The Haitian airline Sunrise Airways announced the resumption of its commercial connections  with Cuba, after seven months of interruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, reported Prensa Latina. If they receive the approval of the Cuban authorities, the airline would begin its flights as of November 1 between Port-au-Prince and Santiago de Cuba on a daily basis; meanwhile, it would cover the route between the Haitian capital and Holguín three times a week, the source indicated. https://twitter.com/SunriseAirways/status/1318893360392900610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1318893360392900610%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Faerolinea-haitiana-anuncia-reanudacion-de-vuelos-a-cuba%2F The airline plans to resume flights to Havana and Camagüey in December. Sunrise Airways announced that it will use 19-seat Jetstream 32-type aircraft in its operations with Cuba. The company began its flights to the island in February 2017, and since then it has maintained stable connections with the Cuban travelers’ market, motivated by the prices of products bought in Haiti and in high demand on the island. According to the source, Sunrise also connects Havana with Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic. https://oncubanews.com/cuba/el-mercado-cubano-de-puerto-principe/ After the pause forced by the complex international epidemiological situation, the company restarted flights on July 3, with the application of new health protocols that have the health of passengers as a priority, its executives said. Haiti has reported...

Help us keep OnCuba alive In a press conference, Dr. Francisco Durán reported this Friday that yesterday the SARS-CoV-2 virus left 58 new infections in Cuba, identified in four territories among which Pinar del Río continues to present the highest number of contagions, 29 this time. In fact, it is the province with the most COVID-19 patients in the last 15 days, according to Durán, who stressed that, due to the 193 cases registered in this period, the incidence rate of the westernmost territory is now 33.06 per 100,000 inhabitants. https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1319640655812042753?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1319640655812042753%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcoronavirus-en-cuba-pinar-del-rio-con-el-peor-rebrote-de-los-ultimos-quince-dias%2F “Actually, what happens in Pinar del Río is the consequence of the high transmissibility of the disease,” said Durán, who added, “Perhaps there was not enough surveillance in some places to detect it on time.” The other provinces that presented infections this time, and of which details are found in the report, were Artemisa (19 cases in one municipality: Caimito), Sancti Spíritus (seven from two territories, the main municipality and Cabaiguán) and Ciego de Ávila (three in the main municipality). The new contagions correspond to Cubans and all of the cases were autochthonous: 57 were contacts of confirmed cases and only in one individual the source of infection is...

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla affirmed this Thursday that the United States' economic embargo on the island has reached “unprecedented levels” in recent times and has been reinforced during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The blockade reaches unprecedented levels and in the last two years it has included actions that classify as unconventional measures, inappropriate for peacetime, and increase our people’s suffering,” said Rodríguez when presenting to the press the annual report on the impact of the U.S. embargo between April 2019 and March 2020. Among those actions, the Cuban foreign minister cited “the possibility of establishing lawsuits under Title III of the Helms-Burton Act, the increase in the persecution of Cuba’s financial and commercial transactions; the ban on flights from the U.S. to all Cuban provinces, with the exception of Havana; and the persecution and intimidation of companies that send fuel supplies to Cuba.” According to the foreign minister, in the period of time included in the report, the effects caused by Washington’s policy towards Cuba for the first time exceeded the 5 billion barrier in one year (5.570.3 billion), a figure that, however, does not yet consider the actions of the U.S. government in the context of the pandemic...

The Panamanian airline Copa Airlines will carry out two flights from Havana’s José Martí International Airport to Panama, the first of whichtook off this Wednesday, official Cuban media reported. These flights will take place despite the fact that the Cuban capital’s air terminal has not yet restarted its regular operations, given that the province is still in phase 3 of post-COVID-19 recovery. Upon arrival at its destination, the CM0372 aircraft will connect with airports in Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, the United States, Mexico, Uruguay, Chile and Canada, reported Nelson Cabrera, Sales executive of the Panamanian airline, quoted by the Agencia Cubana de Noticias news agency. https://twitter.com/ServacCuba/status/1318899875610828800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1318899875610828800%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcopa-airlines-realizara-dos-vuelos-la-habana-panama%2F The same plane will repeat the Havana-Panama route on October 29, and will subsequently have connections with terminals in Sao Paulo, Guayaquil, New York, Miami, Mexico City and Santiago de Chile, according to the source. Cabrera explained that the airline’s tickets are for sale in its commercial offices and on digital sites, and advised passengers to check the travel requirements before boarding, especially those related to health and biosecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Panama reopened its borders to international travelers on October 12, but its authorities established strict sanitary measures to enter that country....

