Raúl Castro Celebrates 95th Birthday in Havana After U.S. Indictment Over 1996 Airliner Downing

Raúl Castro marked his 95th birthday with a public celebration in Havana at the Ministry of Interior, appearing in public for the first time since the United States indicted him over the 1996 downing of two civilian airliners off the coast of Cuba.

“The five-time Olympic champion Mijaín López dedicated his sports legacy to Raúl Castro during the ceremony for his 95th birthday at the Karl Marx Theater, which moved the Army General, according to official reports”

CiberCuba

The AP reported that Castro’s late Friday tribute with top officials and military leaders was filmed in official video and showed him in an olive-green military uniform entering a packed theater to a standing ovation, followed by his grandson and bodyguard Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez and Cuban President Miguel Diáz-Canel.

CiberCuba

The vijesti.me account said the event came as President Donald Trump’s administration was ramping up pressure on the fuel-starved island, including after Trump’s administration “virtually cut off Cuba's oil supply in January.”

Both outlets tied the appearance to the May 20 U.S. indictment, with myMotherLode describing it as charging Castro for his alleged role in the 1996 downing of two civilian aircraft and vijesti.me saying the indictment accused him of alleged involvement in the shooting down of two civilian airliners that killed four people.

In Havana, Diáz-Canel used the occasion to frame the moment as defiance, praising Castro’s “heroism and dignity” and warning that “there will be a decisive and resolute battle” if the U.S. acts on its threats to invade the island.

Diáz-Canel echoed the slogan “Raúl is Raúl,” which the AP said had appeared in billboards across Havana and in social media posts since the May 20 U.S. indictment of Raúl Castro on murder charges.

In the same speech, the AP quoted Diáz-Canel warning that “there will be a decisive and resolute battle” if the U.S. acts on its threats to invade the island, while vijesti.me reported Diáz-Canel warned that a “decisive and firm fight” would follow if the US carried out its threats and occupied the island.

El Mundo

vijesti.me said the slogan “Raúl is Cuba, and Cuba is untouchable” was used as an attempt to mobilize national unity in response to the image of isolation.

The Sri Lanka Guardian described the tribute ceremony as taking place in Havana at the Karl Marx Theater and said it came amid heightened tensions after new sanctions announced by Washington targeting Miguel Díaz-Canel, members of his political family, and entities including the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution.

The Sri Lanka Guardian also reported that Díaz-Canel said Cuba had received only one fuel shipment in the first five months of the year out of approximately 40 requested, and characterized U.S. measures as “an act of genocide” due to their effects on living conditions.

The U.S. legal action described by the Sri Lanka Guardian said the Department of Justice filed charges on May 20 against Raúl Castro and five other Cuban military officials in connection with the 1996 incident involving the downing of two aircraft operated by Brothers to the Rescue.

“Raúl Castro reappeared yesterday, Friday, in Havana to celebrate his 95th birthday with a gorgeous gala at the Karl Marx Theatre, as reported by Granma, the official bulletin of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC)”

El Mundo

In the same account, the charges filed in the Southern District of Florida included murder, conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens, and destruction of an aircraft, while myMotherLode said the Justice Department’s indictment unsealed last month accuses Castro of ordering the 1996 shootdown of civilian planes flown by Miami-based exiles.

The Sri Lanka Guardian said the Cuban government rejected the U.S. indictment and related sanctions, portraying them as politically motivated actions linked to broader efforts to increase pressure on Havana.

El Mundo reported that Castro had remained in protective custody since mid-May when the United States charged him with four murders committed three decades ago, and said his disappearance from the public agenda was interpreted as a security measure following the American indictment.

El Mundo also reported that Díaz-Canel said “Raúl is Raúl and, like Fidel, is irreplaceable,” at an event that served to pay tribute to the men and women of the Ministry of the Interior, described as guarantors of sovereignty, public tranquility and state security.