U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet is calling on Cuban authorities to release those arrested during mass demonstrations protesting the government’s failed economic policies.  These are the biggest anti-government demonstrations Cuba has seen for decades.  Thousands of people have come out to vent their anger at government policies, which have led to the economic collapse of this Caribbean island state.  Anti-government activists in Cuba estimate more than 100 protesters have been arrested during the weeklong demonstrations.  U.N. rights chief Michelle Bachelet is calling for the prompt release of those detained.Her spokeswoman, Liz Throssell, says Bachelet deplores the government arrest of people for exercising their rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, or freedom of opinion and expression.   “It is particularly worrying that these include individuals allegedly held incommunicado and people whose whereabouts are unknown,” Throssellsaid. “We are also very concerned at the alleged use of excessive force against demonstrators in Cuba and deeply regret the death of one protester in Havana.  It is important that there is an independent, transparent, effective investigation, and that those responsible are held accountable.”   Miguel Diaz-Canel became president of Cuba in 2018.  He is the first person other than the Castro brothers, Fidel, and Raoul, to rule this communist state in almost 60 years.  The economy under his guidance has taken a battering. People have come out en masse to show their displeasure at high food prices, shortages of medicine and other commodities, and at what they perceive to be government mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The government blames Cuba’s economic crisis on the decadeslong U.S. embargo. However, experts agree the government’s Soviet-style, centrally planned economy and lack of market reforms must share the blame for stifling the country’s economic growth.     Bachelet is urging the Cuban government to address the protesters’ grievances through dialogue and to respect peoples’ rights to protest peacefully.  She is calling for the Internet and social media, cut off by the government to quell dissent, to be restored.  Bachelet reiterates her appeal for the lifting of unilateral sectoral sanctions, which she says harm human rights, including the right to health.
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A commission composed of representatives of all sectors of Haitian civil society plans to meet Saturday, saying they want to begin the process of naming a new president.Organizers say the group plans to meet with 10 Haitian senators whose terms have not expired. Haiti’s parliament is currently out of session because the terms of most of its members ended before elections could be held to reelect or replace them.One of the organizers of the commission, Ted Saint Dic, said earlier this week that the commission’s effort would not be rushed.“We’re not in a hurry. We want to allow the country to find a way to enter into dialogue and agree on solutions that fundamentally address the biggest preoccupations of the Haitian people,” Saint Dic said.Haiti is facing a power vacuum following the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moise.Several politicians have claimed the right to lead the country, including acting Prime Minister Claude Joseph and Prime Minister-designate Ariel Henry.Joseph assumed power after the death of Moise, however as an acting prime minister he was only in the position temporarily and was set to be replaced by Henry the week of the assassination. That transition did not take place because of Moise’s death.In addition, Haiti’s Senate has nominated Senate President Joseph Lambert to be interim president.Joseph told VOA Creole that “After the president was killed, someone in authority had to step in to take over. Nine days have passed and here we are. That is why I stepped up as interim prime minister to move forward along with the other government ministers.”Referring to himself along with Henry and Lambert, he said, “we have three leaders plus the other sectors — we have to put our heads together to find a solution. That’s what’s important. I am appealing to all sectors of society to unite to resolve this political crisis.”A U.S. delegation that traveled to Haiti earlier this week met with all three politicians claiming the right to lead Haiti.Laura Lochman, the State Department’s acting deputy assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs was part of the U.S. delegation, and told VOA in an exclusive interview Wednesday that the United States will support an inclusive, credible Haitian government.“It’s up to the Haitians to come up with the solution to this political process at this point, so we rely on them and give them all the support that we can to work conclusively, to work together, to form a consensus government,” Lochman said.She said the United States would like to see elections held in Haiti this year.Haiti’s parliament has been out of session since January 2020 when the terms of most of the legislature expired. Elections have not been held to select new members due to mass protests, the coronavirus pandemic and uncontrolled gang violence.Sandra Lemaire, Nike Ching and VOA Creole contributed to this report. 
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Haitian President Jovenel Moise will be buried on July 23 in the northern city of Cape Haitian, a member of the official funeral organization committee said Friday.”We have a logistical team who will evaluate the site where the funeral will be held,” Minister of Culture and Communication Pradel Anriquez, a member of the committee, told reporters during a news conference in Port-au-Prince. A schedule of events will be published soon, he said.Funeral planning committee members include interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph; the ministers of defense, culture and communication, and interior; the director of the Cabinet (chief of staff); the secretary-general of the presidency; and the director-general of the MUPANAH (Musée du Panthéon National Haitien).Anriquez said there are three events planned. On July 20, an official ceremony honoring the life of Moise will be held at the MUPANAH. He said the national palace protocol team is organizing that event.On July 22, the president’s wake will be held, Anriquez said. But he did not provide further details, adding only that “the public funeral of the president of the republic will be held in accordance with the wishes of the Moise family and also in accordance with the law.”First lady Martine Moise is being treated in Miami, Florida, for injuries suffered during the attack that killed her husband.Joseph said Friday that Martine Moise plans to return to Haiti for the funeral. He said that the first lady is in good condition and has been in constant contact with him since she arrived in Miami.Joseph also confirmed that a video message posted earlier this week on Martine Moise’s official Twitter account is authentic, along with subsequent tweets she posted this week of herself lying in a hospital bed.The interim prime minister said the slain president had expressed a desire to be buried next to his father in Haiti’s north. The details were included in an official government decree issued on March 11, 2020, pertaining to the burial of heads of state, Anriquez told reporters.”The Haitian government in its entirety is committed to giving the president a proper funeral,” he said.Ex-president Aristide back in HaitiElsewhere in the capital, a group of supporters of former President Jean Bertrand Aristide took to the streets to welcome him back to Haiti after undergoing treatment for an undisclosed illness in Cuba.Aristide fans waved Haitian flags, white flags, freshly picked tree branches, homemade signs and played traditional festive “rara” music as they waited to see him.”Welcome back, king. We have always said that Haiti is now paying for what happened in 1990, and as long as the constitutional order is not reestablished, the wound will remain. It is time to repair the divisions that exist,” a man who did not give his name told VOA Creole. “We are standing out here in front of the airport to extend our greetings.””The president who truly loved us and was the most capable leader to lead us was removed by the colonists in a coup d’etat. Hopefully, the Haitian people now see clearly what is going on,” another Aristide supporter, who stood on the side of the airport road to welcome the former president back to Haiti, told VOA.Aristide was Haiti’s first democratically elected president after dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier was removed from power in 1986.He governed Haiti from Feb. 7-Sept. 30, 1991, when he was deposed in a military coup. After living in exile in the United States for three years, he returned to lead Haiti in October 1994 until 1996.A year later, he created the Fanmi Lavalas (Lavalas Family) political party. He ran for president as its candidate and won in 2000. (Haiti’s constitution bars heads of state from holding consecutive terms.)In July 2001, Aristide was ousted in another military coup and lived in exile in South Africa until spring 2011, when he was allowed by then-President Michel Martelly to return to Port-au-Prince. He has mostly stayed out of the limelight, but his party remains active in politics.Matiado Vilme in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, contributed to this story.
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At least seven Colombian nationals who were arrested by Haitian authorities in connection with the assassination of President Jovenel Moise received U.S. military or police training.A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation, told VOA Friday that all seven had been members of the Colombian military at the time they received the training.“Individuals had been approved for a variety of training activities held both in Colombia and the United States between 2001-2015,” the official said. “Examples of the types of training received were various types of military leadership and professional development training, emergency medical training, helicopter maintenance, and attendance at seminars on counternarcotics and counterterrorism.”BREAKING: US gvt official tells @VOANews that 7 of 25 individuals alleged to have been involved in the assassination of #Haiti’s President #Moise “previously participated in past US military training & education programs, while previously serving in the #Colombia|n military”— Jeff Seldin (@jseldin) July 16, 2021The official said both the State Department and the Department of Defense are continuing to review their records to see if any additional suspects in the assassination have ties to the U.S.“Their alleged involvement in this incident stands in stark contrast to outstanding conduct and performance of hundreds of thousands of foreign military students that have benefitted from U.S. education training programs over the past 40 years,” the official said.Word that a “small number” of the Colombian nationals in Haitian custody had gotten U.S. training first came Thursday, though a Pentagon spokesperson told VOA that any such training “emphasizes and promotes respect for human rights, compliance with the rule of law, and militaries subordinate to democratically elected civilian leadership.”Moise was shot and killed in the predawn hours of July 7 at his private residence in a wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince. His wife, Martine, was injured in the attack and is recovering from surgery at a Miami, Florida, hospital.Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph told reporters that he has spoken to the first lady several times and that she is doing well.Haitian National Police Chief Leon Charles said 18 Colombians have been arrested in connection with the assassination.Colombia’s president told a local radio station Thursday that most of the detained Colombians had been duped into thinking they were to provide bodyguard services for the Haitian leader.“Once they were over there,” Ivan Duque said, “the information they were given changed,” and the men ended up as suspects in an assassination plot.New investigation detailsPolice Chief Charles said five Haitian police officers are currently in isolation because of their alleged involvement in the assassination plot. Investigators are questioning all police officers who were on duty when the attack occurred, he said.”We have 18 assailants under detention. Three were killed during the attack, and there are five Haitian Americans who we are taking a close look at,” the chief told reporters during a Friday press conference.”We are working both internally and externally with the assistance of our international partners to move the investigation forward. There are Interpol and FBI agents here on the ground to help us analyze evidence that will help us trace and identify the masterminds,” Charles said.The chief thanked civilians who had been helping law enforcement find those involved in the assassination. Police have received a lot of helpful tips every day so far, he said.Matiado Vilme in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, contributed to this story.
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The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights on Friday urged Cuba to release protesters and journalists who were arrested in anti-government protests sparked by shortages of basic goods such as food and medicine.”All those detained for exercising their rights must be promptly released,” Michelle Bachelet said in a statement.Bachelet expressed concern about the alleged use of force against protesters and the detention of a large number of people who included several journalists.A journalist who was arrested Monday while covering the protests for the Spanish daily newspaper ABC was released from police custody Friday but placed under house arrest, according to the newspaper.’I have done nothing wrong'”They wanted me to sign a paper saying I admitted to public disorder, but I refused. I have done nothing wrong,” ABC journalist Camille Acosta said, adding that she used her time in prison to interview other detainees.”You cannot imagine how many people have been arrested and beaten, even minors,” she said.Bachelet called for a probe into the death of a 36-year-old protester during clashes Monday between protesters and police in Havana. She also called for an end to sanctions against the Caribbean country, “given their negative impact on human rights, including the right to health.”FILE – President Joe Biden speaks during a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the East Room of the White House in Washington, July 15, 2021.Bachelet’s appeal to Cuba came one day after U.S. President Joe Biden said that Washington would review whether it could help restore the internet in Cuba, which has suffered blackouts since protests erupted over the weekend.“They’ve cut off access to the internet. We’re considering whether we have the technological ability to reinstate that access,” Biden told reporters at a press conference alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel.At a regular White House media briefing Friday, press secretary Jen Psaki was asked if the Biden administration had asked American tech companies for help in restoring internet access in Cuba.“So, it would really be led, that effort would really be led by the State Department and other appropriate entities within the federal government. As the president noted yesterday, returning internet access to Cuba would certainly be something we’d love to be a part of,” she said.A number of U.S. lawmakers have urged the president in recent days to address connectivity issues on the island.FILE – Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., takes notes during a Senate Judiciary Hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 14, 2021.Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn told VOA on Thursday that the Biden administration must support the Cuban people in concrete ways.“They’ve been very hesitant to step forward. And it appears that what they’re trying to do is not take sides in a fight,” Blackburn said.“Time is of the essence here,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said, according to Reuters. “Every day that the regime has to black out the truth is a day they can get the upper hand on this,” he said of the Cuban government.Watchdog’s statementGlobal internet watchdog NetBlocks has confirmed restrictions to multiple social media and messaging platforms across Cuba over the past week.“The targeted restrictions are likely to limit the flow of information from Cuba following widespread protests on Sunday as thousands rallied against the socialist government’s policies and rising prices,” the organization said in a statement.Earlier Thursday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced a 16-member Cuba advisory group to develop policies to support the Cuban protesters and hold the Cuban government accountable for human rights abuses.“I know this team, many of whom are Cuban American and in one way or another have borne witness to the brutality of communism, will work diligently for the cause of freedom,” McCarthy said in a statement.European leaders have also expressed their support for the Cuban people. On Monday, the foreign minister for the European Union, Josep Borrell, urged the Cuban government “to listen to these protests of discontent.”Global Support for Cuba Demonstrations Politicians and activists praise Sunday’s ‘historic’ protests, urge Cuban government to respect human rights of its people    Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and other officials have blamed the unrest on social media postings by Cuban Americans and the U.S. government’s decadeslong embargo on Cuba. Sanctions and restrictions imposed by former U.S. President Donald Trump and a drop in tourism related to the pandemic have put extra pressure on the Cuban economy in recent years.Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro expressed his government’s support for Diaz-Canel on Monday and said, “If the U.S. really wants to help Cuba, let it immediately lift the sanctions and the blockade against its people.”The protests were the largest anti-government demonstrations in Cuba in decades.VOA’s Katherine Gypson, Jessica Jerreat and Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this report, which includes some information from Reuters.
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President Joe Biden says, while he is not open to U.S. military involvement in Haiti, he is planning to send troops to fortify the U.S. Embassy in the capital, Port-au-Prince.  
 
