Shootout at sea: Cuban Coast Guard kills 4 in US speedboat attempting “infiltration” – National & International News
Shootout at sea: Cuban Coast Guard kills 4 in US speedboat attempting “infiltration”
On Wednesday morning, the Cuban Coast Guard encountered a Florida-registered speedboat carrying ten men about 1 nautical mile off Cuba’s northern coast. When the Coast Guard approached the speedboat for identification, the occupants of the speedboat opened fire, injuring the patrol commander. An exchange of fire followed, killing 4 of the men on the American boat and injuring the 6 others. The six injured men were rescued and taken for medical treatment.
American officials initially had little to say publicly that would have shed light on the situation. However, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also acting National Security Advisor for the White House, was quick to state that the men on the boat were not part of any US-backed operation and that there were no US personnel involved.
We now have some clarity based on reports from the Cuban government. Cuban officials say that the ten men on the boat were Cuban nationals who were all resident in the United States. They claim the men “intended to carry out an infiltration for terrorist purposes”. An eleventh Cuban man as also arrested in Cuba who, according to Cuban officials was “sent from the US” to aid the infiltrators.
US-Cuba tensions highest in decades
While the US has officially denied any involvement with the plot, it comes at a moment of heightened US tensions with Cuba. Since US forces infiltrated Venezuela and abducted President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, the US has been enforcing a complete oil blockade of Cuba. As a result, many of the country’s essential functions have ground to a halt.
The US (particularly the CIA) also has a history of using Cuban exiles to carry out attacks and sabotage on Cuba, most notably the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961.
Interestingly, hours after the Coast Guard’s interception of this American boat, the Trump administration approved some Venezuelan oil sales to Cuba.
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