the Jamaica Bauxite Institute, Carreras Group Limited, the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, and the Bauxite & Alumina Trading Company Limited, in addition to sitting on the boards of dozens of other organizations across Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.

One of Hart’s most high-stakes tests as public servant came during his tenure as mining minister, when the global alumina market entered a steep downturn. Driven partially by lingering aftereffects of a global recession, the collapse forced the closure of Reynolds Mines in 1984, with Alcoa and Alpart facilities shutting down shortly after. The crisis left Alcan as the only major operator in the sector, throwing Jamaica’s core bauxite and alumina industry — then the lifeline of the country’s economy — into chaos and putting its future at severe risk.

Working alongside Seaga and senior technocrats including Dr Carlton Davis, Hart rolled out a series of unprecedented policy and diplomatic measures to save the critical industry, and with it, Jamaica’s national economy. A key part of this push was a high-level delegation trip to Washington D.C. to meet with then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan, where the team successfully persuaded the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) to purchase 3.6 million tonnes of Jamaican bauxite to add to the United States’ strategic national stockpile. This single intervention lifted annual Jamaican bauxite production to 6.5 million tonnes, after output had plummeted to just 2.9 million tonnes in 1985.

The delegation also secured a second landmark agreement, which saw the GSA barter American grain for an additional 2 million tonnes of Jamaican bauxite, further stabilizing the sector.

For his decades of service to the bauxite and alumina industry and the Jamaican legal profession, Hart was awarded the Order of Jamaica, one of the country’s highest national honors, in 2011. Two years later, in 2013, he received a formal honor from the Jamaica Bar Association, and was later inducted into the Munro College Old Boys’ Association Hall of Fame in recognition of his lifetime of achievement.

In a major diplomatic announcement from Washington D.C., former and current U.S. President Donald Trump has revealed that Israeli and Lebanese officials have reached a preliminary agreement to implement a 10-day ceasefire set to commence at 5 p.m. EST Thursday. However, critical questions remain unanswered about whether the Iran-aligned militant group Hezbollah will uphold the truce.

Per Trump’s public post on his Truth Social platform, the tentative ceasefire deal emerged from what he described as productive, high-level discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. The talks come just two days after formal peace negotiations between Israeli and Lebanese delegations were convened in Washington, marking the latest step in U.S.-led efforts to de-escalate months of open conflict along the Israel-Lebanon border.

“These two Leaders have agreed that in order to achieve PEACE between their Countries, they will formally begin a 10 Day CEASEFIRE at 5 P.M. EST,” Trump wrote in his signature all-caps emphasis for key terms. He added that he has already instructed Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine to collaborate closely with both national governments to turn the temporary truce into a long-term, sustainable peace agreement.

Framing the diplomatic push as another milestone in his self-described record of global conflict resolution, Trump claimed, “It has been my Honor to solve 9 Wars across the World, and this will be my 10th, so let’s, GET IT DONE!” This conflict traces back to February 28, when Trump joined Israel in launching open military hostilities against Iran. Shortly after the offensive began, Hezbollah entered the fray in support of its patron Tehran, launching sustained rocket attacks against Israeli targets and dragging Lebanon into the broader Middle East war.

Months of sustained Israeli military operations in Lebanon have exacted a devastating humanitarian toll: official counts confirm more than 2,000 Lebanese have been killed in Israeli airstrikes and ground operations, over one million people have been displaced from their homes, and Israeli ground forces have established a presence in southern Lebanon.

While Trump noted late Wednesday that Aoun and Netanyahu were scheduled to hold direct talks on Thursday to move the process forward, no independent confirmation of that meeting has emerged as of Thursday morning, leaving the ceasefire’s implementation still uncertain amid conflicting signals on the ground.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY – During the second meeting of the Group of Parliaments in Support of Palestine, held alongside the 152nd Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly on Wednesday, Guyana’s top human services official has amplified a urgent global demand for immediate expanded humanitarian access to Gaza and an immediate end to Israel’s blockade of the enclave. Dr. Vindhya Persaud, Guyana’s Minister of Human Services and Social Security, used the high-profile international platform to sound the alarm that ongoing armed conflict in the region is inflicting a disproportionately catastrophic harm on Palestinian women and girls.

In her address to the gathering of parliamentary leaders from across the globe, Persaud framed the gendered impact of the Gaza crisis as part of a deeply troubling, widespread global trend. She noted that as armed conflicts escalate in regions around the world, women and girls are consistently pushed to the front lines of suffering, facing elevated risks of gender-based violence, systematic exploitation, and extreme deprivation that leave them disproportionately displaced and bereft of basic necessities.

Persaud characterized the current situation in Gaza as one of the most devastating humanitarian catastrophes of the 21st century, pointing to the near-total collapse of critical public infrastructure and essential services that has unfolded since the outbreak of renewed hostilities on October 7, 2023. She argued that the deliberate weaponization of life-saving humanitarian aid, paired with the staggering scale of civilian suffering in the enclave, amounts to a catastrophic moral failure of the global international community to uphold its core commitments to human rights and human dignity.

Beyond her call for immediate action on Gaza, Persaud reaffirmed Guyana’s long-standing, unwavering support for the fundamental right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. She emphasized the South American nation’s firm commitment to a negotiated two-state solution as the only sustainable path to lasting peace in the region, and noted that Guyana has consistently backed all United Nations resolutions that advance the cause of peace and justice for the Palestinian people. Guyana formally recognized the State of Palestine as a sovereign nation back in 2011, and continues to actively advocate for Palestinian statehood across multilateral global forums.

To illustrate how nations can center gender justice in both conflict and peacetime policy, Persaud drew a parallel between her government’s international advocacy and domestic gender equity reforms implemented in Guyana. She highlighted that the nation has recently strengthened legal frameworks addressing family violence and sexual offenses, established specialized courts to hear gender-based violence cases, rolled out secure digital incident reporting systems, and opened dedicated “Hope and Justice Centers” that provide wrap-around support services for survivors of violence. She stressed that these domestic reforms underscore Guyana’s core commitment to guaranteeing access to justice for all women, regardless of context.

Closing her address, Persaud emphasized that expanding women’s empowerment, particularly through advancing economic independence, is a non-negotiable foundation for both recovery during active conflict and long-term reconstruction in post-conflict societies.