WASHINGTON - Fidel Castro is the longest-serving leader in the Western Hemisphere, holding on to power despite repeated efforts by the United States to end his rule. To some Cubans, he is a revolutionary hero, but to others, he is a ruthless communist dictator.

Mr. Castro was born in 1926 to a Spanish immigrant landholder and a household servant. Mr. Castro attended Jesuit schools and received his law degree from the University of Havana.

He later became involved in politics and was a leader in the movement to remove dictator Fulgencio Batista from power. In July 1953, Mr. Castro led an attack on the Moncada army barracks in Santiago, Cuba, that marked the beginning of the armed struggle against Batista.

The barracks attack failed, with many of the assailants killed. Others were imprisoned, including Mr. Castro. Mr. Castro and other prisoners were freed in 1955 under an amnesty.

Fidel Castro embarked on another effort to overthrow the Batista government, organizing from Cuba’s Sierra Maestra mountains. The effort succeeded with the 1959 revolution that overthrew Batista. Fidel Castro took power on January first, 1959, as a triumphant guerrilla army marched into Havana.  

As he consolidated his hold on power, Mr. Castro seized farms and nationalized banks and industries, including more than $1 billion dollars’ worth of U.S.-owned property. Political liberties were suspended and government critics jailed. Thousands of Cubans began fleeing the country, many seeking refuge in the United States.

During his nearly five decades in office, the Cuban leader survived numerous assassination plots and attempts to overthrow him.

One of the most infamous was the U.S.-backed Bay of Pigs invasion. On April 17, 1961, some 1,500 CIA-trained Cuban exiles landed on Cuba’s southern coast in hopes of sparking an uprising. Mr. Castro was warned of the pending invasion and had ample time to prepare his forces.

In 1962, another confrontation occurred when the U.S. discovered the Soviet Union had secretly put nuclear missiles in Cuba that were capable of hitting U.S. targets. Then-President John F. Kennedy demanded the Soviets remove the missiles and ordered a naval blockade of Cuba to prevent further shipments of Soviet missiles. After 13 days, Moscow agreed to remove the missiles from Cuba, located only 140 kilometers from the United States.

In the wake of the Cuban missile crisis, Mr. Castro built his armed forces into one of the most powerful in Latin America. Sometimes acting as a Soviet proxy, he sent troops around the world to support the spread of communism.

But after the Soviet Union’s fall in the early 1990s, Cuba lost billions of dollars in subsidies, plunging its economy into a deep recession that led to severe shortages of food and other staples. This forced Cuba’s communist government to allow limited private sector activities and some foreign investment. 

Known for fiery, long-winded oratory, Fidel Castro fixed the blame for Cubans’ hardship on the U.S. economic embargo that Washington hoped would foment rebellion against him. Mr. Castro often warned that the United States, which had supported an invasion once, could do so again at any time.

Mr. Castro is known for his trademark olive green uniform, which he wore when leading mass rallies. He is also reported to be the world’s seventh-richest ruler. Forbes magazine reported in May 2006 that Mr. Castro was worth about $900 million. He denied the report, insisting his net worth was zero.

During Mr. Castro’s nearly 50-year hold on power, his government was often at odds with the Roman Catholic Church. But in January 1998, Pope John Paul the Second visited Havana, six years after Mr. Castro declared the country a secular state. The island nation and been an atheist state since he seized power in 1959. Despite the pope’s visit, the U.S. says religious belief and practice continue to be tightly controlled in Cuba.

The Cuban leader forged close ties with Bolivian President Evo Morales as well as Venezuela’s leftist president, Hugo Chavez, who sold Cuba 53,000 barrels of crude oil daily at below-market prices. Critics charged that Mr. Chavez has been trying to model Venezuela after Cuba.

As Mr. Castro has grown older, rumors began circulating about the state of his health. A few years ago, President Castro appeared to faint while delivering a two-hour speech. In 2004, the communist leader suffered a broken arm and leg in a fall.

First official word of Mr. Castro’s ill health came in an announcement on Cuban state television July 31s 2006, although his exact condition remained a state secret. The first announcement of the illness was followed by another saying Mr. Castro was temporarily ceding power to his brother, Defense Minister Raul Castro. The transfer marked the first time Fidel Castro had relinquished his duties since seizing power in 1959.

The announcement that Mr. Castro was ill surprised many Cubans, as Mr. Castro is the only president most of them have ever known.

Source:  VOA News