Tropical storm Isaac hit the Caribbean this weekend, leaving 19 people dead in Haiti, five in Dominican Republic, and flooding in Cuba. It is now heading towards the south of the United States, where it is expected to strengthen into a hurricane as it hits the coast of the state of Louisiana.

The Haitian government informed today that 19 people died in the country as a consequence of the tropical storm. Whilst they did not release much information about the deaths, it has been reported that some of victims died as their houses collapsed on them. Six Haitians are still missing, and 22 injured. Haiti has so far been the most affected country, as flooding and landslides are aided by massive deforestations.

In Dominican Republic, the death toll rose to five after two young men were washed away and drowned when a river burst its banks. Officials have informed that over 900 houses were destroyed by the storm.

In total, almost 30,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in Haiti and Dominican Republic, which are both located on the same island of Hispaniola.

There were no reported casualties in Cuba, which was also in Isaac’s path, though there were damages to agriculture, houses, electricity lines, and roads. The worst affected area was the city of Baracoa, in the east of the country, where 89 houses were partially or totally damaged. The storm also had a positive effect, by increasing the water levels on the island’s dams by 74.4 million m³.

Isaac is currently making its way up the Gulf of Mexico and moving towards the US state of Louisiana. US oil companies have closed down their off-shore rigs in the gulf and stopped activities in their coastal refineries. This, together with this weekend’s explosion at an oil refinery in Venezuela, has led analysts to predict a possible spike in the price of oil.

Two by two the animals loaded Noah’s ark, but this time around instead of getting on a massive wooden boat they will step onto a plane headed for the National Zoological Park in Havana, Cuba.

Dubbed “Noak’s Ark II” 148 wild animals from the Nambia Waterberg Plateau Park, Africa, will be flown to Cuba’s 845 acre national zoo, which sits just on the outskirts of the country’s capital city.

The zoo, which is already home to around 850 animals, will receive all of the beasts by the end of 2012. Lions, leopards, buffalos, ostriches, elephants and ten baby rhinos are just a few of the 23 species that will make the trip.

The animals are a donation from the southwest Arican country Namibian to Cuba. The Namibiam government is footing the bill, which they have already set aside US$25m for, although the cost is expected to go up. The two countries have close ties dating back to Namibia’s independence struggle in which Cuba backed the liberation movement Swapo. On his last visit to the country in 2009, President Raul Castro reached an agreement with the government to have the animals sent over to Havana.

“There was a point when pessimists thought this place would close but this has enabled us to get the money we need to repair our facilities and create new ones,” said development director at the National Zoological Park, Israel Fernandez, to the BBC.

The donation has prompted the Cuban government to invest US$15m into the zoo. They plan to make major improvements including replacing fences, repaving paths, and repairing run-down enclosures. The work has already begun with the building of a brand new quarantine building, which will house the new animals for up to 40 days before they are moved to their new habitats.

“We need them to refresh the gene pool,” keeper Alexis Leon told the BBC. “It’s been years since we had new animals here and the lions are not as tall now, their manes are less full. There’s a lot of in-breeding and we need new blood.”

The zoo’s last shipment of animals from Africa was 32 years ago.

“Now we’re out of a hole and we can think of the future and even dream of expanding,” said Fernandez.

Despite the general excitement, the move has also prompted negative responses from animal activists both in Africa and Cuba.

South Africa’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) has questioned the facilities in Cuba and said the animals were being “taken out of their natural habitat and deprived of freedom” and would be put through a “long and stressful flight.” When they first heard about the donation they expressed “disgust.”

The capture of the animals began on 10th July and will continue for the next few months. The first group of animals will arrive in Cuba at the end of September.

Twelve former Cuban officials, including some high-ranking government employees, have been jailed for corruption in their involvement with a nickel mining company.

According to the Communist Party newspaper Granma, the defendants committed their crimes under an expansion project at Moa nickel mine’s Pedro Soto Alba processing plant.

The prison terms range from four to 12 years.

The dozen defendants worked for the ministry of basic industry, state-run nickel producing company Cubaniquel, and Empresa Moa Nickel SA.

Alfredo Zayas, who led Cubaniquel and served as a deputy minister from 2004 to 2007, was given the longest sentence of 12 years. Former deputy minister Ricardo Gonzalez, who chaired the board of directors, was sentenced to ten years. Antonio Orizon de los Reyes, deputy minister from 1980 to 1999 and who was on the project’s committee, was given the next longest term of eight-years. The remaining defendants were jailed between four and seven years.

The convicted were found guilty by a court in Holguin of corruption during the awarding of contracts and implementation of the project to expand the Moa nickel and cobalt mine. Moa is jointly owned by Cuban and Canadian mining company Sherritt International Corp.

The court took into account “the gravity of these acts and their harmful consequences in one of the strategic activities for the nation’s economy and the conduct of the accused, characterized by the loss of ethical values and deception,” the bulletin read.

Nickel production is one of Cuba’s main sources of foreign income. In April a senior government official said the mineral accounted for 30 per cent of exports in 2011. According to the Canadian Press, with this figure nickel revenues would be put at US$1.8bn for the year based on overall export figures.

