The U.S. could announce a possible criminal indictment of former Cuban president Raul Castro in the coming days, sources familiar with the matter said.
The investigation, which is being done in the Southern District of Florida, has centered around the 1996 shootdown of planes that were operated by the humanitarian group, Brothers to the Rescue.
News of a potential indictment would come as President Donald Trump seeks to turn his attention to Cuba.
In this Feb. 1, 2016, file photo, Cuban President Raul Castro attends an agreement signing ceremony with the French president after a meeting at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris.
Etienne Laurent/AFP via Getty Images, FILE
Earlier this month, Trump said that after the operation in Iran, “Cuba is going to be next,” and that the U.S. will be “taking over Cuba almost immediately.”
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez has warned that the United States is on a “dangerous path” that could lead to a “bloodbath in Cuba” in response to Trump’s continued rhetoric about taking over the country. Rodriguez said there has been “no progress” in talks between the two countries.
In a sit-down interview with ABC News’ Whit Johnson in Havana earlier this month, Rodriguez said he takes Trump’s threats “very seriously,” and that Cuba will “exercise its right for its legitimate defense” if attacked militarily.
So far, the Trump administration has relied on economic tactics to pressure Cuba, including a blockade earlier this year cutting off Havana’s access to foreign oil shipments, including those from Venezuela.
CIA director John Ratcliffe met with Cuban officials in Havana this week. The agency said the U.S. is prepared to engage with Cuba on economic and security issues, but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes.
