Day: June 1, 2026

For decades, Cuba’s government has presented its centralized and free education system as one of the country’s key achievements. The late President Fidel Castro was a disciple for literacy and encouraged bringing great works of literature into classrooms, News.Az reports, citing UPI.
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However, the system now faces growing deterioration that is limiting opportunities for younger generations, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO.
The country’s severe energy crisis has forced the Cuban government to end the school year 15 days earlier than planned because of the collapse of the national power grid and fuel shortages. The situation has left large areas of the country without electricity for periods of up to 48 consecutive hours.
The Ministry of Education said it will begin a gradual shutdown of the academic year starting June 15, acknowledging that in-person classes have become unsustainable for students and teachers who spend entire nights without electricity in their homes.
The contingency plan also affects higher education. Universities will conclude the academic year in July and university entrance examinations will be canceled, with admissions based instead on students’ cumulative academic records.
Authorities have blamed the worsening crisis on U.S. restrictions affecting fuel supplies. The measures come after months of student complaints and protests over shortages and transportation difficulties affecting the education sector.
“The school year has practically ended in most Cuban schools,” Cuban journalist Yoani Sánchez said Monday in her daily podcast. She added that universities have been largely paralyzed since February.
Sánchez said the education system has suffered several blows to quality, including the use of so-called “instant teachers” — young professionals with limited pedagogical training who have been assigned to classrooms because of teacher shortages and emigration.
Cuba began the 2025-26 academic year with a shortage of 24,000 teachers, according to Education Minister Naima Trujillo.
“After a night without electricity, going to school is a challenge for a child,” Trujillo said. She also cited problems related to water access, transportation and basic conditions at many educational facilities.
“Education in Cuba is at risk because of the current energy crisis. This makes it difficult for teachers and students to attend classes, learn effectively and enjoy a normal social life with their friends,” Anne Lemaistre, director of UNESCO’s Regional Office in Havana, said Saturday.
In her view, the situation threatens an entire generation and could have long-term consequences.
“Their future must be protected for the benefit of all,” she added.
In recent months, several universities and higher education institutions have shifted to hybrid learning models because of difficulties maintaining normal operations.
Residents of the Havana neighborhoods of Marianao and Calabazar interviewed by Martí Noticias expressed concern about the state of the education system and its impact on student learning.
They said the crisis is severely affecting children because of shortages of resources and teachers, who often struggle to support their families on current salaries and face transportation costs that make it difficult to reach schools.
Parents interviewed by the outlet also said many schools lack basic services such as running water and electricity, further worsening conditions for students.
They added that some families prefer not to send their children to school because of the absence of snacks, lunches and adequate supervision.

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Officers seized over ​C$3.5 million ($2.53 million) worth of ​counterfeit merchandise from a Mississauga warehouse, they ⁠said, including more than 16,000 fraudulent ​jerseys and flags bearing fake FIFA, ​Nike (NKE.N), opens new tab, Adidas (ADSGn.DE), opens new tab and Puma branding, as well as two counterfeit World Cup trophies, News.az reports, citing Reuters. 
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Two men have been ​arrested and charged, the police said.
Toronto ​is expecting more than 300,000 visitors during the ‌World ⁠Cup with six matches to be played in the city, including Canada’s opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina on June ​12.
A complaint ​to the ⁠Toronto Police Service FIFA Planning Team Investigative Unit in May ​alleged that the accused were ​supplying ⁠products to retail stores and acting as a distributor of fraudulent merchandise.
The items ⁠have ​an estimated street value ​of C$3,564,000, police said.

