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| American flag raised as US embassy reopens in Cuba – live | American flag raised as US embassy reopens in Cuba – live |
| (7 months later) | |
| 5.52pm BST | 5.52pm BST |
| 17:52 | 17:52 |
| Here is the latest news story on the historic ceremony: | Here is the latest news story on the historic ceremony: |
| And here is a comment piece by Cuban-American writer Damarys Ocaña Perez, who urged Cuba to improve its civil rights record. | And here is a comment piece by Cuban-American writer Damarys Ocaña Perez, who urged Cuba to improve its civil rights record. |
| We’re wrapping up our live blog, thanks for tuning in! | We’re wrapping up our live blog, thanks for tuning in! |
| 5.40pm BST | 5.40pm BST |
| 17:40 | 17:40 |
| Former Reuters photographer Eliana Aponte has posted some beautiful photos on Instagram from Havana: | Former Reuters photographer Eliana Aponte has posted some beautiful photos on Instagram from Havana: |
| 5.30pm BST | 5.30pm BST |
| 17:30 | 17:30 |
| Kerry has met with the Cuban foreign minister, Bruno Rodríguez Parilla. | Kerry has met with the Cuban foreign minister, Bruno Rodríguez Parilla. |
| Se realizan conversaciones oficiales entre el Canciller de #Cuba y el Secretario de Estado de #EEUU. #CubaUS #Cuba pic.twitter.com/IKWv41VDxG | Se realizan conversaciones oficiales entre el Canciller de #Cuba y el Secretario de Estado de #EEUU. #CubaUS #Cuba pic.twitter.com/IKWv41VDxG |
| Following the flag-raising, Kerry had meetings scheduled with the Archbishop of Havana, Cardinal Jaime Lucas Ortega Alamino and the families and staff of the US embassy. | Following the flag-raising, Kerry had meetings scheduled with the Archbishop of Havana, Cardinal Jaime Lucas Ortega Alamino and the families and staff of the US embassy. |
| Later on Friday afternoon, he will preside upon the flag raising ceremony at the residence of the US ambassador in Havana. | Later on Friday afternoon, he will preside upon the flag raising ceremony at the residence of the US ambassador in Havana. |
| 5.19pm BST | 5.19pm BST |
| 17:19 | 17:19 |
| Back in December, when Obama announced the thaw in diplomatic relations, my colleague Richard Luscombe spent some time with protesters in Little Havana. (The main image on last December’s photo features Osvaldo Hernandez, who is attending today’s protests): | Back in December, when Obama announced the thaw in diplomatic relations, my colleague Richard Luscombe spent some time with protesters in Little Havana. (The main image on last December’s photo features Osvaldo Hernandez, who is attending today’s protests): |
| At Versailles, much of the clientele are older, harder-line Cuban exiles who backed the long-standing trade embargo and are opposed to the restoration of diplomatic ties with Havana while the Castro regime maintains control. | At Versailles, much of the clientele are older, harder-line Cuban exiles who backed the long-standing trade embargo and are opposed to the restoration of diplomatic ties with Havana while the Castro regime maintains control. |
| Miguel Saavedro, an air-conditioning engineer, was one of the first on the scene with banners denouncing the US president, and led a noisy group of protestors shouting “Obama, traitor”, often when the television cameras were switched on. | Miguel Saavedro, an air-conditioning engineer, was one of the first on the scene with banners denouncing the US president, and led a noisy group of protestors shouting “Obama, traitor”, often when the television cameras were switched on. |
| “Obama has sold out the American people,” he told the Guardian. “The world knows now that he is a coward and that he is a traitor for what he has done. It’s just what the Cubans wanted. They get their spies and terrorists freed and for what? I’m pleased Alan Gross is free, he is an old man in ill health and he has been treated terribly. But this is a heavy price.” | “Obama has sold out the American people,” he told the Guardian. “The world knows now that he is a coward and that he is a traitor for what he has done. It’s just what the Cubans wanted. They get their spies and terrorists freed and for what? I’m pleased Alan Gross is free, he is an old man in ill health and he has been treated terribly. But this is a heavy price.” |
