Ramiro Valdes, lauded as hero of Cuban revolution, dies at 94
The longtime revolutionary helped build Cuba’s feared security apparatus and remained a key figure in government until his death, officials said.
- On Sunday, Cuban revolutionary Ramiro Valdes Menendez died at 94, President Miguel Diaz-Canel announced on social media. Valdes was a founding member of the Cuban Communist Party and held the honorary titles "Hero of the Republic" and "Commander of the Revolution."
- Valdes was just 21 when he joined the 1953 Moncada barracks assault, later becoming one of only 12 survivors of the 1956 Granma expedition. This campaign launched a guerrilla war that ousted dictator Fulgencio Batista.
- As interior minister, Valdes established the state security intelligence service and claimed in a rare 2018 interview that "there was no one who moved without security knowing it, and that allowed us to infiltrate counter-revolutionary organizations." He served twice as interior minister under Fidel and Raul Castro.
- In February 2010, Valdes spent several months in Venezuela, where the opposition alleged he led intelligence operations under then-President Hugo Chavez. Venezuela provided Cuba with heavily-subsidized oil in return for intelligence operatives and bodyguards.
- Diaz-Canel eulogized Valdes, stating his life was marked by "absolute loyalty to the governments of Fidel and Raul and to his struggle companions." Valdes had served as second-in-command of a guerrilla column led by Argentine revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara.
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Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, part of the Cuban revolution, died this Sunday at 94 years after more than six decades in positions of responsibility, of organizing internal espionage and repression of the vice-presidentship, going through telecommunications. Hero of the Republic, commander of the revolution, Minister of the Interior 23 years and vice president for almost 20 years, Valdes was reserved, inflexible, obstinate and hardworking, according to…
The regional bloc paid tribute to the trajectory of the essential figure of the Cuban Revolution and sent condolences to its relatives, people and Government of the island.
Commander Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, Pillar of the Cuban Revolution, Passes Away
Commander of the Cuban Revolution Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, one of the most prominent and important figures of the Cuban liberation struggle, passed away on Sunday June 21. The loss of this legendary combatant has generated profound sorrow within state institutions and among the people of Cuba, where he is revered as an unwavering symbol of sovereignty. Valdés Menéndez’s life was marked from his youth by an absolute commitment to the demands of so…
Havana., Commander, lieutenant of Ernesto Che Guevara, founder of the Cuban intelligence services and one of the last leading figures of the Cuban revolution, Deputy Prime Minister Ramiro Valdés died at 94, announced yesterday President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
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