“We’re only sending American Marines to our embassy,” Biden said Thursday, during a joint news conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel. “The idea of sending American forces to Haiti is not on the agenda.”  
 
Haitian President Jovenel Moise was shot and killed in the pre-dawn hours of July 7 at his private residence in a wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince. His wife, Martine, was injured in the attack and is recovering from surgery at a Miami, Florida, hospital.  Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph told reporters he has spoken to the first lady several times and that she is doing well.VOA Interview: State Official Says ‘Nothing Off Table’ With Assisting HaitiActing deputy secretary also says delivery of first tranche of COVID-19 vaccines ‘imminent’  
President Biden has condemned the assassination and dispatched a special U.S. delegation to Haiti to assist with the investigation.   
 
Last week, Haiti Elections Minister Mathias Pierre said a request that U.S. troops be deployed to the country was made during a July 7 discussion between Haiti’s interim prime minister, Claude Joseph, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Pierre said Joseph made a request for U.N. troops with the U.N. Security Council on July 8.  
 
In an exclusive interview with VOA, Juan Gonzalez, the U.S. National Security Council senior director for the Western Hemisphere, said the subject did come up during their discussions with Haitian officials.  
 
“There has not been a specific ask for a number of troops or a specific number of support of individuals providing security,” Gonzalez told VOA. “So, we’ve been focusing on the very specific asks which have been how do we actually help train and support and equip the Haitian National Police do its job. They have 13,500 officers – so focusing on where the needs are and of course it’s something we’re going to continue to study because of course the situation on the ground is quickly evolving.”Official: Aristide to Return to Haiti ‘Fully Recovered’Aristide’s return adds a potentially volatile element to an already tense situation in a country facing a power vacuum following the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. 
Gonzalez, who traveled to Port-au-Prince on Sunday, said U.S. officials are in constant contact with their international community counterparts.  
 
“We are also in regular contact with our international partners – including France, the leadership of the Caribbean community, the Dominican Republic and of course we’ve been active on the U.N. Security Council. Ambassador Linda Thomas [Greenfield] has actively been in contact with our counterparts, so it’s not something that is just the United States, but the international community all are uniting behind the Haitian people,” he told VOA.  The deployment of U.N. police or peacekeeping troops would have to be approved by the Security Council.  The U.N. had a stabilization mission in the country from 2004 to 2017.  Diplomats said that there is currently little appetite for sending a new mission to Haiti.
The NSC official said there is a team of eight FBI agents on the ground in Haiti, assisting with the investigation into president Moise’s murder.  
 
“A number of officials from the Department of Homeland Security are helping on everything from tracing the weapons to the body armor and the cellphones that were being used and do everything possible to get to the bottom of who was involved and who is responsible for the assassination,” Gonzalez said.
 
A VOA Creole reporter saw FBI agents in the wealthy Pelerin neighborhood of Haiti’s capital, where President Moise’s private residence is located. They were armed and working with Haitian law enforcement.  
 Murder investigation  
 
In Port-au-Prince, National Police Chief Leon Charles denied that interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph was involved in the Moise assassination plot.  
 
