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NEWS ABOUT: Fidel Castro

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Waterboarding, Paris Hilton Liked More Than Congress

Just 10% approve of work on Hill, according to latest Gallup poll

(Newser) - A Gallup poll released Wednesday finds that Americans' approval of Congress has hit yet another record low: 10%. There aren't many institutions Americans have liked less over the last 50-or-so years, according to Gallup: Only Fidel Castro, Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden, and OJ Simpson detective Mark Fuhrman have... More »

Fidel Emerges to Promote New Memoir

Castro, the former Cuban leader, talks up 1,000-page tome

(AP) - Fidel Castro spent six hours presenting a two-volume memoir to an audience at a Havana convention center, state media said today. It was a rare appearance for the retired and increasingly reclusive former Cuban leader. Images on state television showed a smiling, animated Castro wearing a dark track suit over... More »

Fidel Castro Accuses US of Genocide in Libya

Former Cuban leader calls Obama's UN speech 'gibberish'

(Newser) - One person who is not a fan of the US intervention in Libya: Fidel Castro. The former Cuban leader spoke out against President Obama's address to the UN in an opinion column published on a Cuban government website today, calling it "gibberish" and referring to NATO’s actions... More »

Transsexual Woman, Gay Man Marry in Cuba

Ceremony called a milestone, although gay marriage still illegal

(Newser) - Less than a year after Fidel Castro apologized for Cuba's history of gay persecution, Cuba has had its first gay marriage ... kind of. Gay marriage remains illegal in Cuba, but yesterday saw the wedding of a gay man and transsexual woman, reports the AP —the bride, Wendy Iriepa,... More »

Quietly, Fidel Castro Turns 85

Cuban leader still a quiet force on island nation

(AP) - Fidel Castro marked his 85th birthday outside of the public spotlight today, with little fanfare around the aging revolutionary icon who is rarely seen in public these days but still casts a long shadow over Cuban society. There were no announced celebrations of Castro's birthday, though the previous night... More »

Autopsy: Chilean Leader Allende Died of Suicide

New findings put to rest 37-year debate

(Newser) - After 37 years, a new autopsy has confirmed that former Chilean president Salvador Allende killed himself with an assault rifle, and was not murdered by troops storming the presidential palace as leftists like Fidel Castro claimed. Forensic analysis showed that his head injuries were inflicted by a single AK-47 and... More »

Still Kicking: Chavez, Castro on Cuban TV

Chavez looks healthy in new video and pictures

(Newser) - Rumors of Hugo Chavez's pending death have been greatly exaggerated—or at least somewhat exaggerated—as new video aired on Cuban television yesterday shows a healthy looking Chavez talking with Fidel Castro, reports the BBC . Reports have swirled that the Venezuelan president is in critical condition in a Cuban... More »

Cuba Publishes Che's Battle Diaries

New book gives revolutionary's account of fighting with Castro's men

(Newser) - Che Guevera has a new book out, 44 years after his death. Dairy of a Combatant, released in Cuba yesterday on what would have been the Marxist revolutionary's 83rd birthday, recounts Guevara's experiences in the armed struggle he waged alongside Fidel Castro, reports CNN . The book covers the... More »

Cuban Reforms May Endanger Classic US Cars

People might be able to buy modern ones for the first time

(Newser) - Cuba is making moves to give citizens more economic freedom, specifically the right to buy and sell homes and cars for the first time. CNN takes note and wonders what that might mean for all those classic Buicks, Plymouths, and Pontiacs cruising the nation's roads. They still exist because... More »

Jimmy Carter Lands in Cuba

He may push for release of American prisoner

(Newser) - In a bid to thaw tense US-Cuba relations, former President Jimmy Carter arrived in Cuba today for a three-day stay. Carter was invited by the Cuban government and will meet with President Raul Castro; the Carter Center calls the trip a "private, nongovernmental mission." But Politico notes that... More »

