US indicts former Cuban president Raul Castro (94) on murder charges

Raul Castro has been indicted in the United States on charges including conspiracy to kill US nationals, murder, and destruction of aircraft. The indictment was returned in federal court in Miami on April 23 and names five other defendants. The charges relate to a 1996 incident in which Cuban jets shot down planes operated by a group of Cuban exiles. US acting attorney general Todd Blanche said the United States will not forget its citizens. Cuba’s foreign ministry did not immediately comment. There is no evidence Castro has left Cuba or that the government would allow extradition. The indictment comes amid increased US pressure and calls for regime change, with Trump describing Cuba as a rogue state and asserting broader efforts to expand US influence. Cuba’s president said the island does not pose a threat.

"The indictment, returned in federal court in Miami on April 23, charges Mr Castro with one count of conspiracy to kill US nationals, four of murder and two of destruction of aircraft. Five other people are named as defendants in the case. The charges stemmed from a 1996 incident in which Cuban jets shot down planes operated by a group of Cuban exiles, US acting attorney general Todd Blanche said at an event in Miami to honour victims of the incident."

"“My message today is clear: the United States and President Trump does not and will not forget its citizens,” Mr Blanche said to applause from government officials and Cuban Americans in a packed auditorium. Cuba's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mr Castro (94) last appeared in public in Cuba earlier this month, and there is no evidence that he has since left the island or that the government would allow him to be extradited."

"In a statement on Wednesday, Mr Trump called Cuba a “rogue state harbouring hostile foreign military” and framed his administration's actions regarding the Caribbean island as part of a broader effort to expand US influence in the western hemisphere. “From the shores of Havana to the banks of the Panama Canal, we will drive out the forces of lawlessness and crime and foreign encroachment,” Mr Trump said at a Coast Guard Academy event in New London, Connecticut. Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Monday that the island does not represent a threat."

Read at Irish Independent