| Read Richard’s full piece here. | Read Richard’s full piece here. |
| 5.11pm BST | 5.11pm BST |
| 17:11 | 17:11 |
| Meanwhile in Miami, protesters gathered at Cafe Versailles in the Little Havana neighborhood to express their anger at the reopening of diplomatic relations with Cuba: | Meanwhile in Miami, protesters gathered at Cafe Versailles in the Little Havana neighborhood to express their anger at the reopening of diplomatic relations with Cuba: |
| There have been several heated exchanges on the ground, local media report, despite the fact that there are “less than a dozen protesters” out: | There have been several heated exchanges on the ground, local media report, despite the fact that there are “less than a dozen protesters” out: |
| Protestors and supporters voicing their opinions @wsvn #CubaUS pic.twitter.com/MOPeH4ZUq5 | Protestors and supporters voicing their opinions @wsvn #CubaUS pic.twitter.com/MOPeH4ZUq5 |
| 5.02pm BST | 5.02pm BST |
| 17:02 | 17:02 |
| Cubans react to the US flag-raising in Havana | Cubans react to the US flag-raising in Havana |
| The Associated Press is in Havana, and has spoken several Cubans, who gathered near the embassy: | The Associated Press is in Havana, and has spoken several Cubans, who gathered near the embassy: |
| Giant Cuban flags hung from the balconies of nearby apartment buildings and people gathered at windows with a view of the embassy. | Giant Cuban flags hung from the balconies of nearby apartment buildings and people gathered at windows with a view of the embassy. |
| “I wouldn’t want to miss it,” Marcos Rodriguez, 28, said outside the embassy. He said he and many other Cubans hope the diplomatic thaw will bring “social and economic benefits for all Cubans.” | “I wouldn’t want to miss it,” Marcos Rodriguez, 28, said outside the embassy. He said he and many other Cubans hope the diplomatic thaw will bring “social and economic benefits for all Cubans.” |
| ... Julio Garcia is a 51-year-old mechanic. He says he would like to see “more democracy, elections. We hope for that to come with this diplomatic opening.” | ... Julio Garcia is a 51-year-old mechanic. He says he would like to see “more democracy, elections. We hope for that to come with this diplomatic opening.” |
| He was among a group of Cubans who cheered as the flag-raising symbolically re-opened the embassy. | He was among a group of Cubans who cheered as the flag-raising symbolically re-opened the embassy. |
| Among those gathering in front of the US Embassy in Havana are the drivers of three 1950s-era Chevrolets that are parked outside the building. | Among those gathering in front of the US Embassy in Havana are the drivers of three 1950s-era Chevrolets that are parked outside the building. |
| Julio Alvarez heads the custom cab company that operates them and he says the State Department had invited him to send them without saying why. Alvarez says he’s hoping that Kerry will take a ride in one of the classic US cars that have become emblematic of Cuba for tourists. | Julio Alvarez heads the custom cab company that operates them and he says the State Department had invited him to send them without saying why. Alvarez says he’s hoping that Kerry will take a ride in one of the classic US cars that have become emblematic of Cuba for tourists. |
| The cars were parked behind Kerry as he made his remarks during the flag-raising ceremony. He jokingly referred to them as “his ride home.” | The cars were parked behind Kerry as he made his remarks during the flag-raising ceremony. He jokingly referred to them as “his ride home.” |
| 4.53pm BST | 4.53pm BST |
| 16:53 | 16:53 |
| In July, the Pew Research Center published a poll which showed 73% of Americans now approve of the US re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba and a similar majority (72%) favors the US ending its trade embargo against Cuba, “which would allow U.S. companies to do business in Cuba and Cuban companies to do business in the US”. | In July, the Pew Research Center published a poll which showed 73% of Americans now approve of the US re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba and a similar majority (72%) favors the US ending its trade embargo against Cuba, “which would allow U.S. companies to do business in Cuba and Cuban companies to do business in the US”. |