President Raúl Castro has repeatedly spoken out about corruption since his inauguration in 2008. He has said that corruption posses the most serious threat to his country’s socialist system.

Former Cuban president Fidel Castro is celebrating his 86th birthday today. The man who led Cuba through the country’s revolution and for nearly half a century afterwards will be celebrating out of the spotlight, although there are festivities planned around the Caribbean island state.

The capital, Havana, will see an exhibition of 13 images of Castro taken by photographers like Alberto Korda, which have been artistically modified by a group of local painters. Other provinces will see festivities such as fairs and book presentations, as the Sunday edition of many of the country’s newspapers ran with ‘Happy Birthday Fidel’ headlines.

After governing Cuba for nearly half a century, Fidel handed power to his brother, Raúl, in 2006, who formally assumed the presidency in 2007. Questions over the health of the ex-president remain, as Fidel has not been seen in public for months, and in June he stopped writing ‘Reflexiones’, a series of articles he started writing on an almost daily basis six years ago.

Today, Cuba announced it is implementing a programme to ensure that it eliminates the use of the damaging greenhouse gas hydrochloroflurocarbon (HCFC) by 2030 in order to address ozone depletion.

To ensure the projected results, the country declared that it will slowly stop the importation and use of the greenhouse gas.

The director of Oficina Técnica del Ozono (OTOZ), Dr. Nelson Espinosa, said that the country will reduce use by 10% by 2015 and will slowly increase the percentage of reduction until the deadline.

The proposed reduction is seen as a large task as HCFCs are used in air-conditioning units as well as domestic and industrial refrigeration, meaning officials will have to look for alternative sources and new technologies that are not as damaging.

Cuba is taking these progressive steps in order to meet its compliance with the Montreal Protocol, an international agreement signed in 1987 to tackle the issue of ozone depletion. This protocol has been referred to as the most successful of treaties that have addressed the environment to date.

So far, the country has been able to eradicate the purchase and consumption of other Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (ODSs) such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) like methyl bromide, halons and carbon tetrachloride which has helped in their healthcare and environment.

According to the OTOZ website, the current project commenced in 2010 with a preparation plan that was to receive a total of US$40,000 in funding.

A successful example of Cuba’s series of environmental projects was the conversion technology of a plant for asthmatic inhalers, making them CFC-free.

Cuban prosecutors have charged a Spanish citizen for the car crash that killed the country’s popular, opposition activist Oswaldo Paya.

Over a week ago, Angel Carromero was driving the car that crashed while Paya was inside. There were allegations that a second vehicle may have caused the crash, but since a video testimony released Monday, Carromero has been officially charged with “homicide while driving a vehicle on public roads”.

In the videotaped testimony, Carromero said that he lost control of the vehicle, causing it to skid and confirmed that there was no second vehicle involved.

After an official investigation, it was found that Carromero was speeding and did not pay attention to the traffic signs warning that the road was under construction.

The prosecution will have to decide what sentence they will seek.

If found guilty, Carromero may face from one to 10 years in jail.

Swedish citizen and fellow passenger, Jens Aron Modig, is back inEurope. Both he and Carromero arrived inCubaunder tourist visas, but during their stay they were affiliated with Paya’s activist group as well as other political youth groups. Allegedly, they brought 4,000 euros as a contribution to Paya’s group, which is illegal inCuba.

Granma, the Communist Party’s paper, stated that both Carromero and Modig were “in violation of their migratory status and got involved in clear political activities contrary to constitutional order.”

In a nationally broadcasted speech today in recognition of National Rebellion Day, Cuban President Raúl Castro reiterated his desire to open a dialogue with the United States.

Castro spoke in front of thousands of citizens in the Revolution Square Marinana Grajales in the Eastern state of Guantánamo. The leader stated, “the Cubans are a peaceful people… we like to make friends with all, including the United States.”

He stated that from the perspective of the Cuban government, “the table is set” for a dialogue, provided that the discussion is “open and between equals.”

Although the leader expressed openness to discussing topics such as human rights, freedom of the press, and democracy, he emphasised that such a conversation could only be possible with “equal conditions, because we are neither subjects, nor colonies, nor puppets of anyone”.

The leader further stated, “If they want confrontation, let it be only in sports, preferably baseball.”

Castro has expressed a desire to open a dialogue in the past. Relations between the two countries have advanced slightly under the administration of Barack Obama, however, the US systematically states that any possibility for further dialogue or increased bilateral relations is dependent on certain conditions, among them the creation of a multi-party system on the island.

In the speech given not far from the US’s Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, the leader expressed, “One cannot direct the world, that is crazy. And much less based in lies, in repeated lies…That is what they do”. Just before President Castro’s speech, Cuban Vice President José Ramón Machado Ventura denounced the presence of the US military base in Cuba and labelled it a violation of international law.

Today, Castro also criticised Cuban dissidents, stating that they seek to destabilise the country and hope to create the conditions in Cuba that would allow “that one day what happened in Libya would happen here.”

