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Fidel Castro

The latest stories on Fidel Castro, Cuban revolutionary, politician and former President of Cuba, including Cuba news and updates.

Born

13 Aug 1926

Industry

Politics

Job Title

Politician

A view of Havana as tensions between Cuba and the United States continue to escalate. Photo: AP

China-Latin America relations

China and Cuba hold agriculture talks as Beijing backs Havana amid US pressure

Chinese support includes rice shipments and diplomatic backing as Trump administration ramps up sanctions and rhetoric.

1 hour agovideocam

China-Latin America relations

US casts Cuba as China-linked security threat while still pushing for talks

22 May 2026 - 5:28AMvideocam

China-Latin America relations

China slams US over Castro charges and ‘unauthorised’ sanctions on Cuba

21 May 2026 - 8:44PMvideocam

China-Latin America relations

US charges Raul Castro as Trump administration ratchets up pressure on Cuba

Historic murder charges against 94-year-old former leader mark the first time Washington has criminally pursued a Castro brother.

21 May 2026 - 12:55PMvideocam

Former Cuban president Raul Castro attends a May Day rally in Havana, Cuba, on May 1. Photo: Reuters

China-Latin America relations

US plans to charge Raul Castro increases Trump administration’s pressure on Cuba

US Justice Department preparing to indict ageing Cuban leader on Wednesday over the shooting down of two aircraft three decades ago.

20 May 2026 - 4:03AMvideocam

US-Cuba relations

Cuba warns of ‘bloodbath’ if US attacks as Washington expands sanctions

Cuba’s president defends right to self-defence as US report claims the island has acquired more than 300 military drones.

19 May 2026 - 5:03PM

United States

Trump expands Cuba sanctions with global reach, targeting foreign banks and firms

New executive order allows US to penalise third-country actors, raising risks for international companies.

2 May 2026 - 4:25AMvideocam

Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel (centre, in red hat) marches in a May Day parade in Havana, Cuba, on Friday. Photo: pool via Reuters

Americas and the Caribbean

Cuba confirms rare Havana talks with US officials

A senior diplomat describes ‘professional’ meetings as Havana seeks an end to the US oil blockade.

21 Apr 2026 - 12:14PM

Cuba

Cuba’s president says island does not wish for US aggression, but ready to fight

Cuba has been bracing for a possible attack following repeated warnings from Trump after he toppled Venezuela’s leader.

17 Apr 2026 - 11:35AM

Cuba

A new cast of Castros is emerging in Cuba, where the name holds sway

Younger Castros emerge as key figures on the communist-run island - including a bar-owning influencer.

7 Apr 2026 - 1:44PM

Cuba

Fidel Castro’s grandson backs capitalism and Trump deal, slams Cuba leader

Sandro Castro said most ‘Cubans want to be capitalist, not communist’ amid worsening power outages and an economic crisis.

1 Apr 2026 - 2:34PMvideocam

Sandro Castro Arteaga. Photo: Instagram/sandro_castrox

Americas and the Caribbean

Cuba rejects ‘shameless’ US request for diesel amid Trump oil blockade

The US embassy in Havana is seeking fuel for its generators even as the rest of the island is plagued by shortages and power outages.

22 Mar 2026 - 7:39AMvideocam

Horoscopes

What’s your luck like in February 2026, the Metal Tiger month?

A good start to the Lunar New Year for the Rat, Ox, Rabbit, Rooster, Dog and Pig – but challenges are in store for the Dragon, Horse, Goat and Monkey.

10 Feb 2026 - 2:00PM

Americas and the Caribbean

US pledges food aid for Cuba while putting squeeze on fuel supply

Havana signals a cautious readiness for talks as the island’s leader accuses the US of imposing an ‘energy blockade’.

6 Feb 2026 - 3:35PM

People sit on the seawall in Regla, Cuba, across the bay from Havana. Photo: AP

US-Venezuela conflict

Trump team praises US media for keeping its Venezuela raid plan secret

Marco Rubio says a ‘number of media outlets’ held leaks before the US intervention that snatched President Nicolas Maduro.

6 Jan 2026 - 6:16PMvideocam

US President Donald Trump watching the military operation from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Saturday. Photo: @realDonaldTrump via Reuters

United States

Explainer | US interventions in Latin America: a history of coups and conflicts

From the Bay of Pigs to Operation Condor to Venezuela in 2026: A look at the legacy of CIA-backed coups and US military action in Latin America.