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The submarine rests at a depth of more than 300 feet and sits upright on its keel. Navy officials said the Herring maintains “a high degree of integrity,” News.Az reports, citing The Washington Times.
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“The submarine displays battle damage around the conning tower and evidence of grounding at her bow, correlating with the historical record,” the Navy said in a statement Monday.
The Herring was launched on Jan. 15, 1942, and commissioned into service four months later. Before her loss, she completed eight war patrols in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters and is credited with sinking seven enemy ships, including four Japanese cargo ships during her final patrol.
The Herring was last seen on May 31, 1944, by the crew of another submarine, the USS Barb, when they met to coordinate patrol areas off the Kuril Islands. On June 1, the Barb recorded the sound of distant depth charges exploding and took it as evidence of an attack against the USS Herring, Navy officials said.
Shore batteries also scored two direct hits on the sub’s conning tower after it had sunk two Japanese ships, the Ishigaki Maru and the Hokuyo Maru. The USS Herring was presumed lost when she failed to report to Navy officials on Midway in July 1944, officials said.
The Kuril Islands have been under Russian administration since their 1945 invasion by the Soviet Union near the end of World War II.
The wreckage was discovered in 2017 during a joint expedition by the Russian Geographic Society and the Russian Navy. A commemorative plaque was placed at the site during a later exploration in 2022.
The Naval History and Research Command confirmed the wreck site as the final resting place of the USS Herring using data collected by the Russians and analyzed by U.S. and Japanese researchers. The U.S. considers it a protected area and said any research activity that might disturb the wreckage should be coordinated by U.S. Navy officials.
“More importantly, the wreck represents the final resting place of sailors who gave their lives in defense of the nation and should be respected by all parties as a war grave,” Navy officials said.

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In a statement, the headquarters accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of threatening to bomb Beirut’s Dahieh district and the Lebanese capital and of issuing evacuation warnings to residents, News.Az reports, citing CNN.
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“In light of the regime’s repeated violations of the ceasefire, we warn residents of the northern areas and military settlements in the occupied territories that, should this threat be carried out, they should leave the area if they do not wish to be harmed,” the statement said.
Earlier Monday, Netanyahu said, “There will not be a situation in which Hezbollah attacks our cities and citizens while the terrorist headquarters in Dahieh remains out of bounds.”“We are continuing to deepen our operational activity on the ground in southern Lebanon and are eliminating Hezbollah strongholds,” he added in a statement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X that “a ceasefire between Iran and the United States constitutes, without any ambiguity, a comprehensive ceasefire across all fronts, including Lebanon.”
“Any violation of this ceasefire on one front shall be considered a violation of it across all fronts. The United States and Israel bear responsibility for the consequences of any breach of the truce,” Araghchi added.
US officials, including President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, have maintained that Lebanon was never included in the US–Iran ceasefire agreement.

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Restrictions are introduced for fruits “originating and shipped from the Republic of Armenia and for transit of mentioned products to member-states of the Eurasian Economic Union until an appropriate algorithm for ensuring the safety of shipped products is developed,” the authority said, News.az reports, citing TASS.
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The watchdog records more frequent instances of violations during supplies of Armenian fruits to Russia. “Rosselkhoznadzor repeatedly sent information to the Armenian side regarding violations during supplies of quarantinable products,” the regulator added.

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SK Hynix (000660.KS), opens new tab CEO Kwak ​Noh-Jung, executives from Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab, LG Electronics (066570.KS), opens new tab and Naver (035420.KS), opens new tab were among those at the “Korean Partner ​Night”, held at a traditional Taiwanese restaurant in Taipei on the sidelines of the Computex ⁠trade show, News.az reports, citing Reuters.
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“I want to go congratulate them, thank them, and also prepare for the second half ​of this year. It’s going to be very busy and next year is going to be ​incredibly busy,” Huang told reporters.
“Korea is a critical part of our ecosystem.”
Huang went from table to table toasting guests to chants of “Jensen, Jensen!” as dozens of fans and reporters waited outside, briefly bringing traffic to a standstill when ​he arrived.
Huang typically holds such dinners for Taiwanese suppliers like chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW), opens new tab when he is in ​town, but Monday’s event was the first dedicated to Korean partners during his Taipei visit.
Shares in Samsung Electronics, LG ‌Electronics and ⁠other South Korean technology firms rallied on Monday as investors bet the expected meetings between the U.S. chipmaker and South Korean executives at Computex would lead to new partnerships in AI and robotics.
Huang said he would go to South Korea next, likely on Friday, after an almost two-week trip to ​Taiwan, where he was ​born and has rockstar ⁠status.
“We always consider investments in Korea,” he said, after a dinner of fried oysters, radish omelette and clams, washed down with Taiwan Beer and Korean ​soju.
“Really smart companies. Very technical.”
He said he hoped to be able to “contribute ​to robotics ⁠in Korea”, but declined to say whether he would meet with Samsung and SK Hynix in Seoul.
South Korea has emerged as one of Nvidia’s key markets.

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