WASHINGTON DC: The United States has filed criminal charges against former Cuban leader Raúl Castro in connection with the 1996 downing of two aircraft over waters between Cuba and Florida.
The case, announced on Wednesday, accuses Castro and five other individuals of conspiring to kill US citizens and involvement in the destruction of planes operated by the Cuban-American organization Brothers to the Rescue. The incident resulted in the deaths of four people, including three American citizens.
At the time of the incident, Castro, now 94, was serving as head of Cuba’s armed forces and faced widespread international criticism following the aircraft shootdown.
As Washington intensifies pressure on Cuba’s communist government, Miguel Díaz-Canel dismissed the charges as “a political manoeuvre” lacking legal basis.
Speaking at Freedom Tower in Miami, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the charges against Castro also include destruction of aircraft and four separate murder counts linked to the deaths of Armando Alejandre Jr., Carlos Alberto Costa, Mario Manuel de la Peña, and Pablo Morales.
“The United States, and President Trump, does not, and will not, forget its citizens,” Blanche said while announcing the case.
The charges are expected to be pursued in a US court, with some offences carrying potential life sentences. The murder charges each carry a maximum punishment of either the death penalty or life imprisonment.
The new legal action by the US Department of Justice targets one of the most prominent figures of Cuba’s communist leadership at a time when the island nation is under growing US pressure to introduce major political and economic reforms to its one-party system.
(Inputs from BBC)
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