Help us keep OnCuba alive One deceased and 53 new contagions is the balance of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Cuba during the last 24 hours, according to the report from the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP), which today shows the complicated situation of Pinar del Río, from where most of the cases were reported. The deceased resided in Guane, an 88-year-old man, with whom the number of fatalities from COVID-19 on the island rises to 128. The situation is so complex in Pinar del Río that all its municipalities reported cases this time. https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1319283684369838082?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1319283684369838082%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_0&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcoronavirus-en-cuba-un-fallecido-y-53-nuevos-contagios-la-mayoria-de-pinar-del-rio%2F On the contrary, Ciego de Ávila has managed to reduce the number of infections to only one positive, circumscribed to the provincial capital. The rest of the provinces with reported cases: Havana, four from two municipalities, one of them is the imported case (a French citizen residing in Playa); and Sancti Spíritus, 10 from two municipalities. https://oncubanews.com/cuba/pinar-del-rio-retrocede-a-la-fase-de-transmision-de-la-covid-19-por-rebrote-de-la-enfermedad/ Of the total, 52 were contacts of confirmed cases and one had the source of infection abroad. Male patients predominate again (42-11), and of the total of cases, 43 were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. At midnight yesterday, the number of hospitalized patients had risen to 3,263 and...

Help us keep OnCuba alive Four provinces in the western and central regions reported yesterday the 63 new contagions from the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Cuba, according to today’s report from the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP). The majority were diagnosed in Pinar del Río, where the detected cases from five municipalities totaled 41. https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1318917522180243456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1318917522180243456%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_0&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcuba-reporta-63-nuevos-casos-de-coronavirus-41-en-pinar-del-rio%2F It is followed by Havana, a territory that has again reported infections (eight, from three municipalities), Ciego de Ávila (eight, from the main municipality) and Sancti Spíritus (six from two municipalities). All the cases correspond to Cubans and were autochthonous, according to the report issued by MINSAP. Again, male patients predominated (42-21) and, of the total, 43 were asymptomatic. At midnight yesterday, 3,300 people remained hospitalized, while five patients, in hospitals in Pinar del Río, Havana and Sancti Spíritus, were still in intensive care: two in critical condition and three in serious condition. Yesterday, 6,719 samples were processed in search of the new coronavirus, according to MINSAP, and only eight people were discharged.

The 4th The Nation and Emigration Conference, initially scheduled for last April and which had to be postponed due to COVID-19, still doesn’t have a defined date for its holding. However, “interest in holding it continues,” Ernesto Soberón, general director of Consular Affairs and Cubans Residing Abroad of the island’s Foreign Ministry, said to OnCuba. “With the level of uncertainty that still exists about the pandemic, with outbreaks in several countries and the complex situation that we had in Cuba in recent months that we are already leaving behind, we will have to wait a little longer to define a date when it’s considered prudent to implement it,” Soberón replied to a question from our media at a press conference held this Monday. According to the diplomat, when it was decided to postpone the event―which seeks to promote a dialogue between the Cuban authorities and the emigration―“there was a significant number of Cubans who had expressed their interest in attending from a diverse number of countries.” For this reason, and taking into account the current scenario, the government of the island is considering it will wait until a time when there’s “normal flights and when everyone who wants to participate...

The Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX) confirmed this Monday that the collection of the extension for Cubans’ stay abroad beyond the 24 months established by law will remain suspended until “normality is achieved in terms of regular flights.” “The key factor will be when we return to normal in terms of regular flights, because ultimately what a Cuban citizen needs to be able to return to the country is a flight,” said Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, general director of Consular Affairs and Cuban Residents Abroad of MINREX, in response to OnCuba during a press conference. The suspension of the collection of the extension, which allows those who have exceeded the time established by the island’s immigration law to maintain residence in Cuba, had been decreed last March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Its objective then, explained Soberón, was “to guarantee that Cubans who were abroad when flights between Cuba and abroad became difficult due to the pandemic, maintain their permanent residence in Cuba without having to carry out any consular procedures or go to any consulate, since it was a situation that was beyond these citizens’ will.” However, recently the Cuban consulates restored the tariff for each month of extension...

Help us keep OnCuba alive The SARS-CoV-2 virus added 47 new contagions to Cuba during the last 24 hours. None of them were detected in Havana, but in the territories of Pinar del Río and Sancti Spíritus, according to the report issued by the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP). Pinar del Río leads the territories by number of new patients; 31 from three municipalities, although most of the cases (26) correspond to the provincial capital. For its part, Sancti Spíritus had 16 cases in three municipalities. https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1318561116788805634?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1318561116788805634%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_0&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcuba-con-47-nuevos-contagios-por-coronavirus-ninguno-en-la-habana%2F Meanwhile, of the seven patients in intensive care until midnight yesterday, two of them remained in Pinar del Río hospitals; five, the cases reported as serious, were from Havana and from Sancti Spíritus. All new cases correspond to Cubans and were autochthonous: 45 are contacts of confirmed cases and in two individuals the source of infection is not specified. 28 individuals were asymptomatic at the time of their diagnosis and by gender, males predominated (39-8). With the 26 discharges of the day, in which no fatalities were reported from COVID-19, 5,806 people have already recovered from the disease on the island. Until yesterday, 2,959 people were still hospitalized. The number of samples processed...

Cuba began a new clinical trial aimed at curing the COVID-19 disease, produced by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which to date has caused more than 40 million infections in the world. This new “vaccine candidate” was registered by the Finlay Vaccine Institute under the name of SOBERANA 01A, which today will start being applied in two or three doses. https://twitter.com/FinlayInstituto/status/1318172667929919488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1318172667929919488%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcuba-comienza-ensayo-clinico-de-su-segunda-vacuna-contra-la-covid-19%2F Through its Twitter, the Institute announced last night that it had registered a new clinical trial in the public registry to evaluate different formulations and dose schedules. The best will advance to higher phases of clinical trials. Phase I of the study would take place between October 19 and November 9, the completion of which is scheduled for February 2021. The details of the new vaccine can be consulted in the Public Registry of Clinical Trials, where SOBERANA 01, the first Cuban coronavirus vaccine candidate to begin clinical trials in humans, has been registered since August. https://oncubanews.com/en/cuba/cuba-to-start-clinical-trials-of-its-own-vaccine-against-new-coronavirus/ SOBERANA 01 is in phases I and II of clinical trials with just over 700 volunteers. Its trial period has elapsed without adverse effects, according to what has been reported. Today, October 19, the World Health Organization (WHO) has registered 44 vaccine candidates in...

Help us keep OnCuba alive In the last 24 hours, the SARS-CoV-2 virus has left two new deaths in Cuba, according to the report published by the Ministry of Public Health’s report, which also includes 38 new contagions from four provinces. The deaths on this day correspond to two of these territories, with whom the number of fatalities on the island amounts to 127: a 64-year-old man, resident in the main municipality of Sancti Spíritus; and an 84-year-old woman from Pinar del Río, resident in San Luis. https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1318194263100895233?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1318194263100895233%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fmueren-otras-dos-personas-por-coronavirus-en-cuba-y-los-nuevos-contagios-suman-38%2F All the new contagions correspond to Cubans: 37 were autochthonous cases and one is an imported case, which is referred to the statistics of the municipality of Viñales, where the person resides. 32 were contacts of confirmed cases and in five individuals the source of infection is not specified. The distribution by sex has been quite balanced (18 female-20 male). The geographical distribution is as follows: Sancti Spíritus, with 17 cases, in four municipalities; Pinar del Río, 10 cases in five municipalities; Ciego de Ávila, seven cases in the provincial capital; and Havana, four cases in four municipalities. At midnight yesterday, 2,639 people were still hospitalized, while eight remained in intensive care....