3 Jan 2026 - 11:16PM

United States

Opinion | Don’t blame China for America’s authoritarian turn

America’s authoritarian turn didn’t start with Donald Trump and has been decades in the making.

19 Nov 2025 - 9:30AM

Marco Rubio

Who are US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s parents, Mario and Oriales Rubio?

Marco Rubio has been criticised for saying his parents fled Cuba when Fidel Castro came to power, even though they were granted permanent residency in the US several years before.

10 Apr 2025 - 7:00PM

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the State Department in Washington in January. Photo: Reuters

Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration

Marco Rubio wins unanimous US Senate approval to be secretary of state

Marco Rubio, who succeeds Antony Blinken, is known for his hawkish stance toward Latin American authoritarian states and China.

21 Jan 2025 - 12:09PMvideocam

Americas and the Caribbean

After hurricanes, 2 earthquakes jolt crisis-hit Cuba

Back-to-back earthquakes follow two hurricanes and two major blackouts in the last three weeks.

11 Nov 2024 - 3:05PM

France

Who is Jean-Luc Melenchon? French leftist leader defiant after victory

It did not take Jean-Luc Melenchon long to seize the moment after initial poll indications of the French legislative vote showed the leftist New Popular Front was headed to a shock victory.

8 Jul 2024 - 8:49AM

Hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon. Photo: AFP

US-China relations

Reports of Chinese spy base in Cuba met with shrugs in Latin America

Latin American nations are strengthening relations with China amid a belief that Washington’s focus turned to the Middle East and now the Indo-Pacific.

1 Jul 2023 - 1:46AM

Obituaries

Bolivian general who captured communist Che Guevara dies 84

Gary Prado Salmon was in charge of a patrol in southwestern Bolivia on October 8, 1967, that captured the Argentine revolutionary and Bolivia’s Congress declared him a national hero.

8 May 2023 - 12:58AM

Americas and the Caribbean

Cuban singer-songwriter Pablo Milanes dies at 79

The ‘Yolanda’ singer toured the world as a cultural ambassador for Fidel Castro’s revolution and helped found Cuba’s ‘nueva trova’ movement.

22 Nov 2022 - 2:39PMvideocam

Mexico

Mexico’s president: ‘No country should be excluded from Americas Summit’

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in his remarks in Cuba’s capital Havana, also said he would keep pushing for the US to lift its decades-old embargo against Cuba.

9 May 2022 - 3:19AMvideocam

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador at the Revolution Palace in Havana, Cuba on May 8. Photo: Reuters

United States

Joe Biden hits Cuba with more sanctions over its crackdown on protesters

The sanctions target government ministers who are deemed responsible for the repression of protesters demanding more freedom, food and health care.

23 Jul 2021 - 8:16PM

A demonstrator in solidarity with protests in Cuba outside the White House on July 18. Photo: Getty Images / TNS

US-Cuba relations

Raul Castro attends mass government rally in Havana, Cuba after protests

Thousands attended the rally in Havana on Saturday to denounce the US trade embargo and reaffirm their support for Cuba’s revolution.

18 Jul 2021 - 7:18PMvideocam

United States

End of the Castro era as Cuba welcomes first civilian leader, Miguel Diaz-Canel

Diaz-Canel said the outgoing leader, 89-year-old Raul Castro, would still be consulted on ‘strategic decisions’.

20 Apr 2021 - 7:45AMvideocam

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Fidel Castro

China and Cuba hold agriculture talks as Beijing backs Havana amid US pressure

Chinese support includes rice shipments and diplomatic backing as Trump administration ramps up sanctions and rhetoric.

US casts Cuba as China-linked security threat while still pushing for talks

China slams US over Castro charges and ‘unauthorised’ sanctions on Cuba

US charges Raul Castro as Trump administration ratchets up pressure on Cuba

Historic murder charges against 94-year-old former leader mark the first time Washington has criminally pursued a Castro brother.

US plans to charge Raul Castro increases Trump administration’s pressure on Cuba

US Justice Department preparing to indict ageing Cuban leader on Wednesday over the shooting down of two aircraft three decades ago.

Cuba warns of ‘bloodbath’ if US attacks as Washington expands sanctions

Cuba’s president defends right to self-defence as US report claims the island has acquired more than 300 military drones.

