International News Briefs for Tuesday, November 4, 2025
HAVANA TIMES – We bring you some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Tuesday, November 4, 2025.
Trump Endorses Cuomo, Threatens to Cancel Funding to NYC If Mamdani Is Elected Mayor
Nov 04, 2025
It’s Election Day here in the United States. Voters in New Jersey and Virginia are casting their ballots for governor. Meanwhile, voters in California will be weighing in on a new set of congressional maps pushed by Governor Gavin Newsom that could give Democrats a five-seat advantage in Congress. That’s in response to the GOP-led Texas state Legislature passing congressional maps earlier this year that would enable Republicans to pick up five additional House seats.
In New York City, Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani is running against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa to succeed outgoing Mayor Eric Adams. President Trump is throwing his support behind Cuomo and threatened to restrict federal funds for New York City if Mamdani wins. Here’s Mamdani’s response.
Zohran Mamdani: “It is a threat. It is not the law. And too often we treat everything that comes out of Donald Trump’s mouth as if it is already legal just by virtue of who is saying it. And it is time to finally stand up to the bullies that make these threats, not to become the bullies ourselves.”
The world’s richest person, billionaire Elon Musk, is also urging New Yorkers to vote for Cuomo, writing on X, “Bear in mind that a vote for Curtis is really a vote for Mumdumi or whatever his name is,” Musk tweeted, intentionally misspelling and mocking Mamdani’s name. After headlines, we’ll have more on what’s at stake this Election Day with John Nichols, executive editor of The Nation.
Trump Administration Will Only Partially Fund Expiring SNAP Benefits as Shutdown Drags On
Nov 04, 2025
The U.S. federal government shutdown has entered its 35th day, tying the record with the longest shutdown in history — with no end in sight. It comes as the Trump administration agreed to comply with a court order to partially fund food benefits to 42 million people. The Department of Agriculture announced that it will tap into a contingency fund to provide only half of the benefits under SNAP, the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program. Democratic Congressmember Rashida Tlaib said, “It shouldn’t take a court order to get the president to stop starving families and release the funds.” On Monday, Republican Senator John Barrasso blocked a Democratic bill demanding full funding for SNAP benefits. About one in eight U.S. residents get an average of $187 a month in food benefits from the government. This is Jessica Alicea, a SNAP recipient in Virginia.
Jessica Alicea: “I know what it’s like to give my kids food and not eat for the night. I know what it’s like to make sure that at the end of the day my kids have all that they need while I go without.”
Fed Warns of Weakening Labor Market as U.S. Companies Announce AI-Driven Layoffs
Nov 04, 2025
In labor news, several major U.S. companies have announced layoffs affecting tens of thousands of workers. Amazon said it would eliminate about 14,000 corporate jobs, with Reuters reporting that number could more than double, as artificial intelligence tools increasingly replace white-collar workers. Meanwhile, Target announced plans to cut 1,800 corporate jobs, General Motors said it’s cutting over 3,300 electric vehicle jobs, and Paramount began laying off 2,000 workers following the media conglomerate’s merger with Skydance. Meanwhile, shipping giant UPS said it had eliminated some 48,000 jobs this year. Last week, the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates for the second consecutive meeting, as Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned of a weakening labor market. The Fed’s decision came in the absence of key data on inflation and employment due to the government shutdown.
10 Richest U.S. Billionaires Have Expanded Wealth by $700 Billion Since Trump’s Return
Nov 04, 2025
Image Credit: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/ABACAPRESS.COM
The 10 richest Americans have seen their wealth collectively grow by $700 billion since President Trump’s return to office. That’s according to a report by Oxfam America, which details that in 2025 the share of total U.S. assets held by the richest 0.1% of Americans reached its highest level on record at 12.6%. Abby Maxman, president and CEO of Oxfam America, said, “Now, the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress risk turbocharging that inequality as they wage a relentless attack on working people and bargain with livelihoods during the government shutdown.”
Dick Cheney, Architect of Iraq Occupation and U.S. Torture Program, Dies at 84
Nov 04, 2025
Former Vice President Dick Cheney has died at the age of 84. Beginning in 1978, Cheney served six terms as Wyoming’s lone U.S. congressmember, where he voted against a resolution calling for the release of Nelson Mandela in South Africa and against a holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. He left Congress in 1989 to serve as defense secretary under President George H.W. Bush, overseeing the first Gulf War and the bloody U.S. invasion of Panama that deposed leader and former U.S. ally Manuel Noriega, while killing hundreds of people. From 1995 to 2000, Cheney served as chair and CEO of the oil services company Halliburton, before George W. Bush tapped him as his running mate. As vice president, Cheney was a key architect of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq under the false pretext of preventing Saddam Hussein from developing weapons of mass destruction. The invasion led to more than 650,000 deaths, according to a study by The Lancet. As the occupation of Iraq foundered, Cheney argued for the “Salvador option” of using death squads similar to U.S.-supported paramilitaries in El Salvador and other Central American countries in the 1980s. Dick Cheney steadfastly defended the use of torture against detainees of the so-called war on terror. This is Cheney speaking to “Meet the Press” just days after the 9/11 attacks in 2001.
Vice President Dick Cheney: “We also have to work, though, sort of the dark side, if you will. We’ve got to spend time in the shadows in the intelligence world. A lot of what needs to be done here will have to be done quietly, without any discussion, using sources and methods that are available to our intelligence agencies, if we’re going to be successful.”
