Cuban Firing Squad Executes Condemned Exile From Miami
A Cuban firing squad Monday executed a Cuban exile from the United States who had been found guilty of planning terrorist attacks against the Communist-ruled island, the Cuban news agency Prensa Latina reported.
Eduardo Diaz Betancourt, 38, was shot after Cuba’s Supreme Court and the ruling Council of State turned down appeals for clemency, it said.
He was one of three Miami men seized Dec. 29 after crossing the Florida Straits, reportedly armed with guns and explosives.
Diaz, the accused leader of the sabotage mission, was identified as a petty criminal in Cuba before he fled to Miami nine months ago. He has no known relatives in the United States.
The death sentences of the other two exiles were commuted to 30 years in prison.
A videotape of their trial showed the men saying they belonged to Commandos L, a paramilitary group. They confessed that they had planned to bomb theaters, recreation areas and factories and to seize radio stations with the aim of sparking a popular rebellion against Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
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