Caribbean Evening Briefing: News Headlines – Thursday, November 12, 2026

By Michael Elijah Muhammad Clare

Thursday, November 12, 2026

Good evening. Prime Minister Philip Davis took The Bahamas' case to the world's leaders at the COP31 climate summit in Türkiye today, while the opposition pressed for Christmas relief on toy taxes at home. Around the region, a new UN report put fresh numbers on Haiti's gang violence, Cuba hit back at the G7, and Guyana's president warned of a dangerous criminal gang on its soil.

The Caribbean

Davis to world leaders at COP31: "No-one is coming to save us"

Prime Minister Philip Davis delivered The Bahamas' national statement to the COP31 Leaders' Summit in Antalya, Türkiye, on November 12, telling heads of state that small island nations must act for themselves because the world has not changed course fast enough since the Paris Agreement. He said global temperatures and emissions are still climbing, seas are still rising and hurricanes are growing stronger. Thursday was the final day of the summit's first round of national statements by heads of state and government. The Prime Minister was also scheduled to address a high-level session on sea-level rise and climate displacement.

Opposition calls for tax-free toys this Christmas

The opposition's finance spokesman, East Grand Bahama MP Kwasi Thompson, is urging the government to put its $39 million Budget surplus "back in the hands of the Bahamian people" by scrapping the 20 percent Customs duty and 10 percent VAT on toys for November and December. He said the break should cover toys bought in local stores and those imported directly by families, and likened it to the Back-to-School tax holiday. He also renewed calls to cap VAT on fuel, pointing to Bahamas National Statistical Institute figures for July 2026 that put inflation at 3.6 percent, with diesel prices up 33.4 percent and gasoline up 21.4 percent, and he asked for wider VAT exemptions on groceries and electricity help for seniors and vulnerable households. The government had not publicly responded to the proposal.

Power chief and FOCOL chairman at odds on what energy reform means for bills

Speaking at a Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants seminar, Bahamas Power and Light executive chairman Christina Alston said: "I don't want anyone to ever walk out of here and say that renewable energy is going to reduce the cost of electricity," adding that "the goal is GHG reduction." She said BPL had tried to make sure new power purchase agreements cost less than its existing generation. When former BPL executive director Deepak Bhatnagar asked whether she could say what bills would be per kilowatt-hour, she replied, "No, and let me tell you why," and said BPL is adding 84MW of gas turbines, 97MW of solar and 73MWh of battery storage. FOCOL Holdings chairman Sir Franklyn Wilson took the opposite line, saying it is "crazy" to suggest the government's energy reforms will not save money for households and businesses.

Haiti: UN counts more than 1,100 killed in three months

A new quarterly human rights report from the UN in Haiti says at least 1,167 people were killed and 459 injured between July and September as armed gangs widened their attacks. The report says gangs beheaded at least 19 people in Cité Soleil in early August, 12 of them elderly women. It also recorded 44 cases of actual or attempted extrajudicial executions involving Haitian police officers, up from 14 in the previous quarter. Violence was documented across the Port-au-Prince area and in the Artibonite and South-East departments.

Cuba rejects G7 call for democratic reform

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez on November 12 rejected a statement from G7 foreign ministers that called for political and economic reforms in Cuba, multiparty democracy and the release of people held arbitrarily. Rodríguez said the statement ignored what he called the cruel impact of the US embargo and energy squeeze on the island, and accused the G7 of repeating arguments made in Washington. The G7 statement was issued after the group's foreign ministers met in Paris on November 9 and 10. Rodríguez responded while on an official visit to China.

Guyana's president warns of Tren de Aragua presence after substation attack

President Irfaan Ali said on November 12 that Guyana has intelligence on the possible movement of senior members of Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan gang the US has labelled a terrorist group. He said anyone who plans, finances or carries out attacks on essential services will face the full force of the law. His statement came two days after an attempted firebombing of the Guyana Power and Light substation at Good Hope on the East Coast Demerara. Police said a suspect had been questioned and a motorcycle recovered.

Guyana approves eighth offshore oil project

Guyana's government has approved the Longtail project, the eighth oil and gas development in the Stabroek block. ExxonMobil said it plans to invest a further US$12.5 billion in Longtail, with production targeted to start in 2030. In its November 12 press release, ExxonMobil said this eighth Stabroek block development "advances Guyana's gas and condensate resources."

