Nov. 25, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Cuba’s former President Fidel Castro has died. According to BBC News and other sources, the announcement was made by state TV in Cuba. Castro was 90 years old. No other information about his death was available.
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was born Aug. 13, 1926, the son of a wealthy farmer. He studied law at University of Havana and, following an attempt to overthrow the regime of Cuban President Fulgencio Batista in 1953, for which he spent a year in prison, Castro formed a revolutionary group that included his brother Raul Castro and Che Guevara.
Castro played a major role in the Cuban Revolution that ultimately saw the end of Batista’s rule in 1959. Castro then assumed power as prime minister of Cuba until 1976, when he became president.
He turned the island nation into a Communist country and posed a significant source of concern for the United States. His friendly relations with the Soviet Union led to several incidents, most notably the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, that brought the U.S. to the precipice of war with Russia.
In July 2006, Castro was in ill health and temporarily delegated his presidential responsibilities to his brother Raul. By February 2007, Castro had recovered enough to resume his duties as president.
A year later, Castro announced that he was not in a physical condition that would allow him to serve as president and commander in chief, and Raul was unanimously voted in as president by the National Assembly of People’s Power.
Castro continued to involve himself in government issues behind the scenes, but his health continued to deteriorate and his public appearances became less frequent in recent years.
