The Cuban leader, who was the First Secretary of the Communist Party and is the most powerful person in the government, blasted the United States for labeling it as a state sponsor of terrorism, along with Iran, Syria and North Korea.
‘We are free, sovereign and independent, and we are going to continue building our revolution,’ Díaz-Canel said. ‘Despite the tightening of the blockade, despite the fact that we have been included on a spurious list that can only be invented by a government as genocidal and as hegemonic as the government of the United States.’
The United States sanction were imposed following the Cuban Revolution from 1953 to 1959.
‘The revolution is very solid, and the Cuban people are very aware of what it means to lose the revolution,’ Díaz-Canel said.
The Cuban government said five demonstrations were held Sunday and it warned residents about falling for the lies and exaggerations that were being spread on social media.
Protest over hours-long blackouts and food shortages stretched from the central province of Santiago de Cuba to the southwestern province of Granma
Protest over hours-long blackouts and food shortages stretched from the central province of Santiago de Cuba to the southwestern province of Granma – which are located near the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base.
Demonstrators also expressed their discontent with the government by holding protests in Santa Marta, near the beach resort town of Varadero, and Los Mangos, a neighborhood in the city of Matanzas.
Opponents of the ruling communist government were seen on video marching through the streets in Bayamo, chanting ‘freedom’ and ‘the people united will never be defeated.’
Sunday’s protests, which are rare in Cuba, were the largest single night of confirmed demonstrations since October 2022 after residents were left without electricity for almost a week because of Hurricane Ian.
Cuba’s state-run newscast early on Monday showed posts from social media – including some from U.S. members of Congress – about the demonstrations, and accused U.S.-based agitators of seeking to confuse the situation or stoke anger by suggesting government repression or more widespread protests than was actually the case.
