Cuba says 4 killed, 6 wounded on US-registered boat in ‘confrontation’ off Cuba’s coast
The Cuban flag waves outside of the Embassy of Cuba in Washington, DC on October 3, 2017, in Washington, DC. The U.S. orders on Tuesday the expulsion of 15 Cuban Diplomats from the Washington DC Embassy. (Photo by Olivier Douliery/Getty Images)
(CUBA) — Four people on a speedboat were killed and another six injured in a “confrontation” near Cuba’s coast after those on board the United States-registered vessel opened fire on Cuban troops, according to the Cuban Ministry of the Interior.
As Border Guard troops approached the boat for identification after it was detected in Cuban waters, those on board the speedboat “opened fire,” injuring the commander of the Cuban vessel, the ministry said.
“As a consequence of the confrontation, as of the time of this report, four aggressors on the foreign vessel were killed and six were injured,” the ministry said in a statement released by the Cuban Embassy in the United States.
Those injured were evacuated and received medical assistance, it said.
The speedboat was registered in Florida, according to the ministry. It approached Wednesday morning about 1 nautical mile northeast of the El Pino channel, in Cayo Falcones in the Villa Clara province, the ministry said.
When reached for comment, the U.S. Coast Guard, White House and other related agencies referred ABC News to the State Department.
“In the face of current challenges, Cuba reaffirms its determination to protect its territorial waters, based on the principle that national defense is a fundamental pillar of the Cuban State in safeguarding its sovereignty and ensuring stability in the region,” the Cuban Ministry of the Interior said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Lord Peter Mandelson leaving his home in Wiltshire. Ben Birchall/PA Images via Getty Images
(LONDON) — Lord Peter Mandelson has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, police said Monday.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police issued a statement, saying, “Officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday and has been taken to a London police station for interview. This follows search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas.”
Mandelson is a former U.K. ambassador to the United States.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
An unknown number of students and staff were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in an attack on a Catholic boarding school in western Nigeria early Friday, authorities said. (Nigeria Police Force Niger State Command)
(MAIDUGURI, Nigeria and LONDON) — An unknown number of students and staff were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in an attack on a Catholic boarding school in western Nigeria early Friday, authorities said.
The incident occurred before dawn, around 2 a.m. local time, at St. Mary’s School in the Papiri community of the Agwara local government area in Niger state, according to the Nigeria Police Force’s Niger State Command, which said in a statement that “armed bandits” had “abducted a yet to be ascertained number of students from the school’s hostel.”
“Police tactical units, military components and other security agencies have moved to the scene, combing the forests with a view to rescue the abducted students,” police added.
The Niger state government also confirmed in a statement that it “has received with deep sadness the disturbing news of the kidnapping of pupils from St. Mary’s School in Agwara Local Government Area,” adding that the “exact number of abducted pupils is yet to be confirmed as security agencies continue to assess the situation.”
The statement noted that the “unfortunate incident comes despite prior intelligence” warning of heightened threats in part of Niger state and the governor” ordering the temporary closure of all boarding schools within the affected zone as a precautionary measure.”
“Regrettably, St. Mary’s School proceeded to reopen and resume academic activities without notifying or seeking clearance from the State Government, thereby exposing pupils and the staff to avoidable risk,” Abubakar Usman, secretary to the Niger state government, said in the statement.
Local media reports say a roll call at the school revealed that 52 students are missing as well as a number of staff. ABC News is working to confirm this.
It’s the latest in a string of recent attacks by armed groups across Nigeria, including Monday’s kidnapping of 25 schoolgirls in nearby Kebbi state. The incidents have prompted Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to postpone planned trips abroad.
US President Donald Trump during a news conference at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, US, on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. Nicole Combeau/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(LONDON) — President Donald Trump implied on Sunday that Colombian President Gustavo Petro could face U.S. action soon, following the American attack on Venezuela that saw its president, Nicolas Maduro, captured and taken to face trial in the U.S.
Trump also appeared to threaten Cuba, the leftist government that has been a longtime ally of Maduro and his authoritarian regime in Venezuela.
“Colombia is very sick too, run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States. And he’s not going to be doing it very long, let me tell you,” Trump told reporters Sunday.
Asked if the U.S. would launch a military operation against Colombia, Trump responded, “It sounds good to me.”
Earlier on Sunday, Petro released a statement on the operation against Venezuela and Trump’s previous comments about him, saying, “I deeply reject Trump speaking without knowing; my name does not appear in the judicial files on drug trafficking over 50 years, neither from before nor from the present.”
“Stop slandering me, Mr. Trump. That’s not how you threaten a Latin American president who emerged from the armed struggle and then from the people’s struggle for Peace in Colombia,” he added.
Following the removal of Maduro in Venezuela, reporters asked Trump if the U.S. had a similar plan to deal with Cuba, to which he said that the government in Havana only survived because of Venezuelan largesse.
“Now, they won’t have that money coming in. They won’t have the income coming in. You know, a lot of Cubans were killed yesterday, you know that a lot of Cubans were killed,” Trump said.
Trump said the Cubans killed on Saturday were trying to protect Maduro. According to Cuban officials, at least 32 Cuban nationals were killed in the U.S. operation.
“Cuba looks like it’s ready to fall. I don’t know how they — if they’re going to hold out, but Cuba now has no income,” Trump said. “They got all of their income from Venezuela, from the Venezuelan oil. They’re not getting any of it. And Cuba literally is ready to fall. And you have a lot of great Cuban Americans that are going to be very happy about this.”
Asked again if the U.S. is considering action in Cuba, the president said he did not think it necessary because “it looks like it’s going down.”
In Venezuela, meanwhile, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was appointed as interim president by the country’s Supreme Court, which described the U.S. capture of Maduro as a “kidnapping.”
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are scheduled to make their initial appearances on Monday in a federal court in Manhattan.
On Saturday, Rodriguez demanded Maduro’s return and vowed to defend Venezuela against American aggression.
On Sunday, Rodriguez posted a statement to social media in which she invited “the U.S. government to collaborate with us on an agenda of cooperation oriented towards shared development within the framework of international law to strengthen lasting community coexistence.”
In comments to The Atlantic, Trump threatened further action in Venezuela if Rodriguez failed to “do what’s right.” Asked what he wanted from Rodriguez, Trump called for “total access” to the country’s oil reserves.
“We’re in charge,” Trump told reporters of the situation in the country on Sunday. The president said that he had not spoken to Rodriguez. Asked if he planned to, the president said, “At the right time, I will.”
ABC News’ Meghan Mistry, Hannah Demissie and Will Gretsky contributed to this report.
