Cuba marks 72nd anniversary of assault that launched the revolution

Revolutionary chief Raúl Castro arrived at Ciego de Avila’s Plaza Saturday to kick off the 72nd anniversary celebrations of the Moncada Barracks assault.

Regardless of the failure of the attack and the arrest of the fighters, it is widely idea of as the starting of the Cuban Revolution.

Castro, dressed in his customary olive inexperienced, is one of the few final revolutionaries who took section in the in the 1953 assault.

It turned into once led by his brother, Fidel Castro, then a younger attorney, and earned him recognition as the chief of the opposition.

Top Minister, Manuel Marrero, told the crowds that they were there “to tell the world that the Cuban revolution continues to fight”.

“And without giving up on building a sovereign, honest, socialist, democratic, prosperous, and sustainable society, with its head held excessive and its dignity intact.”

The anniversary coincides with a period of economic stress, one of the worst in a protracted time, marked by food shortages, energy outages, and excessive inflation, which are fuelling a wave of emigration.

Closing week, Cuba reported a 25 per cent decline in tourism for the first half of of the twelve months. It acknowledged that the island’s erroneous domestic product fell by 1 per cent in 2024, ensuing in an gathered decline of 11 per cent over the past 5 years.

“Regardless of all the problems now we occupy, we must continuously unite as a nation and circulation ahead because in team spirit there is strength,” acknowledged Laura Cobas, a younger teacher attending the celebrations.

The Moncada attack and its aftermath including the execution of captured rebels, fuelled public resentment against the regime of Fulgencio Batista who had advance to energy in a 1952 coup.

He turned into once overthrown in 1959 and Fidel Castro went on to rule Cuba till 2008.