CARIBBEAN

KINGSTON, Jamaica — United States-based reggae singer Jahriffe is spreading positivity and spiritual encouragement with his uplifting new single “Shine Bright,” a roots reggae anthem centered on resilience, confidence, and self-belief.Inspired by personal struggles and the need for motivation during difficult moments, the track delivers a message of perseverance while encouraging listeners to remain grounded and focused on their purpose despite life’s challenges.“Shine Bright was […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Odin Samuels-Smith and Courtney Clarke have been handed debuts for the Reggae Boyz as they take on India in the semifinals of the Unity Cup at The Valley, home of Charlton Athletic, in London on Wednesday.Nineteen-year-old Samuels-Smith plays for the Everton FC Under-21 team while 23-year-old Clarke plays for Walsall in the English League 2.Coniah Boyce-Clarke will start in goal with Captain Damion Lowe marshalling the defence that includes Kyle Ming and Brandon […]

Twenty years after first hitting the Billboard chart with Ms Triniti, E-Dee returns to a hardcore sound with Come Link Me and Heartbreak, his latest songs. He produced both for his Clarendon Records.The Los Angeles-based artiste is hoping to duplicate the success of Bounce Along, his collaboration with Ms Triniti, which peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Sales Chart in 2006.“Yes, definitely, that was my first major breakthrough. That song became a big hit in […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) is calling on the Government to disclose whether Ambassador Anthony Anderson applied for the post of chief executive officer of the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA) following his appointment by Prime Minister Andrew Holness.In a statement shortly after the Wednesday morning announcement, the PNP said, “This appointment raises serious questions that the Government must answer openly and without delay. […]

NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — The United States (US) states of New York and New Jersey announced a probe Wednesday into whether FIFA has exploited football fans with "impossibly high" World Cup ticket prices.Prosecutors in the two states said they would investigate ticket practices by the game's governing body and organiser of the tournament starting June 11 in the United States, Mexico and Canada."FIFA has turned buying a ticket to the World Cup into a gauntlet of confusion, fake scarcity, […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC), under its Cleaner Kingston initiative, is continuing efforts to clear downtown streets of garbage and other impediments, including tarps that are affecting the police’s camera visibility.“We have gotten some complaints from the police as it relates to tarps, which at times would [cause] poor visibility for the cameras in the area, which would affect their enforcement activities,” said KSAMC City Engineer […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The World Bank on Tuesday issued a catastrophe bond providing the Government of Jamaica with US$200 million in insurance coverage against hurricanes.The bond, which was provided through the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), replaces the previous catastrophe bond, which provided US$150 million in coverage and was fully paid out in 2025 following the impact of Hurricane Melissa on the island in October 2025.In a statement on Wednesday, the […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — At least four people were taken to hospital on Wednesday following an explosion at Guardsman Group's corporate office on South Camp Road in St Andrew.Speaking with Observer Online, the Jamaica Fire Brigade confirmed that it responded to the scene shortly before 9:00 am.According to the brigade, welding work was being carried out on one of the security provider's armoured trucks before the explosion occurred.The police said at least four vehicles were affected by the […]

Shenseea has earned her fifth entry on Billboard's Rhythmic Airplay chart, thanks to her collaboration Echo (FIFA World Cup 2026) with reggaeton artiste Daddy Yankee. It debuted at #36 on the chart for the week of May 30.Released April 28, the song is the third release off the FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Album compilation which features various artistes.Shenseea first made this particular Billboard chart in 2022 with R U That featuring 21 Savage, which rose to #28.  Two years later, Work […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Prime Minister Andrew Holness has announced the appointment of Ambassador Major General Antony Anderson as chief executive officer of the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA).Anderson, who currently serves as Jamaica’s ambassador to the United States, will assume duties on June 1, Holness said at a special post-cabinet press briefing on Monday.The prime minister said the appointment comes at a critical stage in Jamaica’s post-Hurricane Melissa […]

PARIS, France (AFP) — YouTube will in future automatically detect artificial intelligence (AI) generated content and flag the information to viewers on its platform, the Google-owned company said Wednesday.The move reverses a previous policy of relying on video creators to self-report if they had used generative artificial intelligence tools."If a creator doesn't specify whether or not they used AI, but our systems detect significant photorealistic AI use, we will now automatically apply a […]

Double World Under-20 record holder Jaydon Hibbert is set to return to competition on Wednesday when he competes in the men’s triple jump at the JBL Jump Fest in Košice, Slovakia.Hibbert will face fellow Jamaican, world leader Jordan Scott, in the men’s triple jump, while World Athletics Indoor finalist Nia Robinson and Ackelia Smith are set to contest the women’s long jump at the event that is being held outside of a stadium, on a specially designed jump pit in the streets of the […]