According to Charles, 27 people have been interrogated so far, and information gleaned from those interrogations found no connection between Joseph and the alleged murderers.  
 
The chief said Dimitri Herard, head of security at the National Palace, is in police custody. He has been placed in isolation and has been relieved of his duties, Charles said. Herard will remain in isolation until he is questioned by investigators, the chief said, without specifying exactly where in the capital Herard is being held.   
 
The police chief said 23 suspects are being interrogated—two Haitian Americans, three Haitians and 18 Colombians. Three others who participated in the attack on the president were killed, he said.  Pentagon: Some Colombians Arrested in Moise Assassination Probe Received US Military Training National Security Council official who traveled to Haiti last Sunday tells VOA the US is prepared to prosecute anyone found to have broken US laws  Reaction in Haiti’s north  
 
In Wanament, the north and northeastern branch of the political party PLANSPA (Platfom Nasyonal Sekte Popile Ayisyen) held a press conference Thursday to denounce the assassination of president Moise.  
 
“The coordinators for the PLANSPA party for the north and northeast regions vehemently condemn this terrorist act. This is the first time such a crime has taken place in the country where a band of shameless criminals succeeded in assassinating a president in his home,” a party official said.
 
PLANSPA called for justice for President Moise and said members will keep pushing for that.  
 
In Gonaives, the most populous city in the agricultural Artibonite region, the Moise assassination remains a hot topic, according to VOA Creole’s reporter there. He says the city was tense on Monday with tires burning in the streets and gunshots heard. On Tuesday, daily activities had returned to normal. The reporter said the flag is flying at half-staff in honor of Moise and some government offices have been decorated in black, in a sign of mourning.  
 
According to the Moise family, the president desired to be buried in the north of Haiti, next to his father. Spanish reporter Jorge Agobian, White House correspondent Steve Herman, U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer, Matiado Vilme in Port-au-Prince, Jaudelet Junior Saint-Vil in Wanament, Exalus Mergenat in Gonaives contributed to this report.
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Peter R. de Vries, a renowned Dutch journalist who fearlessly reported on the violent underworld of the Netherlands and campaigned to breathe new life into cold cases, has died at age 64 after being shot in a brazen attack last week, his family said Thursday.

“Peter fought to the end, but was unable to win the battle,” the family said in a statement sent to Dutch media.

While the motive for de Vries’ shooting remains unknown, the July 6 attack on an Amsterdam street had the hallmarks of the gangland hits taking place with increasing regularity in the Dutch underworld the journalist covered.

Two suspects have been detained. Dutch police said the suspected shooter is a 21-year-old Dutchman, and a 35-year-old Polish man living in the Netherlands is accused of driving the getaway car. They were arrested not long after de Vries was wounded.

De Vries rose rapidly from a young cub reporter to become the Netherlands’ best-known journalist. He was a pillar of support for families of slain or missing children, a campaigner against injustice and a thorn in the side of gangsters.

“Peter has lived by his conviction: ‘On bended knee is no way to be free,’” the family statement said. “We are unbelievably proud of him and at the same time inconsolable.”

De Vries had been fighting for his life in an Amsterdam hospital since the attack. The statement said he died surrounded by loved ones and requested privacy for de Vries’ family and partner “to process his death in peace.” Funeral arrangements were not immediately announced.

The shooting happened after de Vries made one of his regular appearances on a current affairs television show. He had recently been an adviser and confidant for a witness in the trial of the alleged leader and other members of a crime gang that police described as an “oiled killing machine.”

The suspected gangland leader, Ridouan Taghi, was extradited to the Netherlands from Dubai in 2019. He remains jailed while standing trial along with 16 other suspects.

Caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte led the tributes to de Vries in the Netherlands.

“Peter R. de Vries was always dedicated, tenacious, afraid of nothing and no one. Always seeking the truth and standing up for justice,” Rutte said in a tweet. “And that makes it all the more dramatic that he himself has now become the victim of a great injustice.”

Dutch King Willem Alexander last week called the shooting of de Vries “an attack on journalism, the cornerstone of our constitutional state and therefore also an attack on the rule of law.”

The slaying also struck a chord elsewhere in Europe, where murders of reporters are rare. The killings of journalists in Slovakia and Malta in recent years have raised concerns about reporters’ safety in developed, democratic societies.

In a tweet, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she was “deeply saddened by the news of Peter R. de Vries’ passing. I want to express my condolences to his family and loved ones.”

She added: “Investigative journalists are vital to our democracies. We must do everything we can to protect them.”

De Vries won an International Emmy in 2008 for a television show he made about the disappearance of U.S. teenager Natalee Holloway while she was on holiday in the Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba in 2005.

In 2018, while acting as a spokesman for the family of an 11-year-old boy who was abused and killed in 1998, de Vries appealed for tips about the whereabouts of a suspect identified in a DNA probe.

“I can’t live with the idea that he won’t be arrested,” de Vries said when appealing for help at a televised press conference. “I won’t rest until it happens.”

The suspect was arrested a few weeks later in Spain and convicted last year in the death of the boy, Nicky Verstappen.

De Vries’ comment about the suspect in Nicky’s slaying summed up the tenacity that was a cornerstone of a career that saw him report on some of the Netherlands’ most notorious crimes, including the 1983 kidnapping of beer magnate Freddy Heineken.

Acting on a tip, de Vries tracked down one of the kidnappers in Paraguay in 1994.

He befriended another of the kidnappers, Cor van Hout, who was later gunned down in Amsterdam. Another of the kidnappers, Willem Holleeder, who was van Hout’s brother-in-law, was convicted in 2019 of inciting the killings of van Hout and four other people. Holleeder was sentenced to life imprisonment.

De Vries also was known for tenaciously campaigning to find the truth behind the 1994 slaying of a 23-year-old woman, Christel Ambrosius. Two men from the town where she was killed were convicted in 1995 and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment, but de Vries refused to believe they were guilty.

They were acquitted in 2002, and in 2008, another man was convicted of Ambrosius’ killing.

Justice Minister Ferd Grapperhaus issued a statement calling de Vries “a brave man who lived without compromise. He would not allow himself to be intimidated by criminals.”

Grapperhaus said he “tracked down injustice throughout his life. By doing so he made an enormous contribution to our democratic state. He was part of its foundation.”
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US President Joe Biden hosted German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the White House on Thursday. The two leaders highlighted a stronger transatlantic relationship and cooperation on a range of issues, but differences remain on the Nord Stream 2 Russian natural gas pipeline. White House Correspondent Patsy Widakuswara has this report.
Producer: Barry Unger
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U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday that Washington would review whether it could help restore the internet in Cuba, which has suffered blackouts since protests erupted over the weekend.

“They’ve cut off access to the internet. We’re considering whether we have the technological ability to reinstate that access,” Biden told reporters at a press conference alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

A number of U.S. lawmakers have urged the president in recent days to address connectivity issues on the island, as protests over food and medicine shortages have rocked Havana, leaving at least one person dead and hundreds arrested.

Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn told VOA Thursday the Biden administration must support the Cuban people in concrete ways.

“They’ve been very hesitant to step forward. And it appears that what they’re trying to do is not take sides in a fight,” Blackburn said.

“Time is of the essence here,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said, according to Reuters. “Every day that the regime has to black out the truth is a day they can get the upper hand on this,” he said of the Cuban government.

Global internet watchdog NetBlocks has confirmed restrictions to multiple social media and messaging platforms across Cuba over the past week.

“The targeted restrictions are likely to limit the flow of information from Cuba following widespread protests on Sunday as thousands rallied against the socialist government’s policies and rising prices,” the organization said in a statement. 

Earlier Thursday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced a 16-member Cuba advisory group to develop policies to support the Cuban protesters and hold the Cuban government accountable for human rights abuses.

“I know this team, many of whom are Cuban American and in one way or another have borne witness to the brutality of communism, will work diligently for the cause of freedom,” McCarthy said in a statement.

European leaders have also expressed their support for the Cuban people. On Monday, the foreign minister for the European Union, Josep Borrell, urged the Cuban government “to listen to these protests of discontent.” 

