HAVANA TIMES – We bring you some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Thursday, May 14, 2026.
Xi Jinping Warns U.S. of Potential “Conflict” over Taiwan After Beijing Summit with Trump
May 14, 2026
Chinese President Xi Jinping has warned of the potential for “conflict” between the U.S. and China over the status of Taiwan. President Xi’s warning came after he hosted President Donald Trump at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Thursday, where the two spoke for about two hours and 15 minutes. Trump had arrived in Beijing a day earlier aboard Air Force One, flanked by his son, Eric Trump; Cabinet members Scott Bessent, Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth; and billionaires Elon Musk and Jensen Huang, the CEO of chip maker Nvidia. After Trump’s talks with Xi, China’s state broadcaster said the status of Taiwan remains the most important issue in China-U.S. relations.
CCTV anchor: “If handled well, the overall stability of bilateral relations can be maintained. If handled poorly, the two countries will collide or even come into conflict, pushing the entire U.S.-China relationship into an extremely dangerous situation. Taiwan independence and peace in the Taiwan Strait are fundamentally incompatible.”
Ahead of Trump’s visit, U.S. lawmakers in both parties pressed the White House to move forward with the delivery of $11 billion in weapons sales to Taiwan approved by Congress in December; lawmakers are also pressing Trump to approve an additional $14 billion arms sale including Patriot missiles and anti-drone hardware. Presidents Trump and Xi also reportedly discussed topics ranging from trade to artificial intelligence to the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Speaking at a banquet following the talks, President Trump invited Xi to the White House for a visit on September 24. We’ll have more on President Trump’s visit to China after headlines.
Senate Narrowly Rejects Iran War Powers Resolution for Seventh Time
May 14, 2026
The U.S. Senate has once again voted down a war powers resolution seeking to rein in President Trump’s power to attack Iran. On Wednesday, three Republican senators broke from their party and voted to discharge the Iran war powers resolution from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but the motion failed on a vote of 49 to 50 after Pennsylvania Democratic Senator John Fetterman voted against it. It’s the seventh time the Senate has blocked a war powers resolution on Iran since Trump began airstrikes on February 28.
Children Among the Dead as Israel Continues Bombing Lebanon Despite Ceasefire
May 14, 2026
Israel’s military targeted multiple locations across southern Lebanon overnight, following another day of deadly attacks that came despite the U.S.-brokered April ceasefire. On Wednesday, Israeli strikes killed at least 12 people, including two children, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. Today the Trump administration is hosting Israeli and Lebanese diplomats for a third round of peace talks; once again, Hezbollah is not a party to the negotiations.
Israeli Police Kill Palestinian Attempting to Scale West Bank Wall to Find Work
May 14, 2026
Palestinian officials say Israeli police shot and killed a Palestinian man as he tried to scale the concrete barrier separating the occupied West Bank from Jerusalem. According to his brother, 44-year-old Zakaria Qatusa had been attempting to cross into Israel to find work. He leaves behind four children.
Elsewhere, Israeli settlers killed a 16-year-old Palestinian boy in the town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah. Health officials say Youssef Ali Youssef Kaabneh died from a gunshot wound to the chest. The killing came as Israeli settlers backed by soldiers assaulted shepherds and stole large numbers of their sheep.
Study Finds Israel Increased Attacks on Gaza After Halting Strikes on Iran
May 14, 2026
A new study finds a dramatic increase in Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip in the five weeks since it halted its airstrikes on Iran. The conflict monitor ACLED found Israel carried out 35% more attacks on Gaza in April than it did in March. All the attacks came despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that was supposed to have taken effect in October. This is Faiza al-Ajrami, a displaced Palestinian living in a tent in Gaza City.
Faiza al-Ajrami: “The war has not stopped yet. The war has not stopped in order for me to worry that it will return. The war is ongoing. The bombing continues. And every day we hear that there are martyrs here and there. There is grave danger everywhere. Every moment we are expecting a missile to fall on us, on my son or daughter. We are scared.”
Judge Temporarily Blocks U.S. Sanctions Against U.N. Expert on Occupied Palestinian Territories
May 14, 2026
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from sanctioning Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ruled the Trump administration likely violated Albanese’s free speech rights when it barred her from traveling to the U.S., froze her assets and prohibited banks and other companies from doing business with her. The sanctions came after she recommended the International Criminal Court pursue war crimes prosecutions against Israeli and U.S. officials. Click here to see our interviews with Francesca Albanese.
Israeli Prime Minister Claims He Made “Secret” Visit to the UAE in March
May 14, 2026
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he made a “secret” visit to the United Arab Emirates while the U.S. and Israel were bombing Iran earlier this year. On Wednesday, Netanyahu’s office said the visit “marked a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates,” coming after Israel and the UAE agreed to normalize relations in 2020 under the Abraham Accords. Emirati officials later issued a statement denying Netanyahu’s claims, calling them “entirely unfounded.”
