World News 4-9: Netanyahu Says He’s Close to ‘Toppling Iran’; Cuba is opening its doors more to private companies.

Iran claims that its oil exports have never stopped, not even for an hour.

On September 3, Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad told the Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) that the country’s oil industry continues to defy the blockade imposed by US forces.

“We are implementing various strategies and measures to overcome the lockdown,” Paknejad said.

Iran’s oil minister acknowledged that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports and ships has created a “difficult situation” but that Iranian leaders have found solutions to overcome it.

He added: “Even in the face of intense shelling, our colleagues continued to load oil onto oil tankers. The country’s crude oil exports did not stop, even for an hour.”

In Indonesia, more than 1,700 people got sick after eating lunch at school.

On September 3, an Indonesian school principal said an additional 777 students and teachers in Indonesia’s Central Java province contracted food poisoning after eating free food provided by the government, bringing the total number of people sickened by the program to more than 1,700 in just three days.

Specifically, 752 students and 25 teachers suffered from diarrhea and vomiting after eating free meals at a high school in Lasem, Central Java.

About 950 Indonesians fell ill with food poisoning linked to the program in separate incidents in three different locations this week, a health official said, Reuters reported.

This multi-billion dollar nutrition program, which started in January 2025, is one of the main policies of President Prabowo Subianto.

The program aims to provide free meals to at least 82.9 million children, pregnant women and nursing mothers, equivalent to about a third of Indonesia’s population.

Cuba is making further reforms under pressure from the United States.

On September 3, Cuba announced regulations aimed at attracting foreign investment, trade and tourism to the Caribbean.

The move comes as Cuba continues to push for free market reforms under pressure from Washington and faces a severe economic crisis.

Havana has published 34 pages of new regulations and revised laws aimed at making the island’s white sand beaches, human resources and real estate more accessible to local and foreign investors, according to Cuba’s official gazette.

Cuban Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Trade Oscar Perez Oliva Fraga admitted that it is a difficult period to attract foreign investment with unfavorable conditions.

But he noted that these regulations will help chart a new path.

“The government is working to increase flexibility, simplify operations, reduce time and laborious procedures, and above all, meet the demands of investors to facilitate their business operations in Cuba,” said Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga.

Zelensky blamed Russia for the attack on the Coca-Cola factory on the outskirts of Kiev.

On September 3, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Russian drones had attacked and damaged a Coca-Cola factory on the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

“Today, the Russian side used drones to attack the Coca-Cola factory. It turns out that Coca-Cola is such a strong competitor that Shahid’s drones should have been used for the attack,” he said in a video speech.

According to the leader of Ukraine, this is “a clear signal from Russia to the United States. The Russian side should not know that this is an American facility.”

Andy Hender, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine (Amcham), said that no factory workers were injured in the attack, which is believed to have been carried out by Moscow, adding that Coca-Cola is cooperating with the relevant authorities to assess the situation.

Russia has not yet commented on the incident.

A new academic year begins in Cuba.