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and other officials have blamed the unrest on social media postings by Cuban Americans and the U.S. government’s decades-long embargo on Cuba. Sanctions and restrictions imposed by former U.S. President Donald Trump and a drop in tourism related to the pandemic have put extra pressure on the Cuban economy in recent years.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro expressed his government’s support for Díaz-Canel on Monday and said, “If the U.S. really wants to help Cuba, let it immediately lift the sanctions and the blockade against its people.”

The protests were the largest anti-government demonstrations in Cuba in decades.

Some information for this report came from Reuters.
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Spain has experienced a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the past month which have prompted authorities to impose fresh restrictions in many parts of the country.The 14-day coronavirus contagion rate was 469.50 per 100,000 of population, according to Spanish health ministry data released on Wednesday, making Spain’s one of the highest levels in Europe.Barcelona and the surrounding region of Catalonia plan to impose a curfew to curb the delta variant of the coronavirus, which is running rampant among younger, unvaccinated Spaniards.The Catalan regional authorities on Thursday were waiting for a judge to approve a nightly curfew after the two-week contagion level surpassed 1,000 cases per 100,000 people.Hospital staff treat a patient suffering from COVID-19 at Hospital del Mar, where an additional ward has been opened to deal with an increase in coronavirus patients in Barcelona, Spain, July 15, 2021.Possible paybackFor the Spanish state it also means a potential financial headache because 1.1 million fines imposed for breaking the state of emergency can now be appealed in court, meaning the government could be forced to refund the fines it imposed on some people. After the court ruling on Wednesday, Spain’s Justice Minister Pilar Llop told a press conference that said the original state of emergency “saved 450,000 lives.””The duty of the government was to take immediate, urgent measures when faced with the rapid propagation of the virus,” she added.Pablo Simón, a political analyst at the Carlos III University in Madrid, said the ruling had important implications for how Spain can control the pandemic. “All fines imposed can now be appealed which will cause financial implications for the government,” he told VOA.”According to the constitution, the state of exception can only be applied for 30 days. It was designed for public disturbances, not for pandemics.””Spain is left in a situation where it lacks a judicial instrument to impose limitations on personal liberties which are suited to a pandemic.” Delta variantRafael Bengoa, a former World Health Organization health systems director who is now the director of the Institute for Health and Strategy in Bilbao, said he believed Spain has been overwhelmed by the spread of the delta variant.“I said three weeks ago we would not control the delta variant. That variant is faster in everything; more transmissible, more virulent, when infected you reach higher viral loads sooner,” he told VOA.“Hospitals are beginning to fill up like they did in the UK with younger people. Vaccination is proving insufficient when there is community transmission and that can only be controlled with much tougher measures,” he said. “At present regional authorities must ask judges if they can bring in curfews, close bars etc but this is a sign of helplessness. Re-centralization of decisions would help to save the end of the summer,” Bengoa added. 
 
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A well-known Dutch crime reporter who was shot last week in Amsterdam has died.A statement from the family of Peter R. de Vries said the journalist “fought to the end but was unable to win the battle.””Peter has lived by his conviction: ‘On bended knee is no way to be free,'” the statement said. “We are unbelievably proud of him, and at the same time, inconsolable.””Peter R. de Vries was always dedicated, tenacious, afraid of nothing and no one. Always seeking the truth and standing up for justice,” Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a tweet. “And that makes it all the more dramatic that he himself has now become the victim of a great injustice.”De Vries, 64, was struck in the head by one of five rounds fired as he left a television studio on July 6. Police arrested two suspects in connection with the shooting — a 21-year-old Dutchman suspected of being the shooter, and a 35-year-old Polish man accused of driving the getaway car.De Vries is a household name in the Netherlands, known for confronting gangsters and drug kingpins, and helping police disentangle high-profile homicides and solving cold cases like that of 11-year-old Nicky Verstappen, whose 1998 murder went unsolved for over 20 years. De Vries is also famed for his coverage of the abduction of brewing magnate Freddy Heineken in the 1980s. The reporter has long lived with death threats. Earlier this year, he told a magazine he wasn’t afraid, saying, “That’s part of the job.”  Local media say De Vries recently had been counseling a gangster-turned-witness identified as Nabil B., in the murder and racketeering trial of suspected drug kingpin Ridouan Taghi. One of Nabil B.’s lawyers was killed 18 months ago, and some Dutch media questioned whether the murder is linked to Taghi’s trial.The attack on De Vries came just months after TV crime reporter Giorgos Karaivaz was fatally shot outside his home in Athens. He was struck by at least half-a-dozen shots in April fired by a passenger on a motorbike.In February 2018, Slovak investigative reporter Ján Kuciak and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová, were found shot to death in their home in Veľká Mača, western Slovakia. The 27-year-old reporter had been probing economic crimes involving high-profile Slovak businessmen with ties to politicians.  
 
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Some of the Colombian nationals detained by the Haitian National police in connection with the assassination of President Jovenel Moise took part in “U.S. military training and education programs,” a Pentagon spokesperson confirmed in a statement emailed to VOA.  The information came to light during a review of training databases, Lt. Col Ken Hoffman said, without specifying when or where the training took place.  “Our review is ongoing, so we do not have additional details at this time,” Hoffman said. The development was first reported by The Washington Post. According to the Pentagon, the U.S. Defense Department trains thousands of military people from South America, Central America and the Caribbean each year.  Hoffman said the training is focused on “respect for human rights, compliance with the rule of law, and militaries subordinate to democratically elected civilian leadership.”Haitian National Police Chief Leon Charles said police have arrested 18 Colombians in connection with the assassination.  Moise was shot and killed during an attack inside his private residence, located in a wealthy suburb of Port-au Prince, in the pre-dawn hours of July 7. His wife, Martine, who was injured in the attack, is recovering after undergoing surgery at a Miami, Florida, hospital. Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph told reporters he has spoken to Mrs. Moise multiple times and that she is doing well. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, meets with Colombian Vice President and Foreign Minister, Marta Lucia Ramirez, at the US State Department in Washington on May 28, 2021.Colombian government on ‘mercenaries’  
 
In New York, Colombia’s Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs Marta Lucia Ramirez denounced the involvement of Colombian nationals in the Moise assassination after a United Nations Security Council meeting Tuesday. “Let me say that the Colombian government, but also the judiciary system, is working with the Judiciary and intelligence from other countries in order to help the Haitian state to identify all the responsibilities in this crime — in this major crime,” Ramirez told reporters, adding that her country also is working with the International Criminal Police Organization, Interpol. “And of course, we are helping Interpol in order to have all the information, the track record about the time when they lived in Colombia, all the information about their communications, everything in order to clarify this horrible crime,” Ramirez said. “Everybody who is involved, everybody who was a physical or intellectual actor of this crime must be punished, and must be punished with an extreme and very high capacity of international justice and the Colombian justice and others.” New arrests  
 
In Port-au-Prince Thursday, Haiti’s national police announced the arrest of two additional suspects in connection with the assassination of President Moise. Police identified them as Haitians Reynaldo Corvington and Gilbert Dragon. Police say they found a cache of weapons at the homes of both suspects that included AR-15 rifles, automatic weapons, pistols and hunting rifles. Three hand grenades were found at Corvington’s residence, a police statement says.  Additionally, national police issued a new arrest warrant for Désir Gordon Phenil. A statement posted on PNH’s official Facebook page says Phenil was responsible for renting cars, coordinating meetings with the “mercenaries” and buying equipment.  On Wednesday, Dimitri Herard, head of security at the national palace, was taken into custody. VOA Creole reporters say Herard was scheduled to appear before a court inquiry in Port-au-Prince earlier Wednesday but failed to do so.  U.S. President Joe Biden meets with his Attorney General Merrick Garland, law enforcement officials, and community leaders to discuss gun violence reduction strategies at the White House in Washington, July 12, 2021.U.S. President Joe Biden has condemned the assassination. The president dispatched a special delegation to Haiti to assist with the investigation. The delegation includes officials from the State Department, Homeland Security, the Justice Department and the National Security Council.   Matiado Vilme in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer contributed to this report
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Haiti, reeling from the assassination of its president and the coronavirus pandemic, has received its first half-million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund said Thursday. UNICEF said in a statement the doses were donated by the U.S. and delivered Wednesday through COVAX, an initiative for the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. “Until yesterday, Haiti was the only country in the Americas without a single dose of a COVID-19 vaccine,” Haiti was the only country in the Americas without a single dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. On July 14, 500,000 doses of vaccine donated by the U.S government through COVAX landed in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. (Photo: © UNICEF/UN0489198/Fils Guillau)The initial batch of vaccines came after the July 7 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise by an armed hit-squad in his heavily guarded private home. Moise’s death occurred amid a period of heightened political instability and gang violence in the country. His assassination has raised fears of another surge in COVID-19 cases, according to the Pan American Health Organization. U.S. President Joe Biden promised in June to deliver 80 million doses worldwide by the end of the month. His administration plans to donate an additional 500 million doses globally in the next year, and 200 million by the end of 2021. COVAX is co-led by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organization and UNICEF. Margaret Besheer at the United Nations contributed to this report. Some information also came from Agence France-Presse and Associated Press.  
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U.S. President Joe Biden meets German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the White House Thursday in what will probably be her last official visit.
 