U.S. Senate Votes to Confirm Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve Chair
May 14, 2026
The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to confirm Kevin Warsh as the next chair of the Federal Reserve. He was approved on a vote of 54 to 45 after Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman joined all 53 Republican senators voting in favor of his confirmation. Warsh replaces outgoing Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whom Trump nominated to the position in 2017. Trump later turned on Powell and attempted to force him out of his role after the Fed resisted Trump’s demands to lower interest rates. Following Wednesday’s confirmation vote, Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren said, “Trump wants to control interest rates, and he nominated Kevin Warsh to be his sock puppet. … Warsh’s confirmation is another step in Trump’s attempt to take over the Fed.”
Trump Admin Withholds $1.3 Billion in Medicaid Reimbursement Payments from California
May 14, 2026
The Trump administration is withholding $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursement payments from California, after top officials accused the state of failing to adequately address fraud in its Medi-Cal program. It’s the latest in a string of similar actions targeting states run by Democrats. Vice President JD Vance announced the sanctions at a White House event on Wednesday.
Vice President JD Vance: “This does not have to be a red state or a blue state issue. This is just basic good government. However, states like California, states like Hawaii, states like New York have completely not taken the fraud issue seriously in the Medicaid program.”
California officials condemned the Trump administration’s actions. Governor Gavin Newsom said the growth of home healthcare placements in California was due to “keeping more people OUT of far more expensive nursing homes!” Senator Alex Padilla wrote, “Let’s be real, this isn’t about fraud — it’s about punishing a state that didn’t vote for him. Political retribution plain and simple.”
Former Private Prison Official to Be Named Acting Director of ICE
May 14, 2026
Image Credit: IBM Center for The Business of Government
A former private prison official is expected to be named acting director of ICE. David Venturella is the former senior vice president of private for-profit prison company GEO Group, which has received hundreds of millions of dollars in government contracts to run ICE jails and track immigrants through GPS ankle monitors. Meanwhile, the DHS inspector general is investigating a $38 billion warehouse purchasing program touted by former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to set up ICE jails. This comes as Public Citizen released a report detailing that half of immigrants who are detained for more than a few days end up in the government’s so-called Voluntary Work Program, earning just $1 per day, about 12.5 cents per hour. More than 60,000 immigrants are currently held in ICE jails across the U.S.
Louisiana Police to Pay More Than $4.8 Million to Settle Wrongful Death of Ronald Greene
May 14, 2026
Image Credit: Greene Family
Louisiana state police and a local sheriff’s department will pay more than $4.8 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the daughter of a Black motorist who was beaten, dragged and electrocuted to death during a 2019 traffic stop in the city of Monroe. Family members said police originally told them Ronald Greene died in a car accident, but the Associated Press obtained video showing Louisiana state troopers tasering, beating and taunting Greene, leaving him unattended, face down on the pavement for more than nine minutes as officers refused to render aid, instead washing blood off their own hands and faces. Greene died before reaching the hospital. In 2022, four Louisiana state troopers and a Union Parish sheriff’s deputy were indicted on state felony charges including negligent homicide, but most of those prosecutions failed, with just two of the officers pleading “no contest” to misdemeanor battery charges. The Justice Department said in January of 2025 it would not pursue federal charges against the officers. Click here to see our coverage of Ronald Greene’s killing.
U.N. Warns Drones Cause More Than 80% of Civilian Deaths in Sudan
May 14, 2026
Two weeks of clashes in the south of Sudan have killed 61 people, including nine children, according to the Sudan Doctors Network. The fighting started earlier this month between forces linked to the rebel group Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North and the Otoro tribe in South Kordofan. This comes as the U.N. human rights chief warns that drones caused more than 80% of civilian deaths in Sudan during the first four months of 2026. The conflict, now in its fourth year, has killed at least 59,000 people, displaced about 13 million and pushed much of Sudan into famine.
Mexican President Denies Reports CIA Officers Assassinated Cartel Members
May 14, 2026
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Wednesday denied reports that CIA operatives have carried out targeted killings of cartel members inside Mexico. The denials come as CNN reported this week that CIA officers have directly participated in assassinations of cartel members, including a car bombing on a busy highway outside Mexico City. This is Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
President Claudia Sheinbaum: ”CNN, which is supposedly an internationally respected media outlet, published a truly sensationalist report. And what was its aim? To say — just imagine — that CIA agents are operating on national territory, even to kill someone. Just imagine how big a fabricated lie a story like that is. It even surprised me, because even the CIA spokesperson came out and said it was false.”
Israel Qualifies for the Eurovision Song Contest Final Amid Protests and Calls for Boycott
May 14, 2026
Israel qualified for the Eurovision Song Contest final on Wednesday amid massive protests and calls for boycott over its inclusion. Pro-Palestinian and anti-genocide chants from the audience were reportedly censored during the semifinal broadcast. Over 1,000 artists signed an open letter under the “No Music for Genocide” banner, demanding the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) ban Israel from the contest. Amnesty International says the EBU “betrayed humanity” by allowing Israel to compete. This is a protester on the sidelines of the Eurovision semifinals.
Sonja Kopf: “It is simply hypocritical to claim that the Eurovision Song Contest is meant to be a celebration of peace, whilst Israel has been committing what amounts to genocide in Palestine for nearly three years. I believe this is a gross injustice, and that is why we are protesting here.”
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