The Meliá hotel chain is proposing starting this month a new offer for stays in Cuban tourist facilities for several weeks or months, a program that will be aimed primarily at Varadero beach resort. “The key elements for this program focus on the benefits of the destination, its safety, natural and cultural attractions, as well as the health protocols implemented in each hotel, which harmonize with the model scenario that Cuba has represented at the regional level for control of the pandemic. In addition, the guarantee of primary healthcare in each facility,” says the text, sent by its press office. https://twitter.com/MeliaCuba/status/1317129892287438848?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1317129892287438848%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fmelia-propone-estadias-largas-en-hoteles-cubanos%2F To implement this project, Meliá has created specific conditions at the Meliá Marina Varadero Apartments, and Meliá Internacional Varadero and Sol Palmeras hotels. The initiative coincides with the opening of Cuba to international tourism after more than seven months without receiving tourists due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Meliá chain operates in Cuba about 39 tourist facilities throughout the country and is present in more than 40 nations. https://oncubanews.com/cuba/economia/turismo/melia-confia-en-recuperacion-del-turismo-en-cuba/ The company affirms in the statement that “Meliá hotels offer travelers in this segment a wide range of outdoor activities to enjoy nature, carry out water activities such as diving...

7,905 samples. Four provinces reported infections. 2,337 hospitalized patients. 10 in intensive care.

Sancti Spíritus and Havana registered 51 of the 52 cases of COVID-19 this October 17, the deceased patient was a resident of the province of Sancti Spíritus.

A plane with 225 passengers, from Venezuela, and another with 163 travelers, from France, landed with little time difference in the Havana terminal.

The Cuban Foreign Ministry announced that “the possibility is extended for our nationals to return to the country without having to carry out consular procedures to extend their stay abroad, as long as this situation persists.”

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence asked this Thursday in Miami for another four years of Donald Trump’s government to maintain his commitment to the “freedom of the hemisphere” and sanctions against socialist governments. At a rally of some two hundred people at the Cuban Memorial in Tamiami Park, in southwest Miami-Dade County, Pence recalled Trump’s promise not to remove the sanctions imposed on Cuba until freedom is restored and political prisoners are released. Pence landed in Miami early in the afternoon. “Honestly, I’m here for a reason and one reason only,” he said. “And it’s that Florida and the United States need four more years of President Donald Trump in the White House. Four more years.” “The road to victory runs right through Florida!” he told his followers. During his 45-minute speech, he accused Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden of wanting to raise taxes and filling the U.S. Supreme Court with liberal judges. He also praised Trump’s efforts to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, rebuild the economy and support law enforcement. “Our vision that leads America to freedom, prosperity, and opportunity for all, and his (Biden’s) vision that sends America down a path of fewer opportunities,” Pence said. The event came...

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel along with other members of his government resumed government tours outside of Havana, a common practice during his term and which had stopped due to the coronavirus pandemic. The president, together with Vice President Salvador Valdés Mesa, Prime Minister Manuel Marrero, and other officials, began a visit to Santiago de Cuba, the third of its kind to that eastern province and the first to a territory on the island after the start of the current de-escalation, according to the Agencia Cubana de Noticias (ACN) news agency. It “is being carried out this time in a reduced composition, ensuring in the routes compliance with the measures established to curb COVID-19, with emphasis on the hygienic-sanitary protocol and physical distancing” and, as part of it, “several working groups, with members of the Council of Ministers, are making visits to productive centers, educational and scientific centers, hydraulic investments and other places of economic and social interest in the province until tomorrow,” the report states. https://twitter.com/PresidenciaCuba/status/1316782116596842496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1316782116596842496%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fpresidente-cubano-y-otros-miembros-del-gobierno-reinician-recorridos-fuera-de-la-habana%2F The agency and other official media reported this Thursday on the activities carried out by Díaz-Canel and the rest of his government team in Santiago de Cuba “to verify the progress of economic programs...