After 16 years as chancellor, Merkel plans to leave the government following national elections in September.
 
“This visit will affirm the deep and enduring bilateral ties between the United States and Germany,” the White House said Wednesday.
 
Biden and Merkel will discuss a variety of issues that include “countering the threat of climate change, ending the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing security and regional challenges, and shoring up democracy around the world,” according to the White House.
 
The two leaders are also expected to discuss a Russian gas pipeline that Washington opposes. The Nord Stream 2 project transports natural gas from Russia to Germany.
 
The U.S. has argued that the project will put European energy security at risk by increasing Europe’s reliance on Russian gas and allowing the Kremlin to pressure vulnerable countries in Eastern and Central Europe.
 
Merkel’s spokesperson, Steffen Seibert, told reporters the leaders will also discuss China, which has strong trade relations with Germany. Some political observers say Merkel, who has criticized China’s human rights record, hopes to avoid having to choose between the U.S. and China.
 
Merkel’s agenda Thursday also includes dinner at the White House with President Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Douglass Emhoff.  
 
Merkel will also make remarks after receiving an honorary degree at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.
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Five years ago this week, tanks rolled into the streets of Ankara and Istanbul, and soldiers ordered a news anchor at Turkey’s state broadcaster, TRT, to read a statement announcing the military had seized power.  The coup attempt was shut down quickly. But for the country’s media and voices of opposition, July 15, 2016, spurred an era of accusations and arrests, including the arrests of journalists who had covered events that night.One of those was Ilhan Tanir, then Washington correspondent for Turkey’s oldest newspaper, Cumhuriyet. Tanir recalls watching the coup unfold from the U.S., with TV stations interrupting regular programming to show military vehicles on Istanbul’s iconic Bosporus Bridge.Ilhan Tanir, pictured in July, is a Turkish journalist based in Washington, D.C. In 2016, he reported on the failed attempted July 15 coup for Turkey’s oldest newspaper, Cumhuriyet.”At the time, there were a lot of ISIS attacks in Turkey,” the journalist told VOA, referring to the Islamic State terror group. “The rumors and the tweets were talking about how it could be some kind of ISIS attack.”  But, Tanir said quickly, “we understood there was a coup.”  In the hours that followed, Tanir used Twitter to convey information from Turkish sources to his English-speaking audience.  Months later, Turkish prosecutors claimed his earlier social media posts and news reporting were evidence that Tanir belonged to the Gulen movement, the group accused of orchestrating the coup.  It was an accusation leveled at other journalists too. In the past five years, record numbers were arrested, often on accusations of supporting or producing propaganda for a terrorist organization. Authorities tightened control over digital and social media and forced some news outlets to close or come under new ownership.  At Tanir’s outlet alone, at least a dozen journalists, including former Editor-in-Chief Can Dundar, were accused of being part of the Gulen movement, a grassroots religious organization led by Fethullah Gulen.The 80-year-old cleric, who lives in self-imposed exile in the U.S., denies any involvement. Addressing his party’s provincial heads on July 8 of this year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the failed coup as “one of the most treacherous attempts in our history.”  The attempt to thwart democracy left around 250 people dead and more than 2,000 injured. Erdogan said that it had been carried out by Gulenists but had “a much wider network behind it.” FILE – The names of civilians and police killed while resisting a failed coup attempt are displayed on a banner in Taksim Square, Istanbul, Turkey, July 20, 2016. The slogan reads: ‘Sovereignty belongs to the nation.’Turkey has also dismissed international criticism of the arrests of critics and reporters. In a 2017 BBC interview, FILE – Banners and flags are waved at a solidarity rally nearly two weeks after a failed attempted coup in Ankara, Turkey, July 27, 2016.”It wasn’t just members of the Gulen movement that were targeted at the stage,” said Merve Tahiroglu, the Turkey program coordinator at Project on Middle East Democracy, or POMED, a Washington-based research and advocacy group.  “It was also people who had nothing to do with this movement. Many Kurdish outlets were among the first media outlets that were shut down by decree in the state of emergency,” she said. “And we saw a lot of journalists, particularly Kurdish journalists but also liberal voices, progressive voices, get detained or sacked from their jobs.” For some, the accusations appeared to stem from being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  On the day of the coup, Henri Barkey, a Middle East expert and professor of international relations at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania,  was on Istanbul’s Buyukada Island, speaking at a workshop on Iran’s relations with its neighbors.  But Ankara saw the American analyst’s presence in Istanbul differently. It issued an arrest warrant for Barkey, and pro-government newspapers described him as a CIA operative working inside the country to topple Erdogan. “It has been very costly to me, this Turkish accusation,” said Barkey, who denies the allegations. “I can’t go to Turkey, obviously, to do my research there. People avoid me. Friends of mine have stopped talking to me because they are afraid, because any association with me is problematic and can be used against them,” he told VOA.  FILE – An unidentified solider accused of attempting to assassinate Turkey’s president during the failed attempted coup is escorted to a court hearing, Oct. 4, 2017.Analysts say those numbers are higher today and include prominent politicians such as Selahattin Demirtas, the co-leader of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party, or HDP, who has been behind bars since November 2016.  Last month, the Turkish Constitutional Court ordered HDP to go on trial for alleged links to the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. If connections are proven, the HDP will shut down like all the other pro-Kurdish parties preceding it.  Ankara’s actions have resulted in media watchdogs labeling Turkey as the worst jailer of journalists. By the end of 2016, at least 86 journalists were jailed in Turkey, according to the New York City-based Committee to Protect Journalists, which tracks arrests linked directly to working as a journalist.  CPJ’s annual prison census, which reflects the number of detained journalists, continued to show high figures in the years following the coup: 74 in 2017, 68 in 2018 and 37 at the last count, in late 2020. Alongside its snapshot of arrests, the press freedom organization flagged Turkey’s “revolving door” approach of detentions, releases, and rearrests.The European Union has also warned Turkey that its aspirations for membership hang on the country ending its authoritarian practices.  “Human rights, the rule of law, democracy, fundamental freedoms — including media freedom — are all basic imperative requirements for any progress towards the European Union,” Johannes Hahn, the EU’s membership commissioner, said after talks with Turkey in 2017.’Abusing Interpol’ Journalist Tanir says he considered himself lucky to be outside of Turkey in 2016 and therefore able to avoid arrest.  Court documents accused him and his colleagues of additional crimes: undermining the Turkish state and supporting the PKK. The armed Kurdish group, which is seeking autonomy, has been designated a terrorist organization by both Ankara and Washington.  Tanir denies any association with either the PKK or the Gulen movement. But he is still wanted internationally because of a “red notice” arrest warrant that a Turkish court issued to Interpol in 2018.”This has made my international travel impossible,” he said. Experts, including analyst and former lawmaker Aykan Erdemir, have said Veysel Ok, vice president of Turkey’s Media and Law Studies Association, works in Istanbul in July. The media rights lawyer estimates that over 400 journalists have been detained in Turkey since 2016.”These were always the Sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of journalists, intellectuals, and writers,” he told VOA, adding that before 2016, “in general, this pressure mainly was on Kurdish journalists, Armenian journalists, or journalists and media outlets with left or liberal views.”  But after July 15, 2016, “this pressure has begun to be applied to everyone,” Ok said.  “From the mainstream media to the (Gulen-affiliated) media, from the left media to the right media, everyone who thinks differently from the government, writes differently, and expresses an opinion other than the official view of the government has become a victim of the government,” he said.Reporting equipment lies on the ground outside the offices of Ankara’s government, and protesters hold a banner that reads “We can’t breathe. Journalism cannot be drowned” during a rally for journalists to be protected from police, June 29, 2021.Effect on Turkey’s media The arrests and harassment have had far-reaching impact on Turkey’s media scene.Media lawyer Ok said that prominent media outlets, including pro-Kurdish or those deemed close to the Gulen movement, had been closed and mainstream media put under new ownership.  Journalists looked to new avenues for independent reporting, including social media platforms. But changes to regulations regarding digital news and social media have led to further obstacles.  Ankara enacted social media regulations requiring that Twitter, YouTube and Facebook have offices in Turkey and respond to takedown requests quickly or risk fines.Erdogan Seeks to Tame Social Media, Again New Turkish legislation seeks to tighten controls on social media with novel approach that analysts say could succeed this time The Radio and Television Supreme Council, which provides licenses and serves as a watchdog for the country’s broadcasters, has been accused by Human Rights Watch of imposing “punitive and disproportionate sanctions against independent television and radio channels that broadcast commentary and news coverage critical of the Turkish government.”  