The United States has officially indicted former Cuban president and ex-defence minister Raul Castro over the 1996 downing of two civilian aircraft operated by Miami-based exile group Brothers to the Rescue, reviving one of the most contentious episodes in US-Cuba relations at a time of mounting American pressure on Havana’s socialist government.
The indictment announced by the US Department of Justice on Wednesday also charges five former Cuban fighter pilots accused of participating in the operation that killed four men, including three US citizens, after the planes were shot down near Cuba on February 24, 1996.
The case comes as the administration of US President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on Cuba amid worsening fuel shortages, economic collapse and renewed calls for political change on the island after nearly seven decades of communist rule.
Who is Raul Castro?
Raul Castro, now 94, is the younger brother of late Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and one of the principal architects of modern communist Cuba.
He joined Fidel Castro’s movement against US-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista in the 1950s and took part in the famous assault on the Moncada Barracks on July 26, 1953 — a defining moment in the Cuban Revolution and the birth of the M-26-7 guerrilla movement.
By 1958, Raul Castro had risen to the rank of comandante and led the Second Eastern Front, eventually helping revolutionary forces liberate large parts of eastern Cuba before marching toward Havana.
He first gained major attention in Washington after kidnapping around 50 US Marines in 1958 in an effort to stop aerial bombardments targeting his troops and nearby civilians.
Following the 1959 revolution, Castro became Cuba’s defence minister and remained the dominant figure in the island’s military apparatus for decades.
He played a central role during the failed 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, when CIA-backed Cuban exiles attempted to overthrow Fidel Castro’s government. Cuban forces under Raul Castro helped secure a major victory against the invasion.
Castro later rose through the Communist Party hierarchy, serving as vice president from 1976 before formally succeeding Fidel Castro as president in 2008. He remained president until 2019 and continued as Communist Party chief until 2021.
Despite stepping away from formal office, he is still regarded as influential in Cuban politics.
What happened in 1996?
The indictment centres on the February 24, 1996 downing of two small civilian planes operated by Brothers to the Rescue, a Miami-based exile organisation formed during Cuba’s post-Cold War migration crisis.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Cuba lost its principal economic lifeline and plunged into what became known as the “Special Period” — an era marked by severe fuel shortages, food scarcity, blackouts, social unrest and mass migration.
Thousands of Cubans attempted dangerous sea crossings to Florida on makeshift boats, prompting US Coast Guard rescue operations.
Brothers to the Rescue initially conducted reconnaissance flights to identify stranded Cuban migrants at sea and alert US authorities. But the group later carried out provocative missions over Cuba, including flights into Cuban airspace and the dropping of anti-government leaflets intended to stir dissent.
Previously released records cited by historians William LeoGrande and Peter Kornbluh suggested US officials feared Cuba would eventually retaliate militarily against the flights, potentially sparking an international crisis.
On February 24, 1996, Cuban MiG fighter jets shot down two Brothers to the Rescue aircraft, killing all four people on board.
US prosecutors now allege Raul Castro authorised the use of deadly force.
What does the indictment allege?
The charges accuse Raul Castro and five former Cuban fighter pilots of conspiring to terrorise, intimidate and retaliate against Cuban dissidents and exile groups through the 1996 downing of Brothers to the Rescue aircraft.
According to the indictment, the Cuban Revolutionary Air and Air Defence Force carried out specialised training exercises around February 1996 to “find, track, pursue and intercept” aircraft linked to the exile organisation.
US prosecutors allege two fighter pilots shot down the civilian planes in international airspace, while three others pursued a third aircraft that escaped destruction.
One of the accused pilots later appeared on Cuban state television defending the operation, saying the planes ignored repeated warnings and continued approaching the Cuban coast.
“We tried to dissuade their crew members, but they continued to dangerously approach the Cuban coast, and then we received the order to interrupt the flight of the first aircraft,” he said at the time.
The indictment further alleges that Fidel and Raul Castro were the ultimate decision-makers behind the operation and had authorised the use of deadly force after Brothers to the Rescue aircraft dropped anti-government leaflets over Cuba earlier that year.
Castro and one of the pilots face additional charges including murder and destruction of aircraft.
The only accused currently in US custody
Among the accused pilots, Gonzalez-Pardo Rodriguez, 65, is the only person currently in US custody.
He was separately indicted in November for allegedly lying on US immigration forms by claiming he never received military training or served in a military unit.
Prosecutors said he had in fact served in Cuba’s Air Defence Force.
He pleaded guilty in February and is scheduled to be sentenced later this month.
Why is the US acting now?
The timing of the indictment is deeply tied to the current political and economic crisis in Cuba.
The island is once again grappling with crippling fuel shortages after disruptions to oil supplies from Venezuela, historically one of Cuba’s main energy backers following the Soviet Union’s collapse.
According to the report, new Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez came under pressure to halt oil shipments to Cuba, while other regional partners including Mexico also faced tariff threats from Washington.
Last week, Cuba declared it had effectively exhausted its fuel and diesel reserves.
Meanwhile, humanitarian conditions continue deteriorating. Amnesty International reported in 2025 that many Cubans were struggling to access adequate food and medicine.
The indictment also arrives amid increasingly aggressive rhetoric from Washington.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe recently met Cuban officials in what observers viewed as a possible signal of discussions around political transition.
Trump himself hinted at broader motives this week, saying many people had been “looking for this moment for 65 years”.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a Cuban-American, marked Cuba’s Independence Day with a message condemning the Cuban leadership and offering US support for a “better future” for the Cuban people.
More than a legal case
Analysts say the indictment is not only about justice for the four men killed in 1996.
It also reflects the enduring influence of Cuban-American politics in Florida, longstanding US hostility toward Cuba’s communist leadership and growing speculation over potential regime change in Havana.
For supporters of the indictment, the charges represent delayed accountability for an attack that killed American citizens.
For critics, the move is inseparable from Washington’s broader campaign to weaken one of its oldest geopolitical adversaries in the Western Hemisphere.