Castro: I Actually Quit in 2006

Hasn't been head of Communist Party, or held any official position, since then

(Newser) - Fidel Castro is not the head of the ruling Communist Party. In fact, he hasn't been party leader—or held any official positions—since 2006, he said in a column published today. After having surgery for intestinal bleeding that year, Castro issued a statement saying he was temporarily ceding power... More »

Che's Pal on Epic '52 Motorcycle Trip Dies

Alberto Granado lived out his days teaching in Cuba

(Newser) - Alberto Granado, the man whose motorcycle adventures with Che Guevara would ultimately alter the course of Latin America, has died today in Cuba at the age of 88. The epic journey undertaken in 1952 by the two Argentine med students formed the political convictions that turned Guevara into an icon,... More »

US: Terrorists Could Steal Bio-Weapons From Indian Labs

Latest cables released by WikiLeaks also discuss Cuba

(Newser) - Today in WikiLeaks revelations: US officials fear terrorists could steal biological weapons including “bacteria, parasites, viruses, or toxins” from Indian laboratories with weak security, according to US diplomatic cables published today in the Guardian , the AP reports. One cable cites an expert explaining that security at most academic research... More »

Cuba's 500K Layoffs a Sharp Capitalist Turn

Raul Castro's slow reforms hastened by crap economy

(Newser) - Cuba's announcement that it's looking to whack a half-million workers off the state payroll by March is a significant move toward capitalism, reports the Wall Street Journal. Bearing some 85% of the nation's 5.5 million workers on the government payroll, as well as a ravaged economy, the island nation... More »

Fidel: 'Cuban Model Doesn't Even Work For Us'

Castro suggests state has too big a role in the economy

(Newser) - Fidel Castro doesn't seem thrilled with the way his revolution is working out. Asked by Jeffrey Goldberg of the Atlantic whether the Cuban model should be exported, he came back with this remarkable reply: "The Cuban model doesn't even work for us anymore." Whaa? Goldberg gets help interpreting... More »

Fidel: 'No One Blames the Muslims for Anything'

He wants Iran to stop slandering Jews

(Newser) - Now that Fidel Castro is getting his groove back, he spoke with Jeffrey Goldberg of the Atlantic on his fears of a US-Iran war, Israel, and his regrets on the missile crisis. Some highlights:
  • "I don't think anyone has been slandered more than the Jews. I would say much
... More »

Fidel Sorry for 'Gay Injustice'

'I blame myself,' says aging leader

(Newser) - A contrite Fidel Castro has acknowledged Cuba's "great injustice" against gays and lesbians, who were sent to labor camps and prisons throughout the 1960s and '70s. "They were moments of great injustice, great injustice," Castro said in an interview with a Mexican newspaper. "If someone is... More »

Castro Addresses Parliament After 4-Year Absence

He appears to be in fine form after illness

(Newser) - Fidel Castro continued his gradual re-emergence into Cuban politics today by giving his first speech to parliament in 4 years. It "was a solid, polished performance, Mr Castro's voice stronger than at any point since he re-emerged into public life," observes the BBC . In the speech—it lasted... More »

Surprisingly Spry Fidel Appears on Cuban TV

Former leader looks healthy, blasts US

(Newser) - Fidel Castro is back, and looking pretty spry for an 83-year-old. A relaxed, healthy-looking Castro appeared for an extended hour and 15-minute conversation on Cuba’s Mesa Redonda (“Round Table”) nightly talk show yesterday. He spent much of the time reading essays by other people, or having his... More »

Castro Makes Rare Public Appearance

Cuban leader 'thin' but 'looks good'

(AP) - New photographs of a smiling, tracksuit-clad Fidel Castro greeting workers at a scientific think tank were posted on the blogs of two Cuban journalists and a media website yesterday, offering a rare glimpse of the reclusive revolutionary leader in a public forum. Castro, 83, appears slightly stooped but otherwise healthy... More »

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