| The poll found that support for renewed diplomatic relations with Cuba increased across “nearly all partisan groups” since January: 56% of Republicans say they approve of re-establishing diplomatic relations; larger majorities of Democrats (83%) and independents (75%) also approved. | The poll found that support for renewed diplomatic relations with Cuba increased across “nearly all partisan groups” since January: 56% of Republicans say they approve of re-establishing diplomatic relations; larger majorities of Democrats (83%) and independents (75%) also approved. |
| (Full poll findings here.) | (Full poll findings here.) |
| Drawing on Pew’s poll numbers and the marked shift in public opinion, the New York Times published an editorial 11 days ago, telling Congress that it’s time “to help make engagement the cornerstone of American policy toward Cuba.” | Drawing on Pew’s poll numbers and the marked shift in public opinion, the New York Times published an editorial 11 days ago, telling Congress that it’s time “to help make engagement the cornerstone of American policy toward Cuba.” |
| 4.44pm BST | 4.44pm BST |
| 16:44 | 16:44 |
| USA Today’s Alan Gomez is in Havana: | USA Today’s Alan Gomez is in Havana: |
| Thousands of Cubans lined up to watch the U.S. flag go up outside the U.S. Embassy in Havana this morning. pic.twitter.com/736UPi8ZuV | Thousands of Cubans lined up to watch the U.S. flag go up outside the U.S. Embassy in Havana this morning. pic.twitter.com/736UPi8ZuV |
| 4.42pm BST | 4.42pm BST |
| 16:42 | 16:42 |
| Meanwhile, Yahoo News’ Michael Isikoff interviewed Gerardo Hernandez (released in December by Obama), who told Isikoff that “he’s ready for his ‘next order’ from the Castro regime”: | Meanwhile, Yahoo News’ Michael Isikoff interviewed Gerardo Hernandez (released in December by Obama), who told Isikoff that “he’s ready for his ‘next order’ from the Castro regime”: |
| For his part, Hernandez is unbowed and unrepentant, a proud Fidelista, although one with a wry sense of humor. “I have a new warden now,” he said at the villa, nodding toward a woman looming in the background. “My mother-in-law.” | For his part, Hernandez is unbowed and unrepentant, a proud Fidelista, although one with a wry sense of humor. “I have a new warden now,” he said at the villa, nodding toward a woman looming in the background. “My mother-in-law.” |
| As Hernandez describes it, he is a patriot who was dispatched by Cuba’s Directorate of Intelligence to perform what Cubans viewed as a vital mission inside the United States: to infiltrate anti-Castro exile groups in South Florida that for years were plotting and conducting “terrorist” attacks on their homeland. | As Hernandez describes it, he is a patriot who was dispatched by Cuba’s Directorate of Intelligence to perform what Cubans viewed as a vital mission inside the United States: to infiltrate anti-Castro exile groups in South Florida that for years were plotting and conducting “terrorist” attacks on their homeland. |
| “There were training camps in the Everglades in South Florida,” he said. “Those people used to go in speedboats to Cuba, do some shootings there, place some bombs there and go back and give a press conference: ‘Oh yeah, we did this. We went to Cuba. Down with the Castro government.’” | “There were training camps in the Everglades in South Florida,” he said. “Those people used to go in speedboats to Cuba, do some shootings there, place some bombs there and go back and give a press conference: ‘Oh yeah, we did this. We went to Cuba. Down with the Castro government.’” |