We’ll have more on Vice President Dick Cheney’s life and legacy later in the broadcast.
U.N. Says 36,000 Have Fled North Darfur’s Capital Since Paramilitaries Seized Control
Nov 04, 2025
In Sudan, the U.N.’s migration agency says more than 36,000 people have fled El Fasher since the city was seized by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces last week, after 18 months under siege. Displaced families were forced to walk to the neighboring town of Tawila, which is already sheltering more than 650,000 people forced out of their homes. Survivors described streets littered with corpses and families separated by violence, with those displaced forced to trek for days without food or water. This comes as famine grips El Fasher and the town of Kadugli, according to a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, the world’s leading authority on food crises. Famine is also threatening to spread to 20 other areas in the Darfur region and central Sudan’s Kordofan region, as fighting between the Sudanese government and the RSF rages on. Meanwhile, the RSF has vowed to take over the city of el-Obeid in central Sudan, currently under control by the Sudanese army.
Israel Continues to Attack Gaza Despite U.S.-Brokered Ceasefire
Nov 04, 2025
Israel is continuing to intensify its attacks across Gaza, further violating the U.S.-brokered truce that went into effect on October 10. Al Jazeera reports Israeli forces have demolished homes and residential buildings in Gaza City as Palestinian families still don’t have access to enough food, clean water, medicines or safe shelter with winter approaching. There are an estimated 75,000 displaced people sheltering in overcrowded UNRWA-run buildings, damaged by Israeli attacks, while tens of thousands of others are living in makeshift refugee camps in Gaza or amid the rubble of what was once their homes. This is a displaced Palestinian man in Khan Younis.
bq. Ehab Hussein: “Today the basic necessities aren’t available. Meat isn’t available, and chicken isn’t, either. As for the situation of vegetables, today it’s unpredictable. Sometimes prices go up, sometimes they go down. The situation is hard. We can’t bear it. We’re living in tents. All our lives we’ve prayed for winter rain, but today we hope winter doesn’t come, because we will be humiliated in tents.”
Israel and Hamas Exchange Bodies of Captives, with More Signs of Torture Against Palestinians
Nov 04, 2025
Israel has released the bodies of another 45 Palestinians after Hamas returned the remains of three Israeli soldiers. As of Monday, Israel has handed over the bodies of at least 270 Palestinians since the U.S.-backed Gaza deal went into effect last month. Israel has also released another five Palestinians in Israeli prison custody; the men were taken to Gaza’s Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir el-Balah for medical care. Many of the bodies and Palestinian captives released by Israel show signs of torture and abuse. It is estimated that Israel still holds the remains of about 1,500 Palestinians from Gaza.
This all comes as fallout continues following the arrest of a former top lawyer of the Israeli military for her role in the leak of surveillance video that showed Israeli soldiers gang-raping a Palestinian prisoner at the Sde Teiman prison last year. Major General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi was arrested on Sunday in what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called Israel’s worst PR attack in its history. He’s yet to condemn the rape of the Palestinian prisoner.
ICE Agents Shoot U.S. Citizen in Los Angeles Area
Nov 04, 2025
In Southern California, advocates are raising more alarm over ICE’s use of force in immigration raids, after agents shot a 25-year-old U.S. citizen in the Los Angeles area as he attempted to warn the federal officers that children would soon gather at a school bus stop where the officers had just pulled over a vehicle. Lawyers for Carlos Jimenez said he was shot while trying to leave the scene and reversed his car in panic. A bullet remains lodged in the back of his right shoulder. Jimenez was then arrested, accused of assaulting an officer, which his lawyers deny. He was released from jail on bond last week as he faces federal charges. The shooting came about a week after ICE agents shot a Mexican immigrant they were attempting to arrest during a botched operation in L.A. late last month.
U.S. Courts Halt Deportation of Man Wrongfully Jailed Under Murder Charges for 43 Years
Nov 04, 2025
Image Credit: Abby Drey via Getty Images
In more immigration news, two separate courts have ordered the Trump administration not to deport a man who spent 43 years in a Pennsylvania prison for a crime he did not commit. On October 3, 64-year-old Subramanyam Vedam walked free from Huntingdon State Correctional Institution, where he’d been held for over four decades, after his conviction for a 1982 murder was vacated. His freedom came three years after the Pennsylvania Innocence Project uncovered evidence that prosecutors had buried an FBI report that would have exonerated him. He was immediately arrested by ICE agents. Vedam is currently detained at an ICE jail in Alexandria, Louisiana. Vedam came to the U.S. from India with his parents when he was just 9 months old.
At Least 26 People Killed as Typhoon Kalmaegi Strikes Philippines
Nov 04, 2025
Image Credit: Philippine Red Cross
In the Philippines, at least 26 people were killed and tens of thousands forced to flee their communities as Typhoon Kalmaegi struck central provinces with destructive winds and heavy rains. The storm triggered flash flooding that trapped residents on rooftops and swallowed up homes and vehicles. It was the 20th tropical cyclone to strike the Philippines this year.
Trump Admin Says It Will Not Send Any High-Level Officials to COP30 Climate Talks
Nov 04, 2025
In more climate news, the Trump administration said Saturday the United States will not send any high-level officials to the United Nations COP30 climate talks in Belém, Brazil, when delegates gather later this month. Democracy Now! will be broadcasting from COP30.