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US Democratic lawmakers visit Cuba, call on Trump to ‘bring the rhetoric down’

Two Democrats from the US House of Representatives visited Cuba last week, the first such delegation to go to the island this year since US president Donald Trump imposed a de facto oil blockade in a bid to bring Cuba's communist-run government to its knees. Congressional representatives Pramila Jayapal, a leading member of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, and Jonathan Jackson, a Democrat with a long interest in Cuba, said they had come to "see the suffering that is happening on the ground" as a result of Trump's fuel embargo, which they called "an illegal blockade of energy supplies." The lawmakers' visit comes at a time of unprecedented tension in the decades-long frosty relationship between the US and Cuba. The Trump administration has closed the tap on remittances to Cuba, threatened to slap tariffs on countries that provide oil to the island and placed it on a list of nations that sponsor terrorism. "This is the most sanctioned par...
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US, Iran weigh peace plan as Trump's 'hell' warning nears deadline

With a US deadline approaching, ​the United States and Iran received the framework of a plan to end the US-Israeli war on Iran, though Tehran rejected any immediate move to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as part of a temporary ceasefire. US President Donald ‌Trump has threatened to rain "hell" on Tehran if it did not make a deal by the end of Tuesday that would allow traffic to start moving again through the vital route for global energy supplies. The Pakistani-brokered plan emerged from intense overnight contacts and proposes an immediate ceasefire, followed by negotiations on a broader settlement to be concluded within 15 to 20 days, a source aware of the proposals said on Monday. Read: UAE says the use of Hormuz must be guaranteed in any US-Iran deal Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal ​Asim Munir was in contact "all ​night long" with US Vice President JD Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, the source said. Iran won't reopen the Strait as part of a temporary ​ceasefire, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday, adding that Iran won't accept deadlines as it reviews the proposal. Washington lacks the readiness for ⁠a permanent ceasefire, the official said. Axios first reported on Sunday that the US, Iran and regional mediators were discussing a potential 45-day ceasefire as part of a two-phase deal that could lead to ​a permanent end to the war, citing US, Israeli and regional sources. Trump says deal must be made by Tuesday In a post laden with expletives on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump threatened further ​strikes on Iranian energy and transport infrastructure if Iran failed to make a deal and reopen the Strait by Tuesday. Later on Sunday, the president in a follow-up post gave a more precise deadline: "Tuesday, 8:00pm Eastern Time! (Wednesday 5am PKT)" Anwar Gargash, an adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said any settlement must guarantee access through the Strait of Hormuz. He warned that a deal that failed to rein in Iran’s nuclear programme and its missiles ​and drones would pave the way for "a more dangerous, more volatile Middle East". Fresh aerial strikes were reported across the region on Monday, more than five weeks since the US and Israel began pounding ​Iran in a war that has killed thousands of civilians and damaged economies by boosting oil prices. Iranian state media said the head of the Revolutionary Guards' intelligence organisation, Majid Khademi, has died. Israel on Monday claimed responsibility for his death. Israel ‌and the ⁠US have carried out assassinations of Iran's leaders since the start of the war on February 28, killing several high-ranking members of the Iranian ruling system, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei while he was at home with his family, who was replaced by his son, Mojtaba. A US-Israeli attack hit the data centre at Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, damaging infrastructure underpinning the country’s national artificial intelligence platform and thousands of other services, Fars News Agency said on Sunday. Israel threatens to destroy Iran's civilian infrastructure Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz in a statement issued on Monday threatened to destroy Iran’s infrastructure and hunt down its leaders "one by one". Trump has repeatedly warned Iran ​he could expand US strikes to include civilian infrastructure, ​such as power plants and bridges. Experts say ⁠such attacks could constitute war crimes but the International Criminal Court lacks jurisdiction because the countries involved are not members of the court. The Geneva Conventions say that parties involved in military conflict must distinguish between "civilian objects and military objectives", and that attacks on civilian objects, such as the kind that Israel has carried out in Gaza, Iran and Lebanon, are forbidden. Iranian weekend strikes on petrochemical facilities and an ​Israeli-linked vessel in Kuwait, ⁠Bahrain and the UAE underscored the country's ability to fight back despite Trump's repeated claims to have knocked out its missile and drone capabilities. Iran responded to the attacks launched by the US and Israel five weeks ago by effectively closing the Hormuz waterway, a conduit for about a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas supply, and attacking Israel, US military bases and energy infrastructure around the Gulf. About 3,540 people have ⁠been killed in ​Iran since the war erupted, including at least 244 children, said US-based and funded rights group HRANA. Israel has also invaded southern Lebanon ​and struck Beirut in a fight against Iran-backed Hezbollah militants that has become the most violent spillover of the US-Israeli war on Iran. Lebanon's heavy casualties include 1,461 killed, including at least 124 children, Lebanese authorities say. Thirteen US service members have died and hundreds ​of others have been wounded.

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At least 32 miners dead after bridge fails at cobalt site in southeast DR Congo

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