Cuba responded defiantly Wednesday to the historic U.S. indictment against Raúl Castro by announcing a nationwide celebration for the former Cuban leader's upcoming 95th birthday and denouncing the charges as an "illegitimate and illegal" political attack.
Just hours after the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed murder and conspiracy charges against Castro and five other Cuban military figures over the 1996 shootdown of two Brothers to the Rescue planes, Cuba's government and Communist Party allies moved quickly to rally public support around the longtime revolutionary leader.
