- Title: Cubans on the Malecon take in the shocking news Fidel Castro has died
- Date: 26th November 2016
- Summary: HAVANA, CUBA (NOVEMBER 26, 2016) (REUTERS) PEOPLE ON MALECON NATIONAL HOTEL CARS ON MALECON YOUTH DANCING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) SPANISH TOURIST, MAITE LASA, SAYING: "Yeah, yeah. We were there in the Gato Tuerto (bar), and they kicked us out, closed the bar, and told use Fidel had died. So we were around here, seeing if it was true or not because no one knew." (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) UNIDENTIFIED CUBAN CITIZEN, SAYING: "Nobody knows. Imagine, there are people dancing. With music, and all that. It was a historic moment. Just imagine the reaction." POLICE ON MALECON YOUTH RECEIVING NEWS OF DEATH OF FIDEL CASTRO YOUTH DANCING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CUBAN CITIZEN, DUNSY FAJARDO, SAYING: "The whole world will remember this, because that man arrived to a place where no one else has arrived. Having a country, being a president for so many years. No one is the world will be able to do that. Only him. That is, as a Cuban, how I truly feel. I truly say to you. I am sorry, because in truth, the man is a total beast." CUBAN FLAG FLAG AT NATIONAL HOTEL
- Embargoed: 11th December 2016 07:43
- Keywords: Fidel Castro reactions Malecon Havana
- Location: HAVANA, CUBA
- City: HAVANA, CUBA
- Country: Cuba
- Topics: Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0015A2Y0CN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The news began to spread early Saturday (November 26) in Havana that Fidel Castro, the Cuban revolutionary leader who built a state on the doorstep of the United States and for five decades defied U.S. efforts to topple him, died on Friday. His younger brother announced the news to the nation. He was 90.
A towering figure of the second half of the 20th Century, Castro had been in poor health since an intestinal ailment nearly killed him in 2006. He formally ceded power to his younger brother two years later.
Wearing a green military uniform, Cuba's President Raul Castro appeared on state television to announce his brother's death.
Everyone in Cuba was taken by surprise.
"Yeah, yeah. We were there in the Gato Tuerto (bar), and they kicked us out, closed the bar, and told use Fidel had died. So we were around here, seeing if it was true or not because no one knew," Maite Lasa, Spanish tourist, said.
The passing of such an icon is hard to imagine.
"Nobody knows. Imagine, there are people dancing. With music, and all that. It was a historic moment. Just imagine the reaction," said one Cuban citizen.
The streets were quiet in Havana, but some residents reacted with sadness to the news, while in Miami, where many exiles live, a large crowd waving Cuban flags cheered, danced and banged on pots and pans, a video on social media showed.
Castro's remains will be cremated, according to his wishes. His brother said details of his funeral would be given on Saturday.
The bearded Fidel Castro took power in a 1959 revolution and ruled Cuba for 49 years with a mix of charisma and iron will, creating a one-party state and becoming a central figure in the Cold War.
He was demonized by the United States and its allies but admired by many leftists around the world, especially socialist revolutionaries in Latin America and Africa.
"The whole world will remember this, because that man arrived to a place where no one else has arrived. Having a country, being a president for so many years. No one is the world will be able to do that. Only him. That is, as a Cuban, how I truly feel. I truly say to you. I am sorry, because in truth, the man is a total beast," said Cuban citizen, Dunsy Fajardo.
Transforming Cuba from a playground for rich Americans into a symbol of resistance to Washington, Castro outlasted nine U.S. presidents in power.
He fended off a CIA-backed invasion at the Bay of Pigs in 1961 as well as countless assassination attempts.
His alliance with Moscow helped trigger the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, a 13-day showdown with the United States that brought the world the closest it has been to nuclear war.
Wearing green military fatigues and chomping on cigars for many of his years in power, Castro was famous for long, fist-pounding speeches filled with blistering rhetoric, often aimed at the United States.
At home, he swept away capitalism and won support for bringing schools and hospitals to the poor. But he also created legions of enemies and critics, concentrated among Cuban exiles in Miami who fled his rule and saw him as a ruthless tyrant. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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