The US Department of Justice has announced an indictment charging former Cuban President Raúl Castro in connection with the 1996 shootdown of two civilian aircraft that killed four members of the Miami-based humanitarian group Brothers to the Rescue.
The federal indictment, filed in Miami, alleges one count of conspiracy to kill US nationals, four counts of murder and two counts of destruction of aircraft, according to court records.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel strongly rejected the move, calling the indictment a “political maneuver” without legal basis and accusing Washington of distorting the events of the 1996 incident.
Raúl Castro, brother of the late Fidel Castro, was Cuba’s top leader when tensions culminated in that episode. He later presided over a détente with the United States during the 2015 thaw initiated under President Barack Obama; that rapprochement was rolled back by President Donald Trump in 2017.
President Trump described the indictment as a “very big moment,” saying it would help “free up Cuba,” while also saying he did not expect an escalation in the island’s situation. Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche said the charges show the United States “does not and will not forget its citizens,” and that nations must be held accountable if they target Americans.
Senator Marco Rubio, speaking directly to Cubans in a Spanish-language message, said the island faces a choice and urged support for a “new path” that would allow people to vote and remove officials who fail to serve them. Rubio accused Cuba’s communist leadership and the military-linked conglomerate Gaesa of corruption that enriches elites while ordinary people endure hardship, including widespread power outages.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez dismissed Rubio’s remarks as “superficial and misinformed.” President Díaz-Canel has also urged the US to lift what he called a de facto fuel blockade, blaming US sanctions and restrictions for contributing to the country’s energy crisis.
Relations between Washington and Havana have long been strained by a US trade embargo and more recent measures taken by the Trump administration, including restrictions on fuel shipments. Tensions have also grown amid reports that Cuba has purchased large numbers of drones from Russia and Iran.
The indictment marks a dramatic escalation in legal action by the United States against a former foreign head of state for alleged acts tied to the deaths of US citizens. The case is now pending in federal court in Miami.
Edited by: Wesley Dockery