Cuba embraces its heroes 

For Cuba, January 15, 2026, will forever bear the deep mark of pain and, at the same time, the pride that arises in the homeland when it takes into its arms the children who have died to live eternally.
On Thursday morning, Cuba welcomed the brave combatants who fell in Venezuela during the aggression by the United States government at José Martí International Airport. Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, leader of the Cuban Revolution, and Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party and President of the Republic, were there to pay the first posthumous tribute.
The military ceremony to welcome the comrades who gave their lives in the line of duty was also attended by members of the Political Bureau: Esteban Lazo Hernández, President of the National Assembly of People's Power and the Council of State; Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz; Secretary of Organization Roberto Morales Ojeda; and the ministers of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior, Army Corps Generals Álvaro López Miera and Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas, respectively.
The tribute was attended by other members of the Political Bureau, including Rebel Army Commander José Ramón Machado Ventura and the ambassador to Cuba of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Orlando Maneiro Gaspar.

And a few steps away from each other, embracing each other, holding each other close... and in pain, were the relatives of the 32 brave men: children, parents, siblings, spouses, men who were consistent with their duty, even though it cost them dearly, even though it cost them everything.
Beyond the chords of the General Staff band, sobs could be heard; everyone had their eyes fixed on the aircraft located at one end of the esplanade. There was no fanfare, the solemnity had been embroidered by the troops, and sadness had crept onto their faces days ago.
Then the soldiers began to descend, carrying in their arms the urns with the mortal remains of the heroes, covered with the flag of the lone star, the same flag they defended in the land of Bolívar and Chávez, because defending Venezuela was also defending us; it was a response worthy of the history that precedes the Cuban people.
The remains were placed in six armored vehicles, and with them went the courage that cannot be contained in urns or words; the vehicles were positioned in front of the formation of troops. To the beat of the National Anthem, our war march, three rifle salutes shook the airport terminal.
After the call to silence, Army Corps General Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas spoke with the sensitivity and respect of one who welcomes his fallen brothers and, before them, renews, as does all of Cuba, the oath of loyalty to the homeland and to the unity of the peoples of America.

"We do not welcome them with resignation," he said, "we do so with deep pride and eternal commitment because we know, and the people of Cuba have learned this through the hardest of trials, that death does not defeat those who fall with a rifle in their hands defending a just cause. (...) They bring with them the enduring example of dedication, courage, and fidelity to the noblest ideals of man."
He recalled those difficult hours when the treacherous attack cast a shadow over Venezuela, and he emphasized the brotherhood that unites us to that land, where Bolívar and Martí, Chávez and Fidel are intertwined.
Cuba, the Minister of the Interior affirmed, does not abandon its children, does not renounce its principles, does not give in, and before the families, history, and the Army General, he proclaims that "on Cuban soil there will never be room for cowardice and betrayal."
The enemy, Álvarez Casas said, speaks euphorically of high-precision operations and elite troops; we speak of girls and boys who will have to grow up without the embrace of those who gave their lives thinking precisely of them.
And he reiterated a certainty: imperialism may have sophisticated weapons, but it will never be able to buy the dignity of the Cuban people.
"We will always remember you in every effort, every challenge, every victory (...) you are an example of honor. You are a lesson for those who hesitate, you are a warning to those who threaten," he concluded.
Cuba knows that heroes are remembered without tears, but we must not forget that "when an energetic and virile people weeps, injustice trembles."
With their heads held high, just as the 32 men who have just been definitively inscribed on the altar of the Fatherland fell, the soldiers left with the urns to receive the embrace of the people.
HONOR AND GLORY!
At dusk on Thursday, as part of the people's heartfelt tribute to the heroes who fell in fierce combat in Venezuela, the Army General, accompanied by President Díaz-Canel, led the last honor guard for the combatants at the headquarters of the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces.
Raúl then paid tribute to each of the urns, which hold the remains of 32 brave comrades who have become symbols of the mambisa and rebellious spirit of the Cuban people.
Honors were also paid to our martyrs who were members of the Political Bureau, other leaders of the Party, the State, the Government, political and mass organizations, as well as senior leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior.
Not even the persistent rain that accompanied the capital's residents for most of the day prevented thousands of women and men from joining in the day of honor and glory in which Cuba embraced its heroes.