According to a note from the Agencia Cubana de Noticias (ACN) news agency, the tour operator TUI (Touristik Union International) will resume its operations in Cuba from October 25 with two weekly flights to Varadero from the United Kingdom. Carmen Casal, tourism counselor in the Cuban embassy in Canada, said that the flights, belonging to the 2020-2021 winter season, will begin on the aforementioned day from Manchester airport and on November 5 from London-Gatwick. According to the note, all the conditions are guaranteed in the popular beach resort, located 145 kilometers from the Cuban capital, to develop safe tourism in the post-pandemic stage under the premise of preserving the health of clients and workers. Juan Gualberto Gómez International Airport is ready to carry out all its operations after having established the biosafety protocols to receive visitors. https://youtu.be/5UG3XeSs3Ww Since TUI resumed its activities in mid-June, around a million and a half clients have organized their trips through the German conglomerate, considered the most important in the world in the tourism sector. It is currently the largest group in the tourism sector worldwide, being present throughout the European Union (EU). TUI owns travel agencies, receptive agencies, hotels, airlines, cruise ships and tour...

Help us keep OnCuba alive One deceased and 56 new contagions from SARS-CoV-2 is the balance this virus leaves in Cuba today, according to the explanation offered by Dr. Francisco Durán, back on national television to give an update on the epidemiological situation of the island due to the new coronavirus. Victim number 124 is a 74-year-old woman, resident in the Havana municipality of Marianao, whose evolution is detailed in today’s report by the health authorities. https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1317103219168972800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1317103219168972800%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fotro-fallecido-en-cuba-por-coronavirus-y-los-nuevos-contagios-se-elevan-a-56%2F Regarding the new infections: all correspond to Cubans, 46 were indigenous cases and 10 were imported. Of the total, 40 were related to confirmed cases, a group in which there has been a change in protocol, according to Dr. Durán, national director of epidemiology of the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP): “Contacts of confirmed and suspected cases are isolated at home.” In three individuals the source of infection is not specified. The ten imported cases, although they do not reveal a local transmission, are registered in the provinces of Guantánamo (three cases), Camagüey (two), Granma (two), the special municipality of Isla de la Juventud (one), Holguín (one) and Santiago de Cuba (one). For their part, Havana, Sancti Spíritus, Pinar del Río and Ciego...

Cuban citizens must pay a fee for each month of extension of their stay abroad approved as of October 12, 2020. This has been communicated by several consulates, through their web pages, social networks and even through audios sent directly to groups of the Cuban community in each country. So far, there is no official statement regarding this charge, which was not announced in the information note released by MINREX on October 9. It only establishes that, due to the measures to combat COVID-19, the extension of the stay abroad is authorized until October 12, 2021, “without losing their status as residents in the national territory,” for “Cuban and foreign citizens with permanent residence in the national territory who had approved extensions of stay or the term of 24 and 12 months was expired, respectively as of March 19, 2020.” Therefore, the news that this authorization is accompanied by the collection of a monthly fee has been received with surprise in many cases and with displeasure, in general. This is confirmed by several people who spoke with OnCuba. Leandro, a resident in Argentina, maintains that in his close circle “no one is happy that the Cuban government begins to collect...

The Russian authorities announced this Wednesday the resumption of flights to Cuba starting next November 1, while Condor, the most popular holiday airline in Germany, reported that it will begin trips to Varadero beach resort as of October 31. The Russian planes will start making two weekly flights to the airports of Cayo Coco and Santa Clara, in the central region of the island, the Agencia Cubana de Noticias (ACN) news agency reported to the television channel Telesur. https://oncubanews.com/cuba/economia/turismo/asociacion-de-turoperadores-de-rusia-promueve-el-destino-cuba/ At the end of 2019, Russia had gone from tenth to fourth place in the list of countries issuing tourists to the island, and last January it moved to second place after months of constant growth. Cuban Minister of Tourism Juan Carlos García reported in February that in 2019 the number of visitors from the Eurasian nation grew by 30 percent, according to the ACN. The source also reports that the Condor airline will make three weekly flights―Tuesday, Friday and Saturday―from the cities of Frankfurt and Düsseldorf to Varadero. https://twitter.com/Condor/status/1313379378441719808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1313379378441719808%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_1&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Feconomia%2Fturismo%2Frusia-y-alemania-anuncian-reinicio-de-vuelos-a-cuba%2F According to Ralf Teckentrup, CEO of Condor, Germans want to feel comfortable on vacation, during travel and at their destination, also in times of pandemic. The official website of the company...