Trump expands Cuba sanctions with global reach, targeting foreign banks and firms

New executive order allows US to penalise third-country actors, raising risks for international companies.

Cuba confirms rare Havana talks with US officials

A senior diplomat describes ‘professional’ meetings as Havana seeks an end to the US oil blockade.

Cuba’s president says island does not wish for US aggression, but ready to fight

Cuba has been bracing for a possible attack following repeated warnings from Trump after he toppled Venezuela’s leader.

A new cast of Castros is emerging in Cuba, where the name holds sway

Younger Castros emerge as key figures on the communist-run island - including a bar-owning influencer.

Fidel Castro’s grandson backs capitalism and Trump deal, slams Cuba leader

Sandro Castro said most ‘Cubans want to be capitalist, not communist’ amid worsening power outages and an economic crisis.

Cuba rejects ‘shameless’ US request for diesel amid Trump oil blockade

The US embassy in Havana is seeking fuel for its generators even as the rest of the island is plagued by shortages and power outages.

What’s your luck like in February 2026, the Metal Tiger month?

A good start to the Lunar New Year for the Rat, Ox, Rabbit, Rooster, Dog and Pig – but challenges are in store for the Dragon, Horse, Goat and Monkey.

US pledges food aid for Cuba while putting squeeze on fuel supply

Havana signals a cautious readiness for talks as the island’s leader accuses the US of imposing an ‘energy blockade’.

Trump team praises US media for keeping its Venezuela raid plan secret

Marco Rubio says a ‘number of media outlets’ held leaks before the US intervention that snatched President Nicolas Maduro.

.css-1f6sr3w{color:#727272;}Explainer | US interventions in Latin America: a history of coups and conflicts

From the Bay of Pigs to Operation Condor to Venezuela in 2026: A look at the legacy of CIA-backed coups and US military action in Latin America.

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Opinion | Don’t blame China for America’s authoritarian turn

America’s authoritarian turn didn’t start with Donald Trump and has been decades in the making.

Who are US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s parents, Mario and Oriales Rubio?

Marco Rubio has been criticised for saying his parents fled Cuba when Fidel Castro came to power, even though they were granted permanent residency in the US several years before.

Marco Rubio wins unanimous US Senate approval to be secretary of state

Marco Rubio, who succeeds Antony Blinken, is known for his hawkish stance toward Latin American authoritarian states and China.

After hurricanes, 2 earthquakes jolt crisis-hit Cuba

Back-to-back earthquakes follow two hurricanes and two major blackouts in the last three weeks.

Who is Jean-Luc Melenchon? French leftist leader defiant after victory

It did not take Jean-Luc Melenchon long to seize the moment after initial poll indications of the French legislative vote showed the leftist New Popular Front was headed to a shock victory.

Reports of Chinese spy base in Cuba met with shrugs in Latin America

Latin American nations are strengthening relations with China amid a belief that Washington’s focus turned to the Middle East and now the Indo-Pacific.

Bolivian general who captured communist Che Guevara dies 84

Gary Prado Salmon was in charge of a patrol in southwestern Bolivia on October 8, 1967, that captured the Argentine revolutionary and Bolivia’s Congress declared him a national hero.

Cuban singer-songwriter Pablo Milanes dies at 79

The ‘Yolanda’ singer toured the world as a cultural ambassador for Fidel Castro’s revolution and helped found Cuba’s ‘nueva trova’ movement.

Mexico’s president: ‘No country should be excluded from Americas Summit’

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in his remarks in Cuba’s capital Havana, also said he would keep pushing for the US to lift its decades-old embargo against Cuba.

Joe Biden hits Cuba with more sanctions over its crackdown on protesters

The sanctions target government ministers who are deemed responsible for the repression of protesters demanding more freedom, food and health care.

Raul Castro attends mass government rally in Havana, Cuba after protests

Thousands attended the rally in Havana on Saturday to denounce the US trade embargo and reaffirm their support for Cuba’s revolution.

End of the Castro era as Cuba welcomes first civilian leader, Miguel Diaz-Canel

Diaz-Canel said the outgoing leader, 89-year-old Raul Castro, would still be consulted on ‘strategic decisions’.

Explainer | US interventions in Latin America: a history of coups and conflicts

Opinion | Don’t blame China for America’s authoritarian turn