Secretary of State Marco Rubio pledges "immediate humanitarian aid" to Cuba as State Department responds to effects of Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean.

The United States is prepared to offer immediate humanitarian aid to people of Cuba who were affected by Hurricane Melissa, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday. The department has issued a declaration for humanitarian assistance for Cuba,

Hurricane Melissa is slamming eastern Cuba on Wednesday morning, Oct. 29, after hammering Jamaica on Tuesday and causing widespread damage.

Hurricane Melissa brought hurricane-force gusts to Bermuda overnight and will weaken as it heads north, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Maps show its forecast path.

The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly called for an end to a U.S. economic embargo on Cuba despite lobbying by Washington that included sharing an accusation that up to 5,000 Cubans are fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the State Department had issued a formal Declaration of Humanitarian Assistance for Cuba, where U.S. government aid is rare.

The U.N. General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly to condemn the U.S. economic embargo of Cuba for a 33rd year.

Cuba worked on Friday to rescue residents still stranded by unprecedented floodwaters in the wake of Hurricane Melissa, including a flooded river that had cut off one of the country's most important east-west thoroughfares.