Cuba news stories on Newser

Cuba's Celebrated Internet Cable MIA

Tue, 22 May 2012 06:41:36 CDT

It was all sunshine, smiles, and celebratory speeches as officials marked the arrival of an undersea fiber-optic cable they promised would end Cuba's Internet isolation and boost web capacity 3,000-fold. Even a retired Fidel Castro hailed the dawn of a new cyber-age. But more than a year after the...

Marlins Manager's 'Love' for Castro Prompts Boycott

Matt Cantor — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:58:53 CDT

A Cuban-American group is fuming after the Miami Marlins' manager spoke ever so highly about Cuba's former president. "I love Fidel Castro," Ozzie Guillen told Time . "I respect Fidel Castro. You know why? A lot of people have wanted to kill Fidel Castro for the last 60 years, but that...

In Nod to Pope, Cuba Gets a Holiday

Mark Russell — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 07:09:54 CDT

It looks like Pope Benedict's visit to Cuba brought about at least one good thing for the Cuban people—a new holiday. On April 6, Cuba will celebrate its first Good Friday since the communist takeover in 1959, reports CNN . It's not the first time a pope has brought a...

Fidel Castro Meets Pope

John Johnson — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:50:19 CDT

Pope Benedict delivered a relatively blunt message during his homily in Havana today—"Cuba and the world needs change"—but that didn't prevent a subsequent half-hour meeting with Fidel Castro, reports NBC News . It's not Castro's first with a pontiff: He met John Paul II in 1998, a trip during...

Pope Quietly Lands in Cuba

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 14:50:12 CDT

Pope Benedict XVI followed in the footsteps of his predecessor's groundbreaking trip to Cuba today, hoping to renew the faith in Latin America's least Catholic country. Cuban President Raul Castro came to the airport in the eastern city of Santiago to welcome Benedict, just days after the pope declared the...

Castro Knew JFK Would Be Killed Nov. 22, 1963

Neal Colgrass — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 17:04:25 CDT

Another factoid for JFK conspiracy theorists: Cuban leader Fidel Castro apparently knew President Kennedy would be assassinated and even told spies to listen carefully to radio chatter coming from Texas on November 22, 1963, the Miami Herald reports. In a new book, former CIA analyst Brian Latell draws on Cuban...

Chavez: My Tumor Was Malignant

Matt Cantor — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 06:10:34 CST

The tumor that Hugo Chavez recently had removed from his pelvic area was a recurrence of cancer, he says. The disease didn't spread beyond the tumor, which "was totally extracted" during his procedure in Cuba, the Venezuelan president told viewers in a televised message yesterday. He added that he'll receive...

Syrian Opposition Forms Military Bureau

Kevin Spak — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 07:20:00 CST

Syria's main political opposition group today announced that it was forming a "military bureau" to unify and coordinate the Free Syrian army and other armed opposition groups opposing Bashar al-Assad. Speaking in Paris, the Syrian National Council's leader said they had originally hoped for a nonviolent revolt, but now felt...

Eldest Castro Sister Dies

Rob Quinn — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 01:25:00 CST

Angela Castro, the eldest of the seven Castro siblings that include Cuban leaders Fidel and Raul, has died in Havana at the age of 88, according to her sister Juanita, who lives in exile in Miami. Angela, who lived her life out of the public eye, is the first of...