Cuba begins releasing prisoners after US government eases embargo

(CLO) On Wednesday, Cuba began releasing prisoners, fulfilling an agreement previously reached with the US administration of outgoing President Joe Biden.

President Biden announced on Tuesday that he would remove Cuba from the list of “state sponsors of terrorism” and lift a series of embargoes that Donald Trump imposed during his first term.

Hours after the US announcement, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Cuba would "gradually" release 553 prisoners from prisons following Vatican-brokered talks.

Cubans protest in front of the U.S. Embassy against the U.S. embargo in Havana, Cuba on December 20, 2024. (Photo courtesy of AP, not for re-release)

According to human rights organizations, the first 15 prisoners in the aforementioned group have been released, most of whom were arrested during the 2021 riots, including Cruz Garcia, 23, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison for rioting after the protests.

While his sentence was not commuted, officials told him on Tuesday that he could serve the remainder of his sentence at home. Cruz Garcia said several other inmates who were arrested after the 2021 protests and held with him have also been released.

Maricela Sosa, vice president of Cuba's Supreme Court, said Wednesday morning that those released would be monitored for good behavior and could be returned to prison if they violated the terms of their pardon. "This is not an amnesty or pardon," she said on state television.

In July 2021 protests - the largest since Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution - thousands took to the streets in towns and cities across the island. Cuba said those jailed had committed crimes ranging from arson to sabotage and inciting the overthrow of the government.

The Biden administration's decision, if upheld by President-elect Trump and the US Congress , would mark the most significant improvement in US-Cuba relations since the Obama administration.

Bui Huy (according to CUG, Reuters, CBS)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/cuba-bat-dau-tha-tu-nhan-sau-khi-chinh-quyen-my-noi-long-cam-van-post330599.html