Cuba Acknowledges Deaths of 32 Citizens in U.S. Operation
Cuba has officially recognized that 32 of its citizens, identified as military and intelligence members, died during a U.S. operation aimed at capturing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in Caracas. In response, the Cuban government has declared two days of national mourning for those lost.
While Havana hasn’t detailed where its personnel were during the raid, their deaths have reignited discussions surrounding Cuba’s extensive involvement in Venezuela’s military and intelligence sectors through years of investigations and reports.
Political analyst Jorge Iraizati remarked that Cuban intelligence has been vital in cementing power in Venezuela, first under Hugo Chávez and continuing with Maduro. “Cuba is often seen as Venezuela’s primary informant, involved in elections, building international relations, and maintaining order within security forces,” he added.
Transitioning Venezuela, according to Jaraissati, would mean the U.S. collaborating with the Venezuelan public to reduce Cuban influence over the country’s institutions and society.
A Reuters investigation published in August 2019 revealed that two secret agreements from 2008 granted Cuba full access to Venezuela’s military and intelligence services. Under these accords, Cuban officials were permitted to assist in military training, reorganize intelligence operations, and design a domestic surveillance framework focused on monitoring Venezuela’s military.
These agreements reportedly played a significant role in reshaping Venezuela’s military counterintelligence agency, the Directorate General of Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM), which has been instrumental in quelling dissent and ensuring loyalty to the government.
The findings of the investigation were corroborated by the UN’s Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela. They reviewed a 2008 memorandum outlining Cuba’s advisory role in restructuring Venezuela’s military intelligence along with establishing new agencies and training counterintelligence personnel.
It has been noted by various sources that Cuban advisors are positioned in Venezuela’s key institutions, such as the civilian intelligence agency SEBIN, the DGCIM, and the Ministry of Defense, as well as in national identification systems.
Human rights organizations and investigators argue that these frameworks were critical during the intense protests of 2014 and 2017, when Venezuelan forces met significant dissent with brutality, leading to a series of violent crackdowns.
A UN mission documented patterns of extrajudicial killings and arbitrary detentions, asserting that Cuban advisors participated in training Venezuelan officials on methods to surveil, interrogate, and suppress political opponents.
Experts suggest that Cuba’s acknowledgment of the military deaths during the U.S. operation underscores the depth of the faction’s alliance, shifting what was once a long-standing document into a significant geopolitical concern.