| Those attacks, which continued over a span of decades and are mostly forgotten in the United States, are etched in the memories of most Cubans. In 1976, a Cuban airliner was bombed over the Caribbean, killing 73 passengers, including the teenage members of the Cuban national fencing team. As late as 1997, there was a series of bombings at Havana hotels, aimed at disrupting the country’s nascent tourism industry and killing an Italian businessman — attacks that were said to be the work of anti-Castro exile groups. | Those attacks, which continued over a span of decades and are mostly forgotten in the United States, are etched in the memories of most Cubans. In 1976, a Cuban airliner was bombed over the Caribbean, killing 73 passengers, including the teenage members of the Cuban national fencing team. As late as 1997, there was a series of bombings at Havana hotels, aimed at disrupting the country’s nascent tourism industry and killing an Italian businessman — attacks that were said to be the work of anti-Castro exile groups. |
| 4.35pm BST | 4.35pm BST |
| 16:35 | 16:35 |
| Last April, my colleague Dan Roberts wrote about how Cuba came in from the Cold, through spies, artificial insemination and the pope: | Last April, my colleague Dan Roberts wrote about how Cuba came in from the Cold, through spies, artificial insemination and the pope: |
| It began with a phone call from Congress to the State Department, outlining one of the more bizarre requests in diplomatic history. | It began with a phone call from Congress to the State Department, outlining one of the more bizarre requests in diplomatic history. |
| Tim Rieser, a senior aide to the Senate appropriations committee, wanted to know if US diplomats could help arrange for the collection of frozen sperm from a Cuban spy locked up in the desert outside Los Angeles, so it could be sent to a Panama clinic to inseminate his wife. | Tim Rieser, a senior aide to the Senate appropriations committee, wanted to know if US diplomats could help arrange for the collection of frozen sperm from a Cuban spy locked up in the desert outside Los Angeles, so it could be sent to a Panama clinic to inseminate his wife. |
| The spy in question, Gerardo Hernández, had been sentenced to two life terms for his role in a Miami espionage ring. His government claimed it was aimed at preventing terrorist attacks on Cuban soil, but it led to him being convicted of conspiracy to commit murder after the shooting down of two planes operated by a Cuban-American group that Hernández had infiltrated. | The spy in question, Gerardo Hernández, had been sentenced to two life terms for his role in a Miami espionage ring. His government claimed it was aimed at preventing terrorist attacks on Cuban soil, but it led to him being convicted of conspiracy to commit murder after the shooting down of two planes operated by a Cuban-American group that Hernández had infiltrated. |
| The “Cuban Five”, as the spies were quickly dubbed, were better known than Alan Gross – a State Department subcontractor who was imprisoned after he was caught supplying telecommunications equipment to groups in Havana – and their treatment was a major source of grievance long before Gross became a US cause célèbre. | The “Cuban Five”, as the spies were quickly dubbed, were better known than Alan Gross – a State Department subcontractor who was imprisoned after he was caught supplying telecommunications equipment to groups in Havana – and their treatment was a major source of grievance long before Gross became a US cause célèbre. |
| During a peace-making trip to Cuba with his wife in February 2013, US senator Patrick Leahy – Rieser’s boss and a longtime advocate of rapprochement – was approached by Hernández’s 44-year-old wife, Adriana Pérez, with a very personal plea. Pérez was worried that she and her husband would never be able to have children if he stayed in US prison much longer. | During a peace-making trip to Cuba with his wife in February 2013, US senator Patrick Leahy – Rieser’s boss and a longtime advocate of rapprochement – was approached by Hernández’s 44-year-old wife, Adriana Pérez, with a very personal plea. Pérez was worried that she and her husband would never be able to have children if he stayed in US prison much longer. |
| Read the full story here. | Read the full story here. |
| 4.28pm BST | 4.28pm BST |
