Caribbean Evening Briefing: News Headlines – Wednesday, November 11, 2026

By Michael Elijah Muhammad Clare

Wednesday, November 11, 2026

The Bahamas scored a diplomatic win at the UN climate summit in Türkiye on Wednesday, when a Bahamian judge was chosen to lead a small-island climate law body. In the region, Trinidad and Tobago put a community under a closed-area curfew for the first time, and El Salvador and US diplomats clashed openly over Haiti's gang war. Elsewhere, Russia and Ukraine agreed to a large prisoner swap, world leaders opened the COP31 summit, and a major US network projected a historic Senate result in Mississippi.

The Caribbean

Bahamian judge elected to lead small-island climate law commission

Justice Cheryl E. Bazard of the Supreme Court of The Bahamas was elected Secretary-General of the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law on November 11. Prime Minister Philip Davis put her name forward at the commission's annual meeting during COP31 in Antalya. Bazard is a former Bahamian ambassador to Belgium and the European Union. In 2024 she represented The Bahamas in Hamburg when the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea gave its advisory opinion on climate change.

Davis pitches blue carbon to investors and addresses leaders Thursday

At the CARICOM Pavilion in Antalya, Davis set out the next phase of The Bahamas Blue Carbon Programme, which seeks recognition and financing for the climate value of the country's large seagrass meadows, and invited investors and partners to join. He also met Australian officials leading the COP31 negotiations and the head of the International Organization for Migration to discuss climate displacement. He told reporters that changes of government around the world are stalling climate progress and called for safeguards so that commitments outlast political turnover. Davis gives The Bahamas' national statement to the leaders' segment on Thursday, November 12. Antigua and Barbuda's Gaston Browne has also arrived for the summit, and Barbados' Mia Mottley renewed her call for fair climate financing.

New Bahamian envoy to the United Kingdom sworn in

Dr. Daniel Johnson took the oath of office and received his letter of appointment at Government House on November 10 as High Commissioner-designate to the Court of St James's. He now heads to London to lead The Bahamas' mission to the United Kingdom, and Prime Minister Davis congratulated him on behalf of the government and people of The Bahamas.

Trinidad and Tobago declares first "closed area" under new crime law

President Christine Kangaloo has declared the Maloney Buildings Housing Development in Maloney Gardens a closed area under the Special Operations Act, 2026. A separate order puts residents under a nightly curfew. This is the first use of the closed-area powers since the law was proclaimed in October. The orders, dated November 10, came after a shooting at the complex sent several men to hospital and a widely shared video showed children running for cover. Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro said residents can get permits to enter and leave through two police units being set up in the community. Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles demanded that the government publish its reasons, an end date and permit arrangements for workers, students and health staff. Breaking the permit rules carries a fine of up to TT$50,000 and up to a year in prison.

El Salvador and US diplomats clash over Haiti gang offensive

On November 9, El Salvador sent a formal diplomatic note questioning the credibility of the top US diplomat in Haiti, Chargé d'Affaires David Howell. Howell had privately told Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé that Salvadoran forces were not coordinating with the UN-backed Gang Suppression Force and should halt operations until they did. El Salvador flatly denied Howell's claim that three of its soldiers had been hurt, while a State Department official insisted they were. President Trump has backed President Nayib Bukele's campaign. Bukele sent about 2,000 troops after four Salvadoran aviation technicians went missing on October 18, and Fils-Aimé is due in El Salvador next week to discuss the deployment's future.

Cuba's top diplomat in Beijing as China pledges support

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Wednesday during an official visit that runs from November 10 to 13. Wang said China would "firmly support" Havana in opposing sanctions. The visit follows US sanctions announced November 5 on two Chinese firms, state-owned CEIEC and Beijing H&C Technologies, which Washington accuses of supplying equipment to Cuba's military. Beijing called the sanctions an attempt to sabotage its ties with Havana. In Cuba, official aviation notices say jet fuel will remain unavailable at ten airports, including Havana, Varadero and Santiago de Cuba, through November 30.

