CARIBBEAN

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaican-born author, transformational speaker, and media founder Jenelle Simpson has officially launched Mirror to the Mic, a new global quarterly magazine designed to amplify authentic voices, with a powerful foundation rooted in Caribbean identity and lived experience.Created under the Life’s Deceit brand, Mirror to the Mic is not just a publication—it is a platform built to challenge silence, confront truth, and create space for healing across generations. Born […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A Canadian man has been charged in connection with the theft of millions of dollars worth of Hurricane Melissa relief supplies destined for Jamaica from the North American country last year.Varinder Dhillon, 40, of Brampton, was slapped with multiple offences, including breaking and entering, theft of over CA$5,000, possession of property obtained by crime, and multiple breaches of probation orders.The charges were announced by the Peel Regional Regional Police in a […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Former Government minister and distinguished attorney Hugh Hart died on Thursday plunging the legal and political communities into mourning. He was 96.Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness paid tribute to the man who served in the Cabinet in the mid- to late- 1980s, noting that Hart gave decades of distinguished service to Jamaica, both in public service and the legal profession.Holness said that Hart “helped to shape important areas of national development” during the […]

Ernie Smith, whose easy-listening songs ruled Jamaican airwaves during the 1970s, has died. The singer-songwriter, who was ill for some time, passed away at the University of Miami Hospital on Thursday, according to his manager, Joanna Marie Robinson.Smith’s wife, Claudette Bailey Smith, told Observer Online that he died shortly after suffering “cardiac incidents”. Early this week, she disclosed that he underwent a “surgical procedure” on April 9, two days after being admitted to the […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The 48-hour curfew imposed in sections of the St Andrew South Policing Division has been extended.The curfew will continue from 6:00 pm on Thursday, April 16, and will remain in effect until 6:00 pm on Saturday, April 18.The boundaries of the curfew are as follows:East – From Chisholm Avenue/Maxfield Avenue travelling southerly to East Avenue intersecting at Marcus Garvey Drive.South – From Marcus Garvey Drive vicinity East Avenue to Duhaney River.West – From […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday it has resumed dealings with Venezuela after a seven-year pause, reopening a channel that could eventually restore the country’s access to global financial support.The fund said the decision follows backing from member countries representing a majority of its voting power, allowing it to engage with the administration led by Delcy Rodríguez in line with its rules on government recognition.The move ends a diplomatic […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — JN Foundation has channelled approximately $1.4 million to the Mustard Seed Communities’ (MSC) Blessed Assurance home in St James to assist with critical rebuilding following severe damage by Hurricane Melissa.According to a release, the funds were allocated from monies raised through the ISupportJamaica Fund, activated by the JN Foundation as Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica. The fund received contributions mainly from Jamaicans overseas and friends of […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Procurement is under way for a renewable energy laboratory at St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS).Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dana Morris Dixon, advised that the lab will be constructed over the summer holiday and is expected to be opened in September.“Students will learn about solar technology. They'll learn about solar installation. They will learn about the batteries. They'll learn about wind power too. Using that lab, they will […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), one of Jamaica’s leading human rights organisations, presented a cheque for $250,000 to support residential facilities housing children in state care.In a release, it was shared that the donation, which includes part proceeds from the 2025 Run for Rights 5K Walk/Run, was symbolically handed over on April 9, 2026 to the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA).These funds will assist recovery initiatives for Child Care Facilities […]

Transport Minister Daryl Vaz on Wednesday sought to reassure residents of deep rural communities that his commitment to providing an additional 100 new school buses to the National Rural School Bus Programme (NRSBP) stands unwavering. Addressing guests at the official opening of the Rural School Bus Operation Centre at the Jamaican Urban Transit Company (JUTC) Lyndhurst Road Depot, Vaz noted that the new buses which are currently being procured will be better able to navigate and handle hilly […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Technology firm MC Systems is urging banks and cash-intensive businesses to adopt a new cash automation system, arguing that the technology can cut costs, reduce risk and free up staff time in operations still heavily reliant on manual cash handling.The company recently introduced the DN Series 600V Teller Cash Recycler during a series of demonstrations in Kingston, targeting financial institutions, remittance companies, retailers and other businesses that process high […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The United States (US) dollar on Thursday, April 16, ended trading at $159.21 down 6 cents, according to the Bank of Jamaica’s daily exchange trading summary.Meanwhile, the Canadian dollar ended trading at $116.13 up from $115.37 and the British pound at $218.16 up from $217.24.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Food brand Bad Dawg is expanding its footprint beyond retail shelves through a vendor-driven distribution model that is creating small business opportunities across Jamaica.The programme, which began in 2012 with a single cart, has grown into a network of 18 vendors operating across multiple parishes, according to parent company CB Foods. The initiative allows individuals to operate branded food carts, effectively running small businesses under the Bad Dawg […]