Jamaica: Holness pushes back at critics of hurricane recovery

Prime Minister Andrew Holness again rejected claims that his government has failed Hurricane Melissa survivors, while admitting that thousands of Jamaicans still have not received help. He said questions about the pace and size of assistance are fair but should not be confused with claims that the government did nothing. Holness said close to J$12 billion has been spent on direct assistance and another J$9.6 billion is being sought for outstanding needs. His comments followed a public dispute with dancehall artist Beenie Man, who released a song asking where hurricane relief money has gone.

Global News Updates

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigns

Nvidia announced on November 12 that co-founder Jensen Huang had resigned as president, chief executive and board member, effective immediately, ending 33 years at the helm of the chipmaker. Chief financial officer Colette Kress was named interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor, and longtime director Harvey C. Jones was appointed the company's first-ever chair of the board. The move came days after the board opened an independent investigation following reports that Huang had been the target of a foreign intelligence effort involving a woman alleged to be a Chinese spy. Nvidia shares fell sharply during the session before paring losses to close down 4.34 percent on Thursday.

US envoys meet Putin, say new round of Ukraine talks agreed

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on November 12, a day after US-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi ended with Russia and Ukraine agreeing in principle to a large prisoner exchange. "We've restarted it. We've set a new meeting," Witkoff said afterward of the three-way talks, adding that European representatives would take part, "They're our partners, and it's important for them to be involved," though no date or venue was given; Putin aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed the talks would continue but said Europe must first decide whether it wants peace or war. Putin proposed a joint humanitarian mission to evacuate civilians from the frontline city of Kostiantynivka and warned that any foreign troops deployed in Ukraine would be treated as legitimate targets. Final numbers for the prisoner exchange were still being worked out on Thursday, and the envoys flew on to Dublin to brief Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who said Europeans would be at the negotiating table next time.

One killed, four wounded in Washington gym shooting

A gunman killed one person inside a gym in Washington's Logan Circle neighbourhood, about a mile north of the White House, on November 12 and wounded four others, police said. Authorities identified the shooter as Matt Lambert, a 55-year-old doctor who lived in the building above the gym, and said he targeted the building's manager amid a long-running dispute over conditions in his condominium. Police said he shot the four other victims from his balcony before barricading himself in his apartment, where he spoke with negotiators for about an hour before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Interim police chief Jeffery Carroll said one of the wounded was in critical condition and the other three had injuries that were not life-threatening.

Trump says he wants to "get Cuba done" before leaving office

In a telephone interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that aired on November 12, US President Donald Trump was asked whether he would order military force if that were needed to "free" Cuba before his term ends. He replied that he wants to "get Cuba done" before he leaves, named Secretary of State Marco Rubio as his point man on the island, and later said he would "certainly consider" a short military campaign. The remarks came on the same day Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez rejected a G7 call for political and economic reforms, accusing the group of ignoring the impact of the US embargo.

Pacific island leaders sound alarm on rising seas at COP31

Pacific island leaders at the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Türkiye, warned on November 12 that rising seas are already swallowing land, and called for more climate finance and a faster move to renewable energy. Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Cooper Wale said sea levels around his country are rising by 7 to 10 millimetres a year, two to three times the global average, and put its yearly climate-related losses at about $79 million, or 5 percent of GDP. Niue's Prime Minister Dalton Tagelagi urged countries to cut their reliance on fossil fuels as quickly as possible, warning that sea temperatures in the central Pacific are more than three degrees above normal. Also at the summit, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced the appointment of a special envoy on climate-related security risks.

Nordic nations move toward joint defence pact

Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland agreed on November 12 to begin drafting a common defence agreement aimed at integrating their armed forces more closely and strengthening NATO's ability to deter and defend. Announcing the decision after a meeting of Nordic defence ministers in Oslo, Norway's Defence Minister Tore Sandvik said the countries want to remove legal and practical obstacles so troops and supplies can move easily across their borders. All five are now NATO members, and Norway and Finland share a land border with Russia.

Two of Imran Khan's sisters freed from Pakistani jail

Pakistani authorities on November 12 released Uzma Khan and Noreen Niazi, sisters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, from Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore after the Punjab government lifted their detention orders, their lawyer Rana Mudassar Umer said. The sisters had been held for 53 days under Section 3 of Punjab's Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance ahead of a planned anti-government march by Khan's party that ultimately did not go ahead. A third sister, Aleema Khan, remains in custody, and Khan himself is still imprisoned in Rawalpindi.