Organizations and figures tied to the Singham Network moved quickly to condemn the Justice Department’s indictment of Raul Castro, accusing the Trump administration of using the case to justify escalation against Communist Cuba.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A network of Marxist activist groups and media organizations linked to businessman Neville Roy Singham launched a coordinated defense of former Cuban leader Raul Castro following the Justice Department’s indictment accusing him in connection with the 1996 shootdown of civilian aircraft that killed four people, including three American citizens.
According to a Just the News report, multiple organizations connected to the Singham Network rapidly issued statements condemning the indictment and echoing messaging promoted by the Cuban government after federal prosecutors unsealed charges against Castro.
The Justice Department announced this week that Raul Modesto Castro Ruz, brother of Fidel Castro and the longtime former leader of Communist Cuba, had been charged alongside co-defendants over the destruction of two civilian aircraft flown by Brothers to the Rescue over international waters near Cuba in 1996. Prosecutors alleged the attack resulted in the deaths of four U.S. nationals and included charges of conspiracy to kill Americans, destruction of aircraft, and murder. The DOJ also released the unsealed indictment.
Federal prosecutors said the civilian planes were flying outside Cuban territory and away from the island when Cuban MiG fighter jets opened fire without warning.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation, the People’s Forum, Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, Code Pink, and other organizations tied to the Singham Network responded by accusing the Trump administration of manufacturing a justification for military action against Cuba.
Code Pink, co-founded by Singham’s wife Jodie Evans, stated on X that the administration was “fabricating a pretext for military intervention” rather than seeking justice for the 1996 attack. The organization later published an Instagram statement rejecting the indictment and declaring: “HANDS OFF CUBA! LIFT THE BLOCKADE!”
The anti-war group also defended Cuba’s actions in the 1996 incident, arguing that “international law guarantees any country, including Cuba, the right to respond to airspace violations after exhausting diplomatic means to do so.” Code Pink further compared the Cuban shootdown to the U.S. military’s destruction of a Chinese surveillance balloon.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation similarly condemned the charges, calling them “a transparent pretext for escalating aggression against a sovereign nation.” Its affiliated publication, Liberation News, argued that Cuba acted within its sovereign rights under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter and asserted that Raul Castro’s actions were lawful under international law.
The outlet concluded: “It would be an outrage if Trump turned around and launched yet another unprovoked war, this time to Cuba.”
Manolo De Los Santos, executive director of the People’s Forum and a researcher with Tricontinental, also defended Castro publicly. In a social media post, De Los Santos accused the U.S. government of hypocrisy and defended Cuba’s response to the flights. He additionally reposted earlier messages in which he described Raul Castro as “an incredibly courageous and revolutionary hero.”
De Los Santos also amplified statements from the Cuban government, including remarks from Cuba’s ambassador to the United Nations and a statement from the Cuban Embassy in Washington condemning the indictment as “despicable.”
Claudia De La Cruz, co-founder of the People’s Forum and the PSL’s 2024 presidential candidate, also denounced the charges in a post on X, claiming the indictment was intended to “manufacture consent for military action.”
Vijay Prashad, director of Tricontinental and a leader within Singham’s activist network, declared in a social media message that “The world stands with Raul Castro, hero of the Cuban Revolution.” The report noted that Prashad also serves as a fellow at a Chinese Communist Party-linked think tank tied to the CCP’s United Front apparatus.
Several Singham-linked media outlets likewise promoted pro-Castro messaging following the indictment. People’s Dispatch published coverage centered largely on denunciations from Cuban officials, including remarks from Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, who labeled the indictment a “farce.”
BreakThrough News promoted interviews with Diaz-Canel criticizing both the Trump and Biden administrations while also distributing video interviews with Cuban residents rejecting the possibility of turning Raul Castro over to U.S. authorities.
The report also detailed previous cooperation between Singham-linked organizations and the Cuban government earlier this year. In March, leaders affiliated with the People’s Forum, PSL, Tricontinental, and the International Peoples’ Assembly traveled to Havana for meetings with Diaz-Canel and other Cuban officials. Cuba’s official government website described the visit as an act of solidarity against what it called U.S. “ideological, cultural and media war.”
Diaz-Canel later posted photographs and messages celebrating the meeting, thanking leaders from the Party for Socialism and Liberation and the International Peoples’ Assembly for reaffirming “solidarity with the Revolution.”
The International Peoples’ Assembly subsequently reshared Diaz-Canel’s statement while declaring “Cuba is not alone!”
The Trump administration has continued escalating pressure against the Cuban government as part of what officials describe as a broader crackdown on Communist regimes in the Western Hemisphere. In a presidential message released Wednesday, President Donald Trump condemned Cuba’s leadership, stating that the regime had “quashed any hope of prosperity” and prioritized “violently exporting communism and despotism abroad.”
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