IMF says Jamaica's economy is recovering from Hurricane Melissa

IMF official W. Raphael Lam said Jamaica's policy frameworks and disaster-risk financing helped the country absorb Hurricane Melissa, the strongest storm in its recorded history, while keeping financial stability and access to markets. After an IMF mission to Kingston from October 27 to November 4, the Fund estimates the economy shrank 1.2 percent in fiscal year 2025/26 and will grow about 1.3 percent in 2026/27. It expects output to be back at pre-hurricane levels by mid-2027. Higher energy and food prices have pushed inflation above the Bank of Jamaica's 4 to 6 percent target, and the IMF expects it to return to that range by mid-2027.

Guyana named Best Emerging Destination for 2026

Guyana was named Best Emerging Destination 2026 at the World Tourism Awards in Brussels, and Tourism Minister Susan Rodrigues accepted the award on Monday, November 9. Guyana welcomed 47,726 visitors in October, its highest ever for that month, which keeps it on course for its target of 500,000 arrivals in 2026.

Global News Updates

World leaders open COP31 summit in Antalya

The two-day Antalya Leaders' Summit opened at COP31 on Wednesday, and heads of state, among them Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, began setting out their climate priorities. UN Secretary-General António Guterres said global emissions hit a record in 2025 and the past four years were the hottest on record. He called for fossil fuels to be phased out and for major oil companies to pay taxes on windfall profits. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whose country leads the negotiations, said the conference must deliver "practical results" on clean energy and climate finance. More leaders speak on Thursday, and the talks run until November 20.

Russia and Ukraine agree large prisoner swap as Abu Dhabi talks end

Two days of US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi ended Wednesday with Russia and Ukraine agreeing to a new large-scale exchange of prisoners of war. Ukraine's lead negotiator Rustem Umerov and Russia's Vladimir Medinsky both confirmed the deal and said details would come later. There was no major breakthrough on ending the war, and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine will not give up occupied territory in exchange for peace. US envoy Jared Kushner called the talks substantive but very tough. He said he and Steve Witkoff will travel to Moscow on Thursday to brief President Vladimir Putin.

Iran says another tanker hit a mine near Hormuz as oil rebounds

Iran's army said Wednesday that an oil tanker caught fire after hitting a naval mine in what Tehran calls a prohibited area east of the Strait of Hormuz. The claim came a day after the Revolutionary Guards reported tanker fires on an unauthorised route. The British maritime agency UKMTO said it had a report of an incident involving a tanker in the strait, but the damage and the crew's condition were not yet known. Oil prices recovered from two-month lows, with Brent crude trading around $92 a barrel, and the US says it is still enforcing its naval blockade of Iranian ports.

Eisenkot bloc gains ground in Israel's new Knesset

After a stormy session of the Knesset's temporary Arrangements Committee on Wednesday, Gadi Eisenkot's bloc won control of key committees, including defense and finance. The full Knesset must still give final approval. Eisenkot has 28 days, which can be extended to 42, to form a government. He said Israel should not return to war in the coming weeks unless it faces an immediate threat, and urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who stays in office during coalition talks, to hold off on moves that can wait for a new government. His camp holds 48 of the Knesset's 120 seats.

CNN projects historic Democratic win in Mississippi Senate race

CNN projected on Wednesday that Democrat Scott Colom will unseat Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith. A win would make him Mississippi's first Black US senator since Reconstruction and the first Democrat to win a Senate seat there since 1982. In its latest updates, the Associated Press had not called the race, which Colom led by 4,585 votes in unofficial results as counties finished counting. Colom's campaign says Hyde-Smith has no path to victory, and the state must certify the results by Friday, November 13.

Trump marks Veterans Day at Arlington

President Donald Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday for the national Veterans Day observance. Vice President JD Vance and Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins joined him. In his remarks, Trump thanked troops serving in the Iran campaign and defended the war. The ceremony came a day after nine Kennedy family members joined lawsuits to block a planned 250-foot arch near the cemetery, saying it would cast a shadow over their relatives' graves.