| 16:28 | 16:28 |
| Dissident blogger Yoani Sánchez has been tweeting throughout the morning from outside the US embassy in Havana: | Dissident blogger Yoani Sánchez has been tweeting throughout the morning from outside the US embassy in Havana: |
| #Cuba "No me quiero morir sin antes ver esto..." @USEmbCuba Foto vía http://t.co/KNV0Izm7A9 pic.twitter.com/nejxIbQVnF | #Cuba "No me quiero morir sin antes ver esto..." @USEmbCuba Foto vía http://t.co/KNV0Izm7A9 pic.twitter.com/nejxIbQVnF |
| #Cuba “I don’t want to die without seeing this...” | #Cuba “I don’t want to die without seeing this...” |
| #Cuba Este ha sacado su camiseta con @BarackObama frente a @USEmbCuba foto vía @14ymedio http://t.co/jc0s5MAAnq pic.twitter.com/hrTy6Eigq5 | #Cuba Este ha sacado su camiseta con @BarackObama frente a @USEmbCuba foto vía @14ymedio http://t.co/jc0s5MAAnq pic.twitter.com/hrTy6Eigq5 |
| #Cuba “This man brought out his tshirt with @BarackObama on the front to the @USEmbCuba.” | #Cuba “This man brought out his tshirt with @BarackObama on the front to the @USEmbCuba.” |
| 4.10pm BST | 4.10pm BST |
| 16:10 | 16:10 |
| Las Damas de Blanco (The Ladies in White) have also reacted to John Kerry’s speech on Twitter: | Las Damas de Blanco (The Ladies in White) have also reacted to John Kerry’s speech on Twitter: |
| Viendo y oyendo emocionarse a @JohnKerry,sin mencionar para nada a los opositores y los DDHH, Que pena! | Viendo y oyendo emocionarse a @JohnKerry,sin mencionar para nada a los opositores y los DDHH, Que pena! |
| “Watching and listening @JohnKerry getting excited – without mentioning dissidents or human rights at all. Shame! | “Watching and listening @JohnKerry getting excited – without mentioning dissidents or human rights at all. Shame! |
| Viendo y oyendo emocionarse a @JohnKerry, y los muertos del Estrecho de la Florida , por salir de esa dictadura en la que él saluda ahora? | Viendo y oyendo emocionarse a @JohnKerry, y los muertos del Estrecho de la Florida , por salir de esa dictadura en la que él saluda ahora? |
| “Watching and listening @JohKerry getting excited – and what about those who died in the Florida Straits getting out of this dictatorship he is saluting” | “Watching and listening @JohKerry getting excited – and what about those who died in the Florida Straits getting out of this dictatorship he is saluting” |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 4.16pm BST | at 4.16pm BST |
| 4.07pm BST | 4.07pm BST |
| 16:07 | 16:07 |
| The state department has published a video on the three marines who lowered the flag in 1961 and who 54 years later, returned to Cuba to help raise it. | The state department has published a video on the three marines who lowered the flag in 1961 and who 54 years later, returned to Cuba to help raise it. |
| 3.58pm BST | 3.58pm BST |
| 15:58 | 15:58 |
| The Ladies in White, a dissident group composed of wives and relatives of former political prisoners, published an interview on their website with the group’s leader Berta Soler, who was fairly scathing in her assessment of the day’s events: | The Ladies in White, a dissident group composed of wives and relatives of former political prisoners, published an interview on their website with the group’s leader Berta Soler, who was fairly scathing in her assessment of the day’s events: |
| Will the arrival of US tourists and business influence Cuba’s economic development and the day to day life of its inhabitants? | Will the arrival of US tourists and business influence Cuba’s economic development and the day to day life of its inhabitants? |
| It won’t change anything, because when tourists come to Cuba, they come to fill the pockets of the Cuban government, because they got state-owned hotels, and that money doesn’t reach the people, only the system - it’s money which is used to strengthen the strategy of repression. Business people who invest in Cuba bring workers from their countries or chose employees who have been selected by the Cuban government. It’s not the Cuban people will not benefit from this opening, only the government. This will not bring change to Cuba. | It won’t change anything