The United States has indicted Raúl Castro, the former president of Cuba, on charges of murder and destruction of aircraft for his role in the 1996 shootdown of two civilian planes belonging to the Miami-based exile group Brothers to the Rescue. The indictment, unsealed on Wednesday at a ceremony in Miami attended by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, marks a significant escalation in the Trump administration’s campaign against the Cuban government. Blanche framed the charges as a message of accountability, declaring that the US would pursue justice for the deaths of four US citizens aboard the planes.

The charges stem from an incident on 24 February 1996, when Cuban fighter jets shot down two small Cessna aircraft over international waters, killing four crew members. At the time, Castro, now 94, served as Cuba’s defence minister under his brother Fidel. The indictment, filed secretly in April, also names five Cuban military pilots, though their extradition is unlikely. Viewed from Washington, the move serves both as a symbolic rebuke of the Castros’ legacy and as a tool to sustain domestic political pressure on Havana among the influential Cuban-American electorate in Florida.

From the perspective of Havana, the charges are the latest front in a sweeping US economic war. The administration has tightened the decades-old embargo, threatening sanctions on countries supplying fuel to Cuba—a measure that has contributed to severe power outages and the worst economic crisis in decades. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez has previously vowed defiance, stating that the island will not bow to American coercion. Analysts in London note that the timing of the indictment, coming as Donald Trump intensifies his push for regime change, risks further isolating Cuba while doing little to alter the political reality on the island, where Castro, though retired, retains significant behind-the-scenes influence.

Looking ahead, the legal proceedings are unlikely to result in Castro’s extradition or trial, given Cuba’s refusal to recognise US jurisdiction. However, the charges deepen the narrative of a implacable US hostility that Havana can use to rally domestic support. The Trump administration’s strategy, meanwhile, appears calibrated to undermine any future diplomatic thaw, ensuring that the legacy of the 1996 shootdown remains a live issue in bilateral relations long after Castro’s generation passes from the scene.