Politics Media: USA wants to indict Cuba's former head of state Raúl Castro
According to media reports, the USA is taking steps to indict 94-year-old Cuban ex-president Raúl Castro. The possible indictment is to focus on the deadly shooting down of aircraft by an exiled Cuban organization by Cuba in 1996, the broadcaster CBS News reported, citing US officials.
15.05.2026, 07:47
SDA
The newspaper "USA Today" also linked a possible indictment to the 30-year-old case. It based this on two sources familiar with the matter.
Such an indictment would normally require the approval of a grand jury. In the USA, such a group of jurors can decide whether to bring charges in a case after evidence has been presented by the public prosecutor's office.
What happened 30 years ago
On 24 February 1996, the Cuban air force shot down two planes belonging to the exiled Cuban organization "Hermanos al Rescate" (Brothers to the Rescue), which was based in Miami at the time, during a flight off the Cuban coast. According to Havana, the Cessnas had entered Cuban airspace. However, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) came to the conclusion that they were over international waters. Three of the fatalities were US citizens. The Cuban exile organization ceased its work in 2003.
Some politicians in the USA are calling for Raúl Castro to be impeached
Florida's Republican governor Ron DeSantis suggested on Platform X that he would welcome an indictment against Cuba's former head of state Raúl Castro. He commented on the CBS News report with the words: "Step on it, it's been a long time coming!".
Several US media outlets had already reported in recent months on a letter from several members of Congress to the US government in which they are said to have called for Raúl Castro to be impeached. Their accusation: He would have ordered the downing as defense minister at the time.
What role Castro currently plays in Cuba
Raúl Castro relinquished the presidency in 2018 and the chairmanship of the Communist Party in 2021, since when he has no longer been active in day-to-day politics. However, as the younger brother of revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and one of the last representatives of the revolutionary generation, he is still held in high regard in Cuba. He is considered an important advisor to President Miguel Díaz-Canel and, as a former defense minister, is very well connected within the powerful military. He recently appeared at the May Day rally in front of the US embassy alongside his successor Díaz-Canel.
Trump administration increases pressure on Cuba
Relations between the two countries have been tense since the revolution in 1959, and this has worsened once again since Trump took office: in January 2025, he put the island state ruled by the Communist Party back on a US terror list. For months, his government has been increasing the pressure to push for economic and political change in Cuba in the interests of the USA.
