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Report ranks countries where religion faces highest government and social persecution

United States RNS A report by Pew Research Center on international religious freedom named Egypt, Syria, Pakistan and Iraq as the countries where both government restrictions and social hostility most limit the ability of religious minorities to practice their faith. Governmental attacks and social hostility toward various religions usually “go hand in hand”, said the […]

Millions of people in Cuba without power after grid collapse

Havana, Cuba Reuters Cuba said it had begun restoring power after the island’s electrical grid collapsed, the latest in a string of nationwide blackouts that underscore the increasingly frail state of the country’s power generation system. Cuba`s energy minister Vicente de la O’Levy said the government had prioritised hospitals and water pumping facilities as it […]

Strong quake rocks eastern Cuba, damaging buildings, infrastructure

Havana, Cuba Reuters An earthquake rocked eastern Cuba on Sunday, shaking buildings in Santiago de Cuba, the island’s second-largest city, and the surrounding countryside. The quake, which the US Geological Survey listed as magnitude 6.8, struck Cuba’s southeastern coast in Granma province near the municipality of Bartolome Maso, where former Cuban leader Fidel Castro had […]

Cuba slowly restores power after hurricane, Havana still dark

Artemisa, Cuba Reuters Cuban authorities said they had begun restoring power to the eastern half of the island on Thursday, a day after Hurricane Rafael knocked out the country’s electrical grid, leaving 10 million people in the dark.   The grid collapsed on Wednesday as Rafael tore across Cuba with top winds of more than 185 […]

Hurricane Rafael lashes Cuba with life-threatening winds, rain

Havana, Cuba Reuters Hurricane Rafael began lashing Cuba’s south shore as a Category 3 cyclone shortly after noon on Wednesday, the US National Hurricane Center said, packing sustained winds of 185 kph and forcing widespread evacuations of tourists and residents. The hurricane was located about 135 kilometres south of Cuba’s capital Havana at 1pm, and […]

Tropical Storm Rafael gains steam, churns toward Jamaica, Cuba

Havana, Cuba Reuters Tropical Storm Rafael gained steam late on Monday as it churned northward toward Cuba, which is still struggling to recover from a nationwide blackout and hurricane two weeks ago. The US National Hurricane Center said Rafael would see “steady or rapid intensification” before plowing across western Cuba with maximum predicted winds of […]

In Havana’s still dark corners, a protest erupts

Havana, Cuba Reuters Just three or four city blocks in all of central Havana remained without electricity on Monday evening – an island of darkness in the Cuban capital’s sea of flashing lights, pounding reggaeton and jammed bars and cafes. That is where an unusual protest broke out. Cuban police and military stand next to […]

Most of Havana back online as Cuba works to revive power grid

Havana, Cuba Reuters Cuba’s power-grid operator said it had restored electricity to most of the capital Havana on Monday even as Tropical Storm Oscar lashed the island’s eastern end, downing trees and power lines. Strong winds raked the region as the storm stalled over land, uprooting banana plants and tearing roofs off homes, according to […]