National Rebellion Day recognises the 26th July 1953 attack on two military barracks occupied by the forces of Fulgencio Batista, the Moncada and Carlos Manuel de Cespedes garrisons. The assault, lead by young revolutionaries, including Raúl Castro and his brother Fidel Castro.

Although the revolutionaries lost that morning, the battle is recognised as the beginning of the Cuban Revolution, which lasted until 1959. Indeed, Castro’s revolutionary movement came to be known as the ‘26th July Movement’ in commemoration of this very attack. Both Castro brothers were captured during the attack, but were freed in 1955 when Batista released all political prisoners because of political pressure.

Ceremonies began early this morning in Guantanamo, as more than one hundred students staged a dramatised commemoration of the historic battle.

CUBA- On Saturday Cuba’s Health Ministry released the figure of reported case cholera- the new number 158, is nearly three times greater than previously released by the ministry.

The ministry went on to say that the outbreak has been contained; despite the new figure they insist there has been no new cases.

Nearly all of the cases have come from the city of Manzanillo, in eastern Granma province some 430 miles (700 kilometers) east of Havana. If not found on site, others infected had, in most cases, recently travelled to the area.

In a public statement the Ministry was quoted in the Associated Press saying, “We have diagnosed isolated cases in other regions of people that were infected in Manzanillo, all of whom were treated and studied quickly.” They further assert, “There has been no spread of the outbreak.”

On July 3, Cuba announced that three elderly people had died from the tropical disease and 53 people sickened in the first incidence of cholera on the island in decades.

The initial announcement prompted little media attention and very little response. The country is well known for its advanced medical system, which includes thousands of well-trained doctors and nurses.

Many of these medical personnel recently played a key role in fighting the much larger cholera outbreak in Haiti following their devastating earthquake.

A rise in cases of diarrhea and tropical diseases are normal in Cuba in the summer, due to the intense heat and heavy rains. In its announcement on Saturday, the Health Ministry urged people to wash their hands, boil water and pay better attention to their personal hygiene.

There have been no updates sine the announcement and many countries maintain travel warnings to Cuba.

Yesterday, Cuban president Raúl Castro embarked on a trip to Asia in which he will visit China and Vietnam. The trip marks the first time that President Castro has visited these two Asian allies since he took over power from his brother, Fidel Castro.

He will be accompanied by Minister of the Exterior Bruno Rodríguez and Ricardo Cabrisas, Vice Chairmen of the Council of Ministers.

President Castro will visit China from 4th to 7th July, and will visit his Chinese counterpart Hu Jinatao. A spokesman for the Chinese government noted that the president has “organized a series of activities in honour of the President Raúl Castro”.

China is the second most important trading partner for Cuba after Venezuela; trade between the two countries totals US$1.8bn in 2010, and China has been investing significantly in the country.

Vietnam is also a significant trading partner for the country, particularly as a supplier of rice, a food staple in Cuba. Annual trade between the two countries totals approximately US$500m. The Southeast Asian nation has also been exploring hydrocarbons in the Gulf of Mexico off of Cuba.

Both countries have been supportive of reforms launched by Raúl Castro to make the Cuban economy more efficient. The countries could also serve as a model of reform for the communist country interested in modernizing.

Five months ago, Marino Murillo, Cuban Minister of Planning and Economy, also visited China. The Chinese president also visited Cuba in 2009, while the vice president, Xi Jinping, visited in 2010.

The trip comes shortly after Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao visited several Latin American countries following the Rio+20 Conference. The Chinese official visited Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Chile, and moved to expand bilateral relationships and trade with the four nations.

Jiabao also proposed the establishment of a China-Latin America cooperation forum. In 1960, Cuba was the first country in the region to make diplomatic ties with the Asian giant.

CUBA- Cuban boxing hero Teófilo Stevenson was buried today in Havana after suffering a heart attack according to state media.

The 6 ft 5 in, 220 lbs heavyweight dominated international rings in the amateur division over the 1970s and 80s with his fearsome right hook and upright style.

Born on March 29, 1952 in the Cuban town of Puerto Padre, one of five children, he began boxing at age 14 and quickly became a Cuban junior champion.

Nicknamed “Priolo” he went on to win three Olympic gold medals, joining Laszlo Papp of Hungary as the second boxer to win three separate Olympic Games. He may have even won a fourth had Cuba not boycotted the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

He scored knockouts or technical knockouts in nine of his Olympic bouts, won two others by a three-round decision and won the final in 1972 when his Romanian opponent defaulted because of an injury.

The pugilist became a hero to Cubans and a national treasure by refusing to leave the country, shunning exorbitant offers from US promoters to abandon Cuba and turn pro.

A 1974 Sports Illustrated article headlined “He’d Rather Be Red Than Rich” quoted Stevenson as saying “No, I will not leave my country for one million dollars or for much more than that.”

“What is a million dollars,” he added, “against eight million Cubans who love me?”

Priolo retired in 1987 with a record of 301 victories in 321 bouts over a lengthy 20-year career. He was later vice president of Cuba’s boxing federation and its national sports institute. His wife and two children survive him.

Former leader Fidel Castro, president Raul Castro and Venezuela’s left-wing President Hugo Chavez sent floral arrangements.