Carmel Crimmins

The US cut off oil exports from the country's ally Venezuela after President Trump's administration declared Cuba an unusual and extraordinary threat to national security.

To save fuel, the government has started cutting back school hours in some areas, shifting students to half-day schedules or reducing the number of days they're in class each week.

And for families at schools like the Adalberto Gómez Núñez Primary in Havana, even the simplest routines are being reshaped.

She wakes up between 3.30 and 4.30am to prepare for the day before electricity cuts out.

Getting her daughter to school now involves long walks and she worries about safety.

the school's principal, Víctor Suárez, says the school is trying to keep teaching quality intact, despite the situation.

For many parents, like Daniela El Vargas, the hardest part comes after the school day.

She says transportation is severely affected and once children return home, inconsistent power makes it hard to get homework done or even finish basic chores.

The Cuban government has detailed a wide-ranging plan to ration fuel and protect essential services.

Political figures from around the world are set to be ridiculed today at Rose Monday in Germany's traditionally provocative and satirical carnival.

Some floats feature caricatures of President Trump, who joins plenty of domestic figures being lampooned, including Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz in a sinking boat.

Last year's carnival celebrations were overshadowed in Germany by a deadly car-ramming, but Michael Bonwitz, spokesman for the Mainz Carnival Association, says they hope for an exuberant but peaceful day.

And for today's recommended read, we head to outer space.

Astronomers have observed a planetary system that challenges current planet formation theories, with a rocky planet observed beyond the orbits of its gaseous neighbours, unlike anything seen before, and leading scientists to call it an inside-out planetary system.

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We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.

Hi, I'm Carmel Crimmins in Dublin.

It's Wednesday, February 11th.