MANCHESTER, Jamaica — A landscaper was shot dead while working in a garden at a property in New Berry district near Knockpatrick, Manchester on Thursday morning.Police identified the murder victim as Rory Curtain, 57, a resident of Green Street in Manchester.A police report said about 9:00 am Curtain was tending to a garden at a premises in New Berry when a gunman approached and opened fire hitting him.Police say Curtain’s killing has pushed the number of murders recorded in Manchester so […]

Olympian Roje Stona has been left “devastated” after his application to switch allegiance from Jamaica to Turkiye was denied, according to his agent, Paul Doyle, who also confirmed that an appeal is being prepared.Doyle said the decision came as a surprise, particularly given that similar requests have been approved for other athletes in the past.“Athletes in the past have been approved, and now all of a sudden, these ones aren’t,” Doyle said during an interview with the Jamaica […]

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Dubai has completed its first flying taxi station, with commercial operations expected to begin by the end of the year, authorities in the Gulf emirate announced on Thursday.Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, crown prince of Dubai and United Arab Emirates (UAE) deputy prime minister, visited Dubai's "first purpose-built electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) Air Taxi Station", the emirate's media office said in a statement.The facility, described by the […]

HAVANA, Cuba (AFP) — Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Thursday his country was "ready" for a possible United States (US) attack on the communist island following months of mounting pressure from President Donald Trump."We don't want that (confrontation), but it is our duty to be ready to avoid it, and if it were unavoidable, to win it," Diaz-Canel told thousands of people attending a rally in Havana to mark the 65th anniversary of the failed US invasion of the island at the Bay of […]

SAN JOSE, United States (AFP) — Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest is asking a United States (US) federal court in Silicon Valley to hold Meta accountable for scam ads using his likeness without permission.Popular entertainers, public figures and entrepreneurs worldwide, including in Jamaica, have been affected by similar scams using their likeness to lure in unsuspecting users.READ: JCF warns public of scam impersonating police commissionerForrest's legal team is asking a judge to rule […]

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP)—United President (US) Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States and Iran were "very close" to a peace deal and that he would consider going to Pakistan to sign an agreement.Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump added that Tehran had agreed to hand over its store of enriched uranium, as the two countries mull further talks in Islamabad."We're very close to making a deal with Iran," Trump said as he left to board his helicopter for a trip to […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Seventeen people were killed in traffic crashes during the month of March 2026, a 50 per cent reduction when compared to the 34 who lost their lives in March 2025.The deaths resulted from 16 fatal crashes, according to the latest statistics released on Wednesday by the Island Traffic Authority (ITA).During the month, eight motorcyclists were killed, accounting for 47 per cent of the fatalities.There were five deaths among private motor vehicle drivers with this group of […]

BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) —Where once there was ice, only rock remains. One of the glaciers in a chain of snow-capped mountains in the Colombian Andes has vanished due to high temperatures driven by climate change.Satellite images show how the ice sheet covering the mountain gradually shrank from 2015 until it disappeared completely in March 2026.Situated in the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy range, in the northeast of Colombia, the Cerros de la Plaza glacier was officially declared disappeared last […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — President of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), Garth Gayle, says the association’s doors are wide open, after World Athletics rejected requests from four Jamaican athletes to switch allegiance to Turkey.Olympic Games medallists Roje Stona, Wayne Pinnock and Rajindra Campbell, as well as World Under-20 triple jump record holder Jaydon Hibbert, were part of a group of 11 athletes who were in the process of transferring national allegiance to the […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — After demonstrations at the campus gates on Monday and again on Wednesday, the management of the University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona have met with employees to address their concerns.Following the discussions, staff representatives have agreed that the administration should be given a reasonable timeframe to continue its engagement with the Government of Jamaica and to finalise negotiations with all unions.In a statement released on Wednesday, UWI acknowledged the […]

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC) — The Government of Guyana has renewed its call for an immediate increase in humanitarian aid to Gaza and the lifting of Israel’s blockade, warning that armed conflicts are having a disproportionate and devastating impact on women and girls.Speaking at the second meeting of the Group of Parliaments in Support of Palestine during the 152nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Turkey on Wednesday, the country's Minister of Human Services and Social […]

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Mining and Quarrying Association of Jamaica (MQAJ) is urging construction companies, developers and property owners to brace for likely increases in the cost of key materials, including construction-grade limestone and sand, as operators respond to mounting cost pressures.President of the association, Sam Millington in a press release on Thursday said the impact is being felt across the value chain.“Let’s be real, energy is at the centre of everything we do,” […]