▲ Cuban workers raise the flag at half-mast in front of the United States embassy in Havana, in tribute to their fallen compatriots.Photo Ap
Ap and Sputnik
La Jornada Newspaper
Tuesday, January 6, 2026, p. 6
Havana., Cuba lowered its flags to half-mast yesterday to pay tribute to 32 of its officers who fell in the US attack on Venezuela, in which President Nicolás Maduro was kidnapped, while questions arose about the impact that the events in its South American ally will have on the island.
The authorities of the Caribbean nation confirmed the list of deceased and informed their relatives, but did not release their names or the positions they held.
The relatives received condolences from Raúl Castro, former president and leader of the revolution, and from President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who described the US military operation as “state terrorism.”
During the meeting of the UN Security Council, the permanent representative of Cuba, Ernesto Soberón, pointed out that “in the criminal attack perpetrated by the United States, 32 Cubans lost their lives in combative actions, who were carrying out missions on behalf of the revolutionary armed forces and the Ministry of the Interior, at the request of counterpart bodies of that country.
“Our compatriots carried out their duty with dignity and fell, after fierce resistance, in direct combat against the attackers or as a result of the bombing of the facilities,” he stressed.
As great political allies in the region, Cuba and Venezuela have close collaboration in all areas of security, but there is no official information about binational agreements.
Ending their cooperation could have consequences for Havana, which faces a severe economic and energy crisis, according to some experts.
Cuba had a 15 percent drop in its gross domestic product in the last six years, largely due to the blockade that the United States has maintained for more than 60 years, and as a result of the crisis produced by the global paralysis after the covid-19 pandemic.