Help us keep OnCuba alive The number of new contagions in Cuba from the SARS-CoV-2 virus rose today to 27, according to the report issued by the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP). All were contacts of confirmed cases and are reported from three provinces: Sancti Spíritus, with the highest number of cases (23, registered in three municipalities); Havana (two cases in two municipalities) and Ciego de Ávila (two cases in the provincial capital). https://twitter.com/MINSAPCuba/status/1316741113554886656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1316741113554886656%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3%2Ccontainerclick_0&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcuba-los-27-nuevos-contagios-de-coronavirus-hoy-fueron-contactos-de-casos-confirmados%2F The relationship between both genders is quite balanced (13 female-14 male) and 15 were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. There were no new fatalities, a statistic that remains at 123. 25 patients were discharged and seven continued in intensive care, two reported critical and five seriously ill. At midnight yesterday, 2,501 people were hospitalized, a figure slightly lower than the one reported yesterday. According to the MINSAP, during the day almost 8,000 samples (7,775) were studied, with which the country has processed a total of 720,834 tests in search of this disease since the pandemic began.

In keeping with the new Cuban strategy against COVID-19, people suspected of having the disease and contacts of already confirmed cases in Havana will be isolated at home and not in centers established especially for this, as has happened until now. The measure, already in force in most Cuban provinces as part of the so-called “new normal,” will start being applied as of this Wednesday in the Cuban capital, as was announced at a meeting of the Provincial Defense Council (CDP). According to what was previously announced by the Cuban government, the isolation of vulnerable older adults and those who don’t have conditions in their homes, among other exceptions, will continue outside the home. Dr. Carlos Alberto Martínez Blanco, director of health in Havana, affirmed that “the technical, epidemiological and logistical details have already been defined to take on this new stage, in addition to having coverage of human resources in the communities,” pointed out Tribuna de La Habana. For his part, the governor of the capital, Reinaldo García Zapata, called for “working with profound quality from primary healthcare,” on which a greater weight now falls in the island's health strategy to deal with COVID -19. https://oncubanews.com/en/cuba/havana-covid-19-and-the-new-normal-i/ To date, family...

Cuba celebrated its election to the United Nations Human Rights Council this Tuesday, a candidacy criticized by activists and opponents of the Cuban government, in what Havana considers a “smear campaign” to “overshadow” the Revolution’s achievements. “Cuba elected to the Human Rights Council by 170 votes, 88% of the members of the UN…. Despite the smear campaign, Cuba’s achievements cannot be overshadowed,” said Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez on Twitter. The foreign minister also highlighted that the island “is part of 44 of the 61 international human rights instruments, whose compliance it reports to the UN.” https://twitter.com/BrunoRguezP/status/1316079275490017280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1316079275490017280%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Foncubanews.com%2Fcuba%2Fcuba-celebra-entrada-al-consejo-de-derechos-humanos-pese-a-campana-de-desprestigio%2F This is the fifth time Cuba occupies one of the 8 seats reserved for the Latin American and the Caribbean states in the UN Human Rights Council, where it will remain for three years as of January 1. The island, like the rest of the candidates, with the exception of the Asia and Pacific group, reached the unopposed vote as a result of a pact between the countries of each region, a common practice in this type of election, which is opposed by organizations and activists. Along with Cuba, Bolivia, China, Ivory Coast, France, Gabon, Malawi, Mexico, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Senegal, Ukraine, Uzbekistan...