Q24N — The indictment filed by the Trump administration against Raúl Castro for the murder of U.S. citizens during the downing of two Brothers to the Rescue planes in 1996 could have direct implications for the regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo in the case of U.S. citizen Eddy Montes Praslin, according to analysts, human rights advocates, and Nicaraguan opposition members.
Foreign policy experts believe that the charges against Raúl Castro represent a new escalation in Washington’s pressure on the Cuban government led by Miguel Díaz-Canel, amid the island’s economic crisis and the tightening of measures implemented by Trump toward Cuba.
Analysts also maintain that the case once again places Latin America in the spotlight of U.S. foreign policy, even amidst international tensions related to Iran and other global issues.
Nicaraguan security expert Javier Meléndez noted that, during the presentation of the indictment against Raúl Castro, U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones warned that “those who murder U.S. citizens will not escape U.S. justice,” and therefore did not rule out “direct implications for Nicaragua.”
“U.S. citizen Eddy Montes was arbitrarily detained by the Ortega-Murillo regime on October 18, 2018, in the context of the repression against civic protests. Seven months later, on May 16, 2019, he was murdered in La Modelo prison by prison guards under the control of the Nicaraguan state,” Meléndez recalled.
International political scientist Jason Marczak, director of the Adrienne Arsht Center for Latin America at the Atlantic Council, believes that Washington will not reduce pressure on Havana in the short term due to Donald Trump’s continued focus on the region.
For his part, Salvador Marenco, a human rights defender with the Nicaragua Never Again Collective, told 100% Noticias that they continue to demand justice for all victims murdered by the Ortega-Murillo regime, regardless of their nationality, and stated that the case of Eddy Montes deserves an international investigation as part of the crimes against humanity attributed to the Nicaraguan dictatorship.
“They will have to find justice, whether inside or outside Nicaragua,” stated Marenco, who also recalled the statements of the U.S. Attorney General.
“Those who murder U.S. citizens will not be able to escape U.S. justice. The Ortega-Murillo regime murdered Mr. Eddy Montes Praslin in May 2019, and his murder remains unpunished,” he asserted.
Marenco insisted that the Eddy Montes case must become a matter of international concern.
“Let us remember that the Eddy Montes case is part of the crimes against humanity and the murders of more than 350 people killed by the Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo regime,” he pointed out.
The human rights defender also recalled the case of U.S. citizen Marcos Novoa, who, according to reports, was tortured in the regime’s prisons.
“The situation in the prisons has worsened, since they not only take lives, but also disappear and continue to torture political prisoners,” he emphasized.
For his part, Nicaraguan opposition member Medardo Mairena presented the case of Eddy Montes to the U.S. Attorney General through X (formerly Twitter) and extended the appeal to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, requesting that the crime not go unpunished.
“Honorable Attorney General of the United States of America: On May 16, 2019, American citizen Eddy Antonio Montes Praslin, 57, a U.S. Navy veteran, was murdered in La Modelo prison by the Sandinista regime led by Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo,” Mairena wrote.
The opposition member recalled that Montes Praslin was arbitrarily arrested in October 2018 after protesting the repression of mostly young demonstrators.
“Seven years after it was carried out, this crime remains in absolute impunity,” he concluded.
Translated and adapted from 100%Noticias.