The Latest: Cuban says still no clue on envoy health mystery

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Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla of Cuba addresses the United Nations General Assembly, at U.N. headquarters, Friday, Sept. 22, 2017. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The Latest on the U.N. General Assembly (all times local):

1:25 p.m.

Cuba’s top diplomat says his country so far hasn’t unearthed any information about who or what caused a mysterious series of health incidents that have affected U.S. and Canadian diplomats in Havana.

Foreign Minister Eduardo Rodriguez Parrilla told the U.N. General Assembly on Friday that early results from its investigation have to date “found no evidence whatsoever that could confirm the causes or the origin” of the problems.

At least 21 Americans and several Canadians in Havana’s diplomatic community have suffered from symptoms believed to have come from some sort of sonic attack. The symptoms include hearing loss and brain damage.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has described the incidents as “health attacks.”

Cuba has denied any involvement or knowledge of them. Rodriguez reiterated that denial Friday.

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12:39 p.m.

The U.N. humanitarian chief says the World Food Program delivered emergency food to a record 7 million people across conflict-wracked Yemen in August, “helping to avert potential famine.”

Mark Lowcock told a high-level event on Yemen on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly’s ministerial meeting Friday that this represents a 60 percent increase from the average of 4.4 million people who received food assistance in the first six months of the year.

He said the increase was partially a result of much higher imports in July. He urged all countries “to do everything they can to sustain this trend,” especially by ensuring ship clearances and smooth operations at the port of Hodeida.

Despite the delivery, Lowcock said Yemen “is facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with nearly 21 million people in need of emergency aid or protection,” most of them children.

He said the threat of famine still looms.

Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said Yemen also faces the world’s largest cholera outbreak since numbers have been recorded, with 700,000 suspected cases reported as of Friday.

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11:25 a.m.

Bhutan’s leader has punctuated his U.N. General Assembly speech with moments of silence to honor people afflicted by hurricanes, poverty and terrorism.

Prime Minister Lyonchoen Tshering Tobgay paused for three periods of silence during his speech Friday. He also discussed the international challenges of curbing global warming, reducing poverty and fighting terrorism.

He noted that his tiny, heavily forested Himalayan nation is a rare country that absorbs more of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide than it emits.

Tobgay also said Bhutan has reduced acute poverty by half and aims to cut it significantly more in the next five years.

Bhutan is known for measuring “gross national happiness,” instead of traditional indicators of prosperity such as gross domestic product.