Turkey more recently issued a directive banning police from being photographed at protests, a measure it said was to protect the officers’ privacy. Lawyer Ok described the ban as “unconstitutional.” Changes in the application process for the press cards that give journalists access to official briefings have also proved challenging, with several journalism organizations saying the Directorate of Communications no longer issues accreditation for those at independent or critical outlets. “When the process is not treating journalists equally, this hurts people’s right to be informed. Because if you separate certain journalists, critical journalists, critical outlets from others and make the fieldwork harder for them, this is censorship from whichever angle you look at it,” said Ozgur Ogret, the Turkish representative for CPJ.  With Cumhuriyet under different leadership, former Editor-in-Chief Dundar has started a new website from Germany, where he lives in exile.  The website, called Ozguruz, which means “we are free” in Turkish, covers events in Turkey and Germany, but access to the site is blocked in Dundar’s home country.  Last year, the veteran journalist was sentenced in absentia to more than 27 years in prison for espionage and aiding a terrorist organization.  Turkish Court Convicts Journalist Dundar on Terror Charges Dundar, the former editor-in-chief of opposition newspaper Cumhuriyet, was on trial for a 2015 story accusing Turkey’s intelligence service of illegally sending weapons to SyriaTanir also no longer works for Cumhuriyet.  But even his employer — Ahval, a news website that covers Turkish politics and economics — has faced accusations of Gulen links. Something that Tanir and the media outlet deny.Tanir said that while covering the U.S. State Department, he had been one of the first journalists to question the so-called Gulenists’ alleged involvement in human rights abuses and pressure on the media in the early 2000s.  “Anyone can go and look at the archives of the State Department and see who asked most questions about the human rights and press issues (in Turkey) when the Gulenists were powerful and ruling the country indirectly with their allies in the government,” he said. “The record is out there, but once the Turkish government wants to punish a critical journalist, they always find a way.” Umut Colak contributed to this report from Istanbul.  
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The head of security at the Haitian presidential palace has been taken into custody as part of the investigation of July 7 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise.A close associate of Dimitri Herard said Herard was detained Wednesday. CNN said Martin failed to appear before a court inquiry ordered by the public prosecutor of Port-au-Prince because he had been summoned by police for questioning.Moise was killed during a predawn attack on his private residence in a wealthy suburb of the Haitian capital that also left his wife, Martine, seriously wounded. National Police Chief Leon Charles said 18 Colombians and three Haitians have been arrested in connection with the attack, including 63-year-old Christian Emmanuel Sanon, a Haitian-born man based in the U.S. state of Florida who police believe is the mastermind behind the plot to kill Moise. Charles said Sanon arrived in Haiti on a private plane in early June with some of the Colombians.An official with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration told VOA in an emailed statement that one of the suspects in custody was a confidential source to the agency.A manhunt continues for several more suspects, including a man identified by The Associated Press as John Joel Joseph, a former senator in opposition to Moise’s Tet Kale party.U.S. President Joe Biden has dispatched a special delegation to Haiti to assist with the investigation.Moise’s killing has created a leadership vacuum in the troubled Caribbean nation. He had named neurosurgeon Ariel Henry to the post of prime minister to replace Claude Joseph, who was serving in the post on an interim basis while also serving as foreign minister. But Henry was not sworn in before the assassination, and Joseph has declared himself acting prime minister.A commission made up of representatives of all sectors of Haitian civil society plans to meet Thursday to sign a political accord that will name a new president.Joseph, as acting prime minister, had requested the United States deploy troops to Haiti to protect key infrastructure.Meanwhile, Haiti received 500,000 doses of the two-shot Moderna COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday. The doses were donated by the U.S. through the United Nations-led COVAX global vaccine sharing initiative. Through the initiative, vaccines are distributed to low- and middle-income countries.Haiti has reported 19,374 confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 487 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.Some information for this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
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At least seven people have died and several people are missing in Germany after heavy flooding turned streams and streets into raging torrents, sweeping away cars and causing some buildings to collapse.Police in the western city of Koblenz said Thursday that four people had died in Ahrweiler county, and about 50 were trapped on the roofs of their houses awaiting rescue.Six houses had collapsed overnight in the village of Schuld. “Many people have been reported missing to us,” police said.Schuld is located in the Eifel, a volcanic region of rolling hills and small valleys southwest of Cologne.The full extent of the damage in the region was still unclear after many villages were cut off by floodwater and landslides that made roads impassable. Videos posted on social media showed cars floating down streets and houses partly collapsed in some places.Authorities have declared an emergency in the region after days of heavy rainfall that also affected large parts of western and central Germany, as well as neighboring countries, causing widespread damage.Police said an 82-year-old man died after a fall in his flooded basement in the western city of Wuppertal, which was among the hardest-hit.A fireman drowned Wednesday during rescue work in the western German town of Altena and another collapsed during rescue operations at a power plant in Werdohl-Elverlingsen. One man was missing in the eastern town of Joehstadt after disappearing while trying to secure his property from rising waters, authorities said.Rail connections were suspended in large parts of North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state. Governor Armin Laschet, who is running to succeed Angela Merkel as chancellor in this fall’s German election, was expected to visit the flood-hit city of Hagen later Thursday.A photo taken with a drone shows the devastation caused by the flooding of the Ahr River in the Eifel village of Schuld, western Germany, July 15, 2021.German weather service DWD predicted the rainfall would ease Thursday.Relentless rains through the night worsened the flooding conditions in eastern Belgium, where one person was reported drowned and at least another was missing.Some towns saw water levels rise to unprecedented levels and had their centers turned into gushing rivers.Major highways were inundated and in the south and east of the nation, the railway service said all traffic was stopped, adding that “alternative transport is highly unlikely.”In eastern Eupen, on the German border, one man was reported dead after he was swept away by a torrent, a local governor told RTBf network.In Liege, the main city in eastern Belgium, the Meuse River could break its banks by early afternoon and spill into the heart of the city. Police warned the citizens to take precautionary measures.Authorities in the southern Dutch town of Valkenburg, close to the German and Belgian borders, evacuated a care home and a hospice overnight amid flooding that turned the tourist town’s main street into a river, Dutch media reported.The Dutch government sent some 70 troops to the southern province of Limburg late Wednesday to help with tasks including transporting evacuees and filling sandbags as rivers burst their banks. There were no reports of injuries linked to flooding in the Netherlands.Unusually intense rains have also inundated a swath of northeast France this week, downing trees and forcing the closure of dozens of roads. A train route to Luxembourg was disrupted, and firefighters evacuated dozens of people from homes near the Luxembourg and German border and in the Marne region, according to local broadcaster France Bleu.The equivalent of two months of rain has fallen on some areas in the last one or two days, according to the French national weather service. With the ground already saturated, the service forecast more downpours Thursday and issued flood warnings for 10 regions. 