An analyst from the Government Forensic Laboratory revealed on Tuesday that DNA belonging to an unidentified male was found in the motor vehicle in which Matthew Lee, Ucliffe Dyer and Mark Allen were travelling when they were fatally shot during an alleged confrontation with a police team on January 12, 2013.The police had reported that a fourth man who was in the car escaped during the incident which occurred on Acadia Drive in Barbican, St Andrew.According to the police, they were on […]

NEW YORK, United States (CMC) — Governor of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), Albert Bryan Jr, will be part of a high-level Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) delegation that will attend Caribbean Week which gets underway in New York on June 1.The other members of the delegation include British Virgin Islands Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley and Barbados’ Minister of Tourism and International Transport Ian Gooding-Edghill, who is also the CTO chairman.The Barbados-based CTO said that […]

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States (US) plans to open a quarantine centre in Kenya, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, as a deadly Ebola outbreak surges in the Democratic Republic of Congo.The facility is primarily intended for Americans who test positive for the virus or have been exposed to it, the WSJ said, citing people familiar with the matter.The centre would be for Americans "who would need to quickly get out of DRC and quarantine", the newspaper quoted one […]

GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization (WHO) chief warned Wednesday that conflict raging in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo was dramatically complicating efforts to rein in a deadly Ebola outbreak and urged an immediate ceasefire."Eastern DRC now faces a catastrophic collision of disease and conflict with the Ebola outbreak in Ituri province outpacing the response," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X.The WHO has recorded 10 confirmed Ebola deaths and 220 suspected […]

PARIS, France (AFP) — The United Nations (UN) climate chief said Wednesday that a record-breaking early heatwave scorching a swathe of western Europe was "a brutal reminder of the spiralling impacts of the climate crisis".The United Kingdom (UK) and France have reported their hottest ever May days this week as a "heat dome" brought sizzling temperatures more typical of midsummer to western Europe.UN climate chief Simon Stiell said the "main culprit" was humanity's burning of coal, oil and […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A 37-year-old businessman on Tuesday was freed of three counts of shooting with intent and one count of having a prohibited weapon after the trial judge upheld legal submissions made by his attorneys.Three police officers had alleged that on November 11, 2023 about 5:30pm, Neil Anderson, following a high-speed chase into Tivoli Gardens, alighted from a Toyota Hiace bus with seven other men, all of whom opened fire on the police. According to the lawmen, after the gun […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Social media influencer Chiney K is in full preparation mode ahead of the debut of her first feature film, "Stew Peas," which is set to premiere on June 27.The content creator, whose real name is Kerry-Ann Collins, shared that the real work is only just beginning—noting that the premiere is merely a launchpad, and the true effort lies in leveraging this momentum to build long-term career longevity and secure future film projects.“I am excited, but I am also bracing for […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Salada Foods Jamaica Limited reported higher revenue and profit for its 2025/26 half-year period, as the company continued recovering from the impact of Hurricane Melissa and benefited from stronger demand across local and export markets.The manufacturer posted gross revenue of $838.8 million for the six months ended March 31, 2026, up 9.2 per cent from $767.9 million a year earlier.Chairman Patrick Williams said the performance reflected steady consumer demand as the […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Athletes will have four different ways to qualify for next year’s World Athletics Championships to be held in Beijing, China in September, it was announced on Tuesday.While announcing the qualifying standards for each event, World Athletics said athletes can qualify for the nine-day championships, “by achieving the entry standard during the qualification period; by virtue of finishing position at designated competitions; through a wild card; or by world rankings […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Both Jamaican clubs, Jamaica Premier League (JPL) champions Portmore United and Cavalier Soccer Club (SC) have been drawn in Group B of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup at Tuesday’s drawing.A third Jamaican team could join the group as well.If Mt Pleasant Football Association (FA) who finished third in the JPL, wins the CFU Club Shield, they too would play in Group B in the competition set to kick off in August.The Jamaican teams were drawn alongside two other teams from the […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The JEP Group on Labour Day returned to Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) for a second consecutive year, mobilising close to 200 volunteers to refurbish sections of the hospital’s busy Outpatient Department as part of its ongoing corporate social responsibility programme.The initiative, carried out under the theme “The Work Continues”, brought together employees of the energy company, scholarship recipients, strategic partners and members of the Jamaica Constabulary […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaican skincare brand OUR Soap has expanded its retail footprint through a new partnership with Fontana Pharmacy, bringing its plant-based soap collection to shelves at the pharmacy chain through distributor Aventa Jamaica.The move comes as local consumers place increasing focus on wellness, ingredient transparency and locally made personal care products.OUR Soap said its premium soap collection, which includes the Aloe Hydrate & Soothe, Coconut Afterglow and Olive […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Sixty-five Jamaican athletes will be competing in individual events at the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Regionals set to start on Wednesday and will run through to Saturday with athletes seeking places at the Division 1 Championships set to be held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon from June 10-13.Forty-one Jamaicans are down to compete in the east regionals to be held at the University of Kentucky track and field complex in Lexington and 24 more at […]