What happened
“One Battle After Another” has won best picture at the Academy Awards, confirming its status as the season’s dominant film after garnering many precursor prizes. The Paul Thomas Anderson epic, long considered the frontrunner, also earned best director for Anderson (pictured above) and the best supporting actor gong for Sean Penn.

Rival nominee “Sinners” didn’t leave empty-handed. Michael B. Jordan won best actor for his dual role as brothers Smoke and Stack, while Wunmi Mosaku claimed best supporting actress. Jessie Buckley continued her sweep for “Hamnet”, taking home the best actress statuette.

Who said what
In his acceptance speech, Anderson reflected on the strength of the competition: “In 1975 the Oscar nominees were ‘Barry Lyndon’, ‘Dog Day Afternoon’, ‘Jaws’, ‘Nashville’ and ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ … there is no best among them. We’re just happy to be part of this. So many great films this year.”

Jordan called his win “an incredible moment”, praising the team behind “Sinners”. Buckley thanked her co-stars and director for supporting her performance.

What next?
Industry analysts expect the best picture and director wins to cement “One Battle After Another” as the defining film of the year, boosting international interest and box office longevity.

What happened
Two young people have lost their lives to an outbreak of invasive meningitis in Canterbury, with several others having been admitted to hospital. One of those who died was a student at the University of Kent (pictured above). Health officials say another 11 people from the area are currently receiving hospital treatment and reported to be seriously ill. Most are believed to be aged between 18 and 21, and several are thought to be university students.

Public health authorities are contacting more than 30,000 students, staff and relatives to inform them about the situation. The illness, which affects the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, can become life-threatening if not treated quickly. Officials believe that the outbreak may be connected to a social gathering in Canterbury.

Who said what
A letter from the UK Health Security Agency to University of Kent students and staff, which was seen by the BBC, said people living and working in certain areas of the campus should receive antibiotics “without delay”.

The agency’s Trish Mannes said symptoms could be overlooked because they were “easily confused with other illnesses such as a bad cold, flu or even a hangover”.

What next?
Health officials are distributing precautionary antibiotics to close contacts while specialists investigate the exact strain responsible for the deadly outbreak.

Since 1959, Cuba’s so-called “white coat army” has been one of the Caribbean island nation’s most distinctive exports. Thousands of highly trained medical professionals have worked to fill gaps in overstretched health systems around the world, generating valuable income for Havana in the process, according to Al Jazeera.

But the long-standing scheme is now under strain as the US seeks to “starve Cuba of much-needed revenue”.

“For decades” the Cuban government has sent healthcare professionals to work overseas, said The New York Times. Host nations pay Havana directly, while the medics themselves only receive a “small fraction” of the fee. US officials argue that the programmes amount to a “coercive labour export scheme”, said the Financial Times.

Consequently, the US has expanded visa restrictions on those involved in medical missions. Last year it imposed travel restrictions on several officials from Brazil – “once a top destination” for Cuban doctors, but where numbers have now fallen rapidly amid increasing pressure from the US.

The use of Cuban doctors will draw to a close in Guyana, said the Associated Press, while “several other Caribbean countries” are also reviewing their programmes. Medical missions have also ended in staunch Cuban ally Venezuela, as well as Guatemala.

Cuban doctors have been “essential” in Calabria, one of the poorest regions in Italy, said Reuters. But, under duress from Washington, it has “scrapped plans” to hire 600 further doctors and is now scrambling to conduct a “global search for medical staff” in order to keep its hospitals running.