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Havana, Cuba, July 1. The US and Cuban governments announced on July 1 the official restoration of formal diplomatic ties by reopening embassies in each country. The two countries will open embassies as of July 20. The respective US and Cuban special interest sections, which function as diplomatic delegations, will be upgraded to embassies, with ambassadors soon to be appointed.
Photo: Stopwar.org.uk. Anti-war campaigners challenged British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon on July 2 after his call for more air strikes in Syria, warning that the action could fuel Islamic State recruitment. When the PM obtained Commons approval for the bombing of militant positions last year, he made it clear that this was limited to Iraq.
Voting in the Greek referendum.

Streets in cities across Greece has erupted into celebrations as results from Sunday’s referendum showed voters clearly rejecting the bailout terms put forward by the country’s lenders.

Tens of thousands of Hondurans took to the streets in torch-lit marches on June 26 for the fifth week straight of Friday night protests. Marchers demanded the resignation of President Juan Orlando Hernandez and an independent investigation into the multi-million dollar corruption scandal embroiling the government.
Cuba is a world leader in healthcare. Photo: socialmedicine.org. Cuba became the first country in the world to be recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO) for officially eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis on June 30. “This is a major victory in our long fight against HIV and sexually transmitted infections, and an important step towards having an AIDS-free generation” said Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General.
The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) is held its primaries on June 28. Photo: TeleSUR. The latest study from polling firm Hinterlaces shows that 62% of Venezuelans want the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) to stay in government.

The statement below was released by Gabi Zimmer, president of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) bloc in the European parliament. The GUE/NGL unites representatives from left wing and socialist parties elected to the European parliament, including Greece's governing Syriza party.

An alliance of business, welfare and environmental groups and trade unions has formed to produce a joint set of goals and principles on climate policy. The Australian Climate Roundtable announced its formation on June 29. The group formed to try to reset the highly politicised and entrenched debate in Australia on climate change. It aims to demonstrate to politicians and the broader community that there is more that unites the business, environment, union and social groups than divides when it comes to wanting action on climate change.

Across Africa, western Asia and Latin America in the 1980s, the growth of per capita GDP was brought to a halt. This was not a recession, it was a severe depression. And its cause was reckless lending by banks in the ’70s.

“When I graduated from high school - Catholic high school - in 1983, I didn't even think that this would ever be on the map,” said Jeff Mead, now a middle school teacher from San Francisco. The “map” that Mead was referring to took on a drastically new appearance on June 26 when the US Supreme Court announced its five-four decision to strike down state laws banning same-sex marriage. This effectively legalised such marriages across the US.

The Jubilee Debt Campaign (JDC) released figures in April showing the International Monetary Fund had made €2.5 billion of profit out of its loans to Greece since 2010. With Greece missing its June 30, deadline for a €1.6 billion payment to the IMF, the figure fell to €900 billion. But JDC said if Greece repays the IMF in full, the figure will rise to €4.3 billion by 2024.
"Another bloody bogan. Shows she can't manage her money", the Coles cashier said as Sally left the store. It was Sally's first time using the Basics Card, and things were not off to a good start.