Source: Lonely Planet
Security & Justice
Southern Lebanon Endures Massive Damage: 40,000 Homes Leveled Across 37 Towns
Israeli forces have systematically destroyed entire neighborhoods in southern Lebanon, leveling more than 37 towns and wiping out over 40,000 residential units, according to Lebanon's National News Agency.
Tuesday, November 5, 2024
Gaps in Coastal Radar Enabled Israeli Raid in Batroun, Army Commander Says
Lebanon’s army chief, General Joseph Aoun, detailed to Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati how Israeli forces likely exploited gaps in the country's coastal radar system during the recent raid carried out in Batroun. The briefing comes as Lebanese officials seek answers on how Israel’s elite Shayetet 13 unit carried out the landing undetected.
Monday, November 4, 2024
Opinion
The Emptying of Baalbek Is a Moment to Take Stock
“Large numbers of people continue to flee their homes every day, as Israel’s military operations in Lebanon have been going on unabated.” These disturbing words could be from almost any news report about Israel’s invasion of its northern neighbour over the past month. However, they can be found in a report by the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre issued on July 27, 2006.
Saturday, November 2, 2024
A Future Without Hezbollah
At the end of September, when Israel’s campaign to destroy Hezbollah was reaching its height, I met one of the group’s supporters in a seaside café in western Beirut. He was a middle-aged man with a thin white beard and the spent look of someone who had not slept for days. He was an academic of sorts, not a fighter, but his ties to Hezbollah were deep and long-standing.
Thursday, October 31, 2024
Sports
Tottenham Forward Son Heung-min Crowned Asia’s International Player of the Year
Tottenham forward Son Heung-min was crowned as Asia’s International Player of the Year for the fourth time by the Asian Football Confederation at its annual awards ceremony Tuesday.
Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Real Madrid Launch Investigation into Racist Insults After El Clasico Defeat
Real Madrid has launched an investigation into racist insults directed at players during Saturday’s 4-0 home loss to Barcelona in LaLiga, it said on Sunday.
Monday, October 28, 2024
Thursday 13 January 2022 13:56:34
Travelers to Cuba Now Face Increased Entry Restrictions
Midway through its peak travel season, and with Omicron cases spreading rapidly, Cuba is the latest country to tighten its entry requirements.
Travelers heading for Cuba will face increased restrictions this year after it was announced that all tourists, including those from the US, will have to show proof of vaccination to enter, as well as a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of departure. Previously, unvaccinated travelers could visit Cuba with proof of a negative test but that option has been withdrawn.
Children under 12 years of age will be exempt from testing and vaccine requirements.
The country’s government met in December to discuss what measures needed to be taken in anticipation of a surge in infections from the Omicron variant during its peak travel season, which runs from mid-November to mid-March.
The variant has already reached Cuba, and the government has responded by tightening restrictions at the border and rolling out a booster campaign for the entire population in January with locally produced vaccines including Soberana 02, Soberana Plus and Abdala—the only home-grown COVID-19 vaccines in Latin America.
In addition, diagnostic tests will continue to be carried out randomly at the airport. If a patient tests positive for COVID-19, they will be transfered to a hotel-hospital: a tourist facility authorized by the government for isolation and medical care.
Tourists are also required to fill in an online form before visiting Cuba and must take out non-US medical insurance, which, according to the US Embassy, is usually included in airline ticket prices on flights departing from the US.
Cuba reopened to travelers in November after months of shutdown. Now as it battles the Omicron surge, it's attempting to keep most tourism activities open including hotels, beaches, museums, excursions and tours—though with enhanced health and safety measures in place.
Face masks are required in all enclosed public spaces, physical distancing rules apply throughout the island nation, and officials say they will continue to maintain Cuba's successful tracing and isolation system.
What are the additional rules for Americans traveling to Cuba?
Under US law, Americans can only travel to Cuba on a self-qualifying ‘general license’ in one of 12 different categories. They will also need to take a PCR test before flying back to the US. According to the US Embassy in Havana, PCR and antigen tests are readily available in Cuba and travelers can find their nearest testing provider through this list.
