Raul Castro
Raul Castro (Right) PHOTO : EPA

Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced that murder charges have been filed against former Cuban president Raúl Castro.

The charges are linked to the 1996 shootdown of an American humanitarian aircraft by the Cuban military, which killed three Americans.

Charges Filed Against Castro

Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, said: 'For the first time in nearly 70 years, senior leadership of the Cuban regime has been charged in this country for acts of violence resulting in the deaths of American citizens.'

'Nations, and their leaders, cannot be permitted to target Americans, kill them, and not face accountability.'

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday afternoon after the indictment was handed down, Trump said there 'won't be an escalation' with Cuba.

'I don't think there needs to be,' he said. 'Look, the place is falling apart. They've really lost control of Cuba.'

Cuba's President Miguel Díaz-Canel blasted the Department of Justices decision to indict the former president calling it 'lies and distorts the events surrounding the downing of the planes and described the charges as a political manoeuvre, devoid of any legal foundation.'

He defended his military's actions in 1996 in a statement on social media, saying they 'acted in legitimate self-defence within its jurisdictional waters, following repeated and dangerous violations of our airspace by notorious terrorists.'

What Happened in 1996?

On the 24th of February 1996, three planes carrying members of Brothers to the Rescue entered an area which was a short distance north of Cuba's capital where they were shot at by the Cuban military.

Armando Alejandre Jr, Carlos Costa, Mario de la Peña and Pablo Morales, died after their planes were hit by missiles fired from MiG fighter jets from the Cuban air force.

A third plane, piloted by the founder of Brothers to the Rescue José Basulto, managed to escape and landed safely back in Florida.

Fidel Castro, Cuba's then-president, said after the incident that ‌he gave orders to stop the flights over Cuba, but he did not specify if he meant for them to be shot down.

Fidel Castro said the military acted on 'standing orders' and that Raul Castro, who at the time was defence minister, also did not ⁠give a specific order to shoot down the planes.

'Brothers to the Rescue, which describes itself as a humanitarian organisation, began operating in 1991 in response to thousands of Cubans emigrating to the US by boat. The group aimed to help Cuban refugees in the Florida straits by dropping supplies from small planes and alerting the US Coast Guard,' according to Sky News.

The International Civil Aviation Organisation found that the attack happened over ​international waters.

Could the Americans Arrest Castro Like Maduro?

When asked if there would be an arrest similar to that of ousted Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro earlier this year, President Trump said: 'I don't want to say that.'

However, Blanche appeared to suggest the possibility of a Maduro like capture : 'We expect that he will show up here by his own will, or by another way.'

Former Venezuelan President Maduro was captured in a raid in Caracas earlier this year that saw him brought to the US to face drug trafficking charges.

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