The faces of terrorism in Cuba are diverse and well-known, as it has always been a central tool of the regime, first to achieve power in 1959 and later to maintain it. Although its intensity has varied over time, the Castro regime has never renounced its use and, on the contrary, promotes and seeks to legitimize it internationally.
This is evidenced by a report titled “The Multiple Faces of Terrorism in Cuba” from the Center for Studies, Training and Social Analysis (CEFAS) at San Pablo CEU University, which explores the history and evolution of terrorism in Cuba. It details specific terrorist acts as well as the dictatorship’s connections with international organizations across different periods.
The various manifestations of terror and political violence have been a permanent strategy since the 1950s when the nascent revolution already indicated it would resort to terrorism as its main weapon to gain and maintain power.
Terrorism in Cuba as Strategy
Terror and political violence have been a permanent strategy in Cuba since the 1950s.
Thus, through terror and violence, Castroism established itself as a dictatorship in 1959 and has since maintained connections with criminal or violent acts as a strategy for permanence, allowing its antidemocratic regime to endure for over sixty years.
Terrorism in Cuba is, therefore, a fundamental weapon of the revolution led by Castro, who deployed it to seize power. Examples include the assault on the Moncada Barracks and the urban terrorism of the July 26 Movement.
This means that terror and political violence have been part of Fidel Castro from his youth, when he was linked to at least three murders for which he was never convicted due to lack of evidence.
The report asserts that terrorism in Cuba evolved into the political tool through which the regime weaves its communist network globally. Castro envisioned exporting the revolution with its methods and agenda. After the disintegration of the USSR, Cuba aimed to be the bastion of Marxism/Communism in the world.
Criminal Alliances
The criminal alliances of the Cuban dictatorship have allowed it to advance in its expansion goal. Terrorist groups are the regime’s allies against the West, which it defines as “imperialism,” along with the values represented by the democratic world.
The report mentions that it is up to the European Union to reflect on the relationship and response that should be given to the Cuban regime, designated by the United States as a sponsor of terrorism.
The report also tackles the export of violent tactics, the relationship with armed groups, and links to organized crime and drug trafficking after the fall of the Soviet bloc. Its connections to Hamas and Hezbollah are no coincidence, necessitating a reevaluation from Europe.
International Terrorism (Foquismo) Export
After the revolution’s triumph, the Cuban regime actively sought to export its “method” to other countries, particularly in Latin America, through insurgencies and armed expeditions.
To that end, the National Liberation Directory was created to “support guerrillas and terrorist activities abroad.”
The report also references the First Tricontinental Conference in 1966, where Fidel Castro publicly defended that weapons were the way to achieve power and gathered “terrorists from around the world.”
Attempts at invasion and support for armed groups in Panama, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Paraguay, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Grenada, and Puerto Rico are documented.
The Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) in Nicaragua, the National Liberation Army (ELN), and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in Colombia, along with the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) in Peru, are organizations openly supported by the Cuban revolution.
Terrorism and Sovietization’s Connection to Drug Trafficking
During the alliance between the Cuban revolution and the Soviet Union (USSR), the island’s regime strengthened its military apparatus and maintained support for terrorist organizations worldwide.
After the fall of the USSR, links with drug trafficking and organized crime became crucial for the regime’s survival.
The report cites the “Mini Manual of Urban Guerrilla” by Carlos Marighella, which “promotes terrorist techniques” and mentions that Fidel Castro distributed copies worldwide.
The fall of the Berlin Wall did not signal the end of the Cuban revolution’s association with terrorists and drug trafficking. On the contrary, it intensified, as it strengthened activities related to terrorism and organized crime, which became an intrinsic and central part of the regime’s strategy.
The report describes Cuba as a “mafia state,” where “the State has taken control of criminal networks (…) to put them at its service.”