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The United States government is set to prosecute Raúl Modesto Castro Ruz, 94, the President of Cuba between 2008 and 2018, and brother of the late Fidel Castro.
Also charged are Lorenzo Alberto Perez‑Perez, Emilio José Palacio Blanco, José Fidel Gual Barzaga, Raul Simanca Cardenas, and Luis Raul Gonzalez‑Pardo Rodriguez
In the indictment the Department of Justice announced Wednesday, the defendants face counts relating to the 1996 shootdown of two unarmed U.S. civilian aircraft over international waters.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said America remains dedicated to holding those accountable for the murders of Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña, and Pablo Morales.
Blanche noted that for the first time in nearly 70 years, senior leadership of the Cuban regime has been charged in the U.S. for alleged acts of violence resulting in the deaths of citizens.
The Acting AG reaffirmed the commitment of President Donald Trump and the DoJ to restore “a simple principle,” declaring: “If you kill Americans, we will pursue you. No matter who you are.”
The targeted aircraft were operated by Brothers to the Rescue (BTTR), a Miami-based organization that conducted humanitarian flights across the Florida Straits to assist Cuban migrants.
According to the allegations, Cuban intelligence agents infiltrated the BTTR in the early 1990s and relayed detailed information about its operations to the Cuban government.
On February 24 1996, as three BTTR aircraft flew from South Florida toward Cuba, military fighter jets under Raúl Castro’s command fired air‑to‑air missiles at two civilian Cessna aircraft.
If convicted, the defendants face the death penalty or life imprisonment for the killing of U.S. nationals. Castro and Perez-Perez face up to five years in prison for the destruction of aircraft.
The United States has sanctioned three leaders of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group whose members have committed genocide in Sudan.
The trio of Elfateh Abdullah Idris Adam, Gedo Hamdan Ahmed Mohamed, and Tijani Ibrahim Moussa Mohamed hold self-titled ranks of Brigadier General and Field Commander.
Elfateh Abdullah Idris Adam, who brazenly filmed his atrocities, including executing civilians in El Fasher, was designated under Section 7031(c) for gross violations of human rights.
The RSF has perpetrated well-documented barbarity in Sudan since April 2023, after a power struggle within the government that seized power following the 2021 coup.
The U.S. said the RSF and allied militias engaged in killings, torture, and sexual violence in El Fasher during the months-long siege and capture in October 2025, targeting civilians based on their ethnicity and tribe.
Read Also: US Deports African Migrants To Cameroon After ICE Crackdown
The RSF also prevented food and other humanitarian assistance from entering the city, leading to famine and disease, a State Department readout notes.
America said it seeks a lasting peace in Sudan and an end to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, urging “the belligerents” to accept the U.S.-brokered humanitarian truce without preconditions.
Last November, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. was aware that multiple players were involved in the Sudanese crisis, and vowed that the Trump Administration would go after them.
The RSF attacks in late October 2025 left more than 400 dead, according to the World Health Organization. The victims included patients and companions at the Saudi Maternity Hospital in El Fasher.
The United Kingdom announced measures against four RSF leaders in December 2025. The European Union took a similar action in January 2026, sanctioning both RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) actors.
Eight migrants from Senegal, Sierra Leone and Ethiopia arrived in Cameroon on Wednesday after being expelled from the United States.
Cameroon is the latest of several African countries to receive foreigners expelled under US President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, after Ghana, Eswatini, Rwanda, Equatorial Guinea and South Sudan.
Five men and three women arrived in Cameroon and were being held by the authorities in the capital Yaounde, said Alma David, a US immigration lawyer, and Joseph Fru Awah, a Cameroonian lawyer familiar with the case.
