Protests erupt in Cuba over electricity blackouts

Scattered protests broke out ‌across Havana on Tuesday evening, with residents banging pots, honking horns and shouting “turn on the lights” as millions of Cubans remained without power amid a six-month-long US fuel blockade, Reuters writes.

Cuba experienced a nationwide outage on Monday — its third this year — but while authorities said most ​of the country had been reconnected to the island’s grid by late Tuesday, many remained in the ​dark and without electricity as the island doesn’t have enough fuel.

The US in January cut off ​Cuba’s fuel supply, then imposed fresh sanctions that have prompted an exodus of foreign businesses and a near-complete collapse of tourism in a bid to force the island’s government to the negotiating table.

Cuba and the United Nations say US President Donald Trump’s sanctions ​are a violation of international law and the human rights of the island’s residents.