A blockade of oil deliveries to Cuba has forced emergency rationing, kneecapping the country's critical tourism and tobacco sectors even as remittances are under threat and income earned from sending doctors abroad has been all but cut off. Foreign governments pay Havana directly for the doctors' services, but Washington has taken aim at the program it claims amounts to forced labor. Guyana, which has had agreements with Havana for decades, said it will in future pay doctors directly. The oil dearth also threatens to deal a fatal blow to tourism, the island's second source of foreign income after doctors. - Tobacco -Cuba is known as a producer of high-quality tobacco and cigars.

PARIS, France, Feb 17, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - US documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman died Monday, a representative confirmed to AFP. Wiseman died peacefully at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, according to a statement from his production company, Zipporah Films. For more than a half century, Oscar-winner Wiseman patiently observed some of America's most familiar institutions through his dozens of documentaries that shine a rare light on people's daily lives. This approach got him such classic scenes as the ending to one of his most celebrated documentaries, "Welfare" (1975), set in a New York welfare office. But for Wiseman, on the back of all those hours of shooting, such extraordinary scenes always came.

Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban -Photo: WikipediaDHAKA, Feb 17, 2026 (BSS)- All 296 newly elected members of parliament (MPs) of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad (JS) will take oath at Jatiya Sangsad (JS) here today. The lawmakers will first take oath as the members of parliament (MPs) and then as the members of Constitutional Reform Council, said a press release of JS Secretariat on Monday. At first the lawmakers elected from Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) including party Chairman Tarique Rahman will take oath. Later, lawmakers from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Bangladesh Khilafat Majlis, Khelafat Majlish, Gano Odhikar Parishad, Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP), Ganosamhati Andolon and independent MPs will take the oath. President Mohammed Shahabuddin will administer the oath to the new cabinet members at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad tomorrow afternoon.

GENEVA, Feb 17, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - President Donald Trump warned Iran of potential consequences should it fail to strike a deal with the United States, as negotiators prepare for the latest round of talks in Geneva on Tuesday. Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene militarily against Iran, first over a deadly crackdown on protesters last month and then more recently over its nuclear programme. A previous attempt at diplomacy collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran in June, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with his Omani counterpart Badr Albusaidi in Geneva on Monday to discuss his country's position "regarding nuclear issues and sanctions relief". The foreign minister also said he was meeting in Geneva with the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, "for deep technical discussion".

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All lots at Lakes Business Park are now sold. The park is located adjacent to the Laconia Bypass between routes 107 and 11-A. (Jeremy Hart/The Laconia Daily Sun file photo)

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Executive Councilor Joe Kenney, right, speaks during the Bean Family Barbecue in Gilford in July 2024, as Rep. Harry Bean, center, looks on. (Gabriel Perry/The Laconia Daily Sun file photo)

Participants of the Pemi-Baker Beginner Bee School will learn how to keep a colony of bees, promote their health and extract their honey. Also explored will be the bee's essential role in pollinating plants from flowers to vegetable gardens to commercial crops. (Courtesy photo)

They will be followed by MPs from Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party, Bangladesh Khilafat Majlis, Khelafat Majlis, Gano Odhikar Parishad, Bangladesh Jatiya Party, Ganosamhati Andolon, and independent members. Official results show BNP winning 209 seats, while allies Gano Odhikar Parishad and Bangladesh Jatiya Party each won one seat. Following the MPs’ oath, the BNP Parliamentary Board, having secured an absolute majority, will convene to elect its parliamentary leader. The president, as head of State, will first administer the oath to the prime minister, followed by ministers, state ministers, and deputy ministers. Heads of government from over a dozen countries were invited, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

DHAKA, Feb 16, 2026 (BSS) - The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will begin selling essential commodities across the country through 450 mobile trucks from tomorrow marking the holy month of Ramadan. Under the programme, essentials such as edible oil, sugar, red lentil, chickpea and dates will be sold through 450 mobile trucks nationwide. The prices have been fixed at Tk 115 per litre of edible oil, Tk 80 per kg of sugar, Tk 70 per kg of lentil, Tk 60 per kg of chickpea and Tk 160 for 0.5 kg of dates. To mark Ramadan, the TCB will distribute around 40,300 tonnes of products in February and 33,000 tonnes in March among the cardholders. These families will be able to purchase edible oil, sugar and lentil at previous rates along with chickpea and dates as additional items from designated truck sales points across the country.

The agreement was signed by PKSF Managing Director (MD) Md Fazlul Kader, andWB's Division Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Jean Pesme. This comes asadditional funding to the Recovery and Advancement of Informal SectorEmployment (RAISE) project being implemented by the PKSF. The RAISE project was launched in 2022 with an initial financing of US$250million, with the original completion timeline set for June 2026. From 2022 to 2030, the totalbudget of the RAISE project now stands at US$536.50 million, equivalent toapproximately Taka 61 billion, according to a press release. In this extended phase, special focus will be placed on youth from remote andclimate-vulnerable areas, including chars, haor regions, and the hill tracts.

Afghanistan finished on 162-5 with four balls to spare to keep alive their slim chances of moving into the next stage. South Africa, semi-finalists in 2024, became the third team after the West Indies and co-hosts India to secure a Super Eights berth. New Zealand can seal their spot and eliminate Afghanistan with a win against Canada on Tuesday in Chennai. Sohaib Khan top-scored for UAE with 68 and put on a stand of 84 for the third wicket with Alishan Sharafu, who made 40. Rasooli departed for 33 in the 18th over but Omarzai kept calm and hit the winning four to give Afghanistan their first win of the tournament.

Baltimore Sun high school sports Top 15 polls (Feb. 16) Here’s where we rank the top local basketball, wrestling and indoor track and field teams