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Cuba announced on Wednesday it was temporarily lifting restrictions on the amount of food and medicine travelers could bring into the country in an apparent small concession to demands by protesters who took to the street last weekend.Thousands joined a wave of nationwide protests over shortages of basic goods, curbs on civil liberties and the government’s handling of a surge in COVID-19 infections on Sunday, in the most significant unrest in decades in the Communist-run country.The government blamed the unrest on U.S.-financed “counter-revolutionaries” exploiting hardship caused by the decades-old U.S. trade embargo that Washington tightened in the midst of the pandemic, pushing the Cuban economy to the brink.Several countries and the United Nations have called on the government to respect citizens’ right to express themselves. Others like Mexico have said A demonstrator holds up a bead necklace in the colors of the Cuban flag, July 14, 2021, in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood, as people rallied in support of antigovernment demonstrations in Cuba.And Prime Minister Manuel Marrero said on Wednesday the government would do precisely that from next Monday, lifting restrictions until the year-end.“It was a demand made by many travelers and it was necessary to take this decision,” he said on a roundtable on state television, alongside President Miguel Diaz-Canel.It was not immediately clear how much difference the move would make given that there are very few flights at the moment into the Caribbean island nation which is going through its worst coronavirus outbreak since the start of the pandemic.Government critic Yoani Sanchez, who runs news website 14ymedio, was quick to tweet that such concessions would not be enough to appease those who had protested on Sunday.“We do not want crumbs, we want freedom, and we want it nowwwww,” she wrote. “The streets have spoken: we are not afraid.”Cubans say they have been frustrated by outages in mobile internet and restricted access to social media and messaging platforms since Sunday.“It’s been a bunch of days that no one has been able to connect,” said Havana resident Andrea Lopez. “My husband is in Mexico and I haven’t been able to speak with him.”More than 200 people were detained during or following the protests, according to exiled rights group Cubalex, and only a handful have been released so far.Diaz-Canel said there were three kinds of protesters; counterrevolutionaries, criminals and those with legitimate frustrations. State-run television showed images of a crowd looting a store and another attacking an empty police car.Interior ministry officials said in a program televised later that some of the detained would be pursued for crimes like incitement to violence, contempt, robbery and damage to public property, which carry lengthy prison sentences.  
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The United States will support an inclusive, credible Haitian government, Laura Lochman, the State Department’s acting deputy assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs, told VOA on Wednesday.Lochman was part of a U.S. delegation President Joe Biden dispatched to Haiti on July 11 in response to a request from the government of Haiti for assistance after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise last week.The U.S. delegation met with Haitian acting Prime Minister Claude Joseph, Prime Minister-designate Ariel Henry and Senator Joseph Lambert.The senator posted a message on Twitter, saying he had met with the U.S. delegation and that they “appreciate” the Haitian Senate resolution naming him as provisional president of Haiti.“It’s up to the Haitians to come up with the solution to this political process at this point so we rely on them and give them all the support that we can to work conclusively, to work together to form a consensus government. And the United States will definitely, along with our international partners, support an inclusive, credible government,” Lochman told VOA in response to a question about who the United States will support as Haiti’s leader.Haitian politicians float their own plansIn Port-au-Prince, a commission comprised of representatives of all sectors of Haitian civil society plans to meet Thursday to sign a political accord that will name a new president.Ted Saint Dic, one of the organizers of the upcoming meeting, told reporters the group plans to meet with the 10 Haitian senators whose terms have not expired.“We will present a plan based on discussions we have already had, that we will make public during the meeting. With regards to the proposal to name Senator Lambert president of the republic, we believe that before making such a decision, there must be consultations. That’s where we are right now,” Saint Dic said.He described the effort as a “society effort” that would not be rushed.“We’re not in a hurry. We want to allow the country to find a way to enter into dialogue and agree on solutions that fundamentally address the biggest preoccupations of the Haitian people,” Saint Dic said. “The people have what it takes to decide who their leader will be.”Elsewhere in the capital, several political leaders held press conferences Tuesday to discuss their efforts to solve the current political void.Former Senator Steven Benoit discussed his plan during a press conference.“I told Senator Lambert that we need to organize as soon as possible a national dialogue with representatives of all sectors of society, including the religious sector, to decide what we are going to do,” Benoit said. “The constitution has been ignored (by President Moise) since January 2020, so today we need a political accord. And I’ve asked Senator Lambert to meet with the different political parties, which he has begun to do, as well as members of civil society, to discuss the issues and come up with a Haitian solution.”Political leader Dieudonne Lherisson of the PLANSPA (Platfom Nasyonal Sekte Popile Ayisyen) Party also held a press conference Tuesday to call for a national dialogue.“Everyone knows there were (only) 11 elected officials in the country — President Moise and the 10 senators. President Moise is dead now, so 10 elected officials remain, who were elected by the people. It is time for them to take responsibility and organize a national dialogue — not to mess around — but rather to find the best formula to reestablish order, fight insecurity and organize elections to allow the people to choose their leader in a democratic fashion,” Lherisson said.“We’re very happy to hear that they’re moving in that direction,” said Lochman told VOA.ElectionsFormer Senator Benoit is pushing for an 18-month transition period, ending with presidential and legislative elections in September or October 2022. But Lochman said the United States would like to see elections held this year.“We have always believed and in fact continue to believe very strongly, that it’s imperative to hold elections for both president and the legislature this year and that is because there has been a vacuum in democratic governance in Haiti that is not serving the needs of the Haitian people,” Lochman said.In fact, the parliament has been out of session since January 2020 when the terms of most of the legislature expired. Elections have not been held to elect new members due to mass protests, the coronavirus pandemic and uncontrolled gang violence.Lochman stressed the need for Haiti’s executive, legislative and judicial branches of government to be fully operational.“You need to have all branches of government in place and working together and working in the pursuit of providing services to the Haitian people that they deserve. And we the U.S. government as well as our international partners have been working with them and will continue to stand with them to improve their democratic governance and institutions,” she told VOA.Troop requestThe question of whether the U.S. will send troops to Haiti has been a hot topic both inside Haiti and in the U.S. since President Moise’s assassination.“The Haitian acting prime minister did send a letter both to the United Nations and the United States prior to last weekend, asking for asking for assistance in maintaining some of their critical infrastructure as well as helping in election security and with the investigation of the assassination,” Lochman told VOA.Pressed about whether the U.S. has decided to send troops to Haiti, she said the conversation is ongoing.“To be clear we are working with them now to get a very clear idea of exactly what their needs are and how we can best respond to those. And while nothing is being taken off the table at this point, we are trying to understand better the fundamental issues they are grappling with,” Lochman said.Renan Toussaint and Matiado Vilme in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, contributed to this story. 
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The United States is encouraging Haitian political leaders, civil society and the private sector to find a political solution that will lead to presidential and legislative elections in the Caribbean island nation later this year, following last week’s assassination of President Jovenel Moise.A commission made up of representatives of all sectors of Haitian civil society plans to meet Thursday to sign a political accord that will name a new president.“We’re very happy to hear that they’re moving in that direction,” said Laura Lochman, the State Department’s acting deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs.Lochman on Wednesday sat down with VOA to discuss the crisis in Haiti and how the United States is planning to help with the investigation of Moise’s assassination, gang violence, and COVID-19 cases.Lochman was a member of the U.S. delegation that traveled to Port-au-Prince on Sunday in response to a Haitian government request for security and investigative assistance following the July 7 killing.The following are excerpts from the interview, which has been edited for brevity and clarity.VOA: Various groups of Haitian political leaders plan to meet this week to discuss a solution for the political crisis and name a new leader. Will the U.S. recognize their decision?Lochman: The United States, in conjunction with our international partners, have been in constant contact with Haitian political leaders, encouraging them to come together and have an inclusive, open process and form a unity government that includes the private sector, civil society, as well as the various political parties. So, we’re very happy to hear that they’re moving in that direction.VOA: Haitian Senator Joseph Lambert posted a message on Twitter, saying he had met with the U.S. delegation and that they “appreciate” the Haitian Senate resolution naming him as provisional president of Haiti. Can you confirm or deny that statement?Lochman: We did, in fact — when we were on the ground in Port-au-Prince on Sunday — we did meet with Senator Lambert. We also met with the acting prime minister, Claude Joseph, and Prime Minister-Designate Dr. Ariel Henry. And we have the exact same message to all three gentlemen, which is to encourage them to work together, to take their time, have an inclusive process, draw in other political parties and the civil society actors to come up with a consensus government that could help restore stability to Haiti and lead them to presidential and legislative elections this year.VOA: Would the U.S. recognize Lambert as a leader if that’s the conclusion?Lochman: Again, it’s up to the Haitians to come up with the solution to this political process at this point. So, we rely on them and give them all of the support that we can to work conclusively, to work together, to form a consensus government. And the United States will definitely, along with our international partners, support an inclusive, credible government.VOA: Will the U.S. continue pushing for elections in 2021?Lochman: We have always believed … and continue to believe very strongly that it’s imperative to hold elections for both the president and the legislature this year, and that is because there has been, really, a vacuum in democratic governance in Haiti that is not serving the needs of the Haitian people. There are many significant problems — on the economic front, security front, political front, health front — that need to be dealt with in Haiti, and you need three functioning, fully staffed branches of government responsible to the Haitian people to take on those challenges.VOA: If I may ask, elections have never solved Haiti’s problems. What is the U.S. thinking these elections will settle?Lochman: Well certainly, again, a power vacuum or a lack of democratic governance would never be the solution in our minds. You need to have all branches of government in place and working together in the pursuit of providing services to the Haitian people that they deserve. And the U.S. government, as well as other international partners, have been working with them and will continue to stand with them to improve their democratic governance and institutions.VOA: When does the U.S. expect to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to Haiti?Lochman: The delivery of vaccines is quite imminent — at least the first tranche of vaccines should be arriving very soon. And then, there will be provision of more as conditions allow, in terms of cold storage, etc., but we are committed to providing them as soon as possible.VOA: Has there been consular access to the three Americans who have been accused in the assassination? Is there a determination whether they are culpable?Lochman: We have been informed that there are three American citizens detained by the Haitian National Police (HNP) in connection with the horrible assassination. Our embassy in Port-au-Prince is providing the normal and appropriate consular services to those U.S. citizens.VOA: Has the U.S. said no to any request from Haiti for assistance?Lochman: We have not. We are, again, working very closely — it’s on a constant basis — with Haitian officials to determine what their needs are, to kind of drill down on the specifics and determine how we can best support them from the U.S. government perspective.VOA: Has the U.S. received a request from the Haitian government for U.S. troops to protect infrastructure sites like its ports and the airport?Lochman: Prior to last weekend, Haiti’s acting prime minister did send a letter, both to the United Nations and the United States, asking for assistance in maintaining the safety of some of their critical infrastructure, as well as helping on election security, and with the investigation of the assassination. So again, we’re working internally within the U.S. government, as well as with our international partners, to coordinate with the Haitians on how best to respond to their requests.VOA: The U.S. is saying yes to the request to send U.S. troops to protect Haiti’s infrastructure sites?Lochman: To reiterate, we are working with them now to get a very clear idea of exactly what their needs are and how we can best respond to those needs. And while nothing is being taken off the table at this point, we are trying to understand better the fundamental issues they’re grappling with. And one of the things that we may ramp up, for instance, is our provision of advisers to the HNP to help them combat the gangs that are such a problem there right now. But again, this conversation is going on daily.VOA: Ambassador Michele Sison has been named to a new post at the State Department. When can we expect this administration to name her replacement?Lochman: Ambassador Sison remains the ambassador to Haiti. At this point, she is awaiting Senate confirmation for her new role, and she is on the ground in Port-au-Prince working way too many hours per day and putting her full experience into helping solve the issues on the ground in Haiti.VOA: Is there anything else you would like to add?Lochman: Just that, again, the United States has had a long relationship with the Haitian people, and we are fully committed to doing everything that we can to assist them in this very difficult time that they are experiencing. 
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European Union leaders on Wednesday introduced the bloc’s most comprehensive plans yet to combat climate change, with a new goal of reducing carbon emissions to 55% below 1990 levels by 2030.Unveiled by the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, the legislation would make the bloc’s goal of reaching climate neutrality by 2050 legally binding and completely overhaul its energy system.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a press conference that the “Fit for 55” plan would act as a road map of concrete actions necessary to achieve the bloc’s climate goals.“Our package aims to combine the reduction of emissions with measures to preserve nature, and to put jobs and social balance at the heart of this transformation,” von der Leyen said.The sweeping proposal would involve every sector of the EU’s economy in its Emissions Trading System, which incentivizes companies to lower their emissions by taxing the carbon they produce.New taxes on previously exempt sectors are proposed for aviation and shipping fuels. The plan also calls for increasing existing carbon taxes to the transportation, manufacturing and power sectors.FILE – Cars sit at a standstill during morning rush hour on a main artery in the European Quarter of Brussels, Dec. 12, 2019. The European Union on July 14, 2021, unveiled new legislation to help meet its pledge to cut climate-changing emissions.Border taxOne of the package’s most noteworthy aspects is a first-of-its-kind tax on the carbon produced by foreign imports, which in turn likely would raise prices for consumers.This border tax — known officially as the carbon border adjustment mechanism — would ensure the EU is reducing emissions across the board, and it would protect domestic companies against price competition from foreign companies without the same environmental restrictions.In April, environmental leaders from China, India, South Africa and Brazil spoke out against such a tax, asserting that a carbon border adjustment would be discriminatory against developing countries that lack the resources to focus on cutting emissions.The commission also is planning to completely phase out the sale of combustion-engine cars by 2035, effectively bringing new car emissions to zero.Other proposals include shifting millions of buildings in the EU toward renewable energy by 2030 via renovation and implementation of a carbon tax on road transport.“Emission of CO2 must have a price, and we know that carbon pricing works,” von der Leyen said. “Our existing emission trading system has already helped significantly to reduce emissions in industry and in power generation.”European Commissioner for the European Green Deal Frans Timmermans speaks during a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels, July 14, 2021.Fairness, accessibilityThe commission emphasized a focus on making the transition to renewable energy fair and accessible to everyone, particularly low-income individuals and member states whose economies are more reliant on polluting industries.Environmental taxes that target the individual have caused controversy in the past, as seen with the massive yellow vest movement in opposition to the French government’s raising fuel taxes.Since energy prices are expected to rise, the commission proposed creating a $85.2 billion fund that citizens of member states could access to help mitigate the costs of switching to energy-efficient housing and transportation.The commission’s plan comes six years after the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement signaled a worldwide commitment to mitigating the impact of climate change and keeping global temperatures from increasing significantly.Additionally, since the EU produces only 8% of the world’s carbon emissions, the plan is intended to push other world powers to follow suit and produce more concrete plans for reaching climate neutrality.In coming years, the commission’s plan will be the subject of scrutiny and negotiation as the leaders from the 27 member states convene in the European Parliament and Council to implement the laws across the EU.
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Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was being evaluated Wednesday for possible emergency surgery for an intestinal obstruction, his office said. Bolsonaro, 66, was admitted to the Armed Forces Hospital in Brasilia early in the morning and was “feeling well,” according to an initial statement that said doctors were examining his persistent hiccups. But hours later, the president’s office said Dr. Antonio Luiz Macedo, the surgeon who operated on Bolsonaro after he was stabbed in the abdomen during the 2018 presidential campaign, decided to transfer him to Sao Paulo, where he will undergo additional tests to evaluate the need for an emergency surgery. FILE – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro reacts during a ceremony in Brasilia, Brazil, March 10, 2021.The stabbing caused intestinal damage and serious internal bleeding and the president has gone through several surgeries since, some unrelated to the attack. In recent weeks, Bolsonaro has appeared to struggle with speaking on various occasions and said that he suffers from recurring hiccups. “I apologize to everyone who is listening to me, because I’ve been hiccuping for five days now,” Bolsonaro said in an interview with Radio Guaiba on July 7. He suggested that some medications prescribed after dental surgery might be the cause. “I have the hiccups 24 hours a day.” The following day, during his weekly Facebook Live session, Bolsonaro apologized again for not being able to express himself well due to weeklong hiccups. Bolsonaro has been under growing pressure from a congressional inquiry into his administration’s handling of the pandemic and alleged corruption in the acquisition of vaccines against COVID-19, and recent polls have indicated that he could lose in the next 2022 election. On Tuesday night, in a 20-minute encounter with the president in Brasilia, supporters repeatedly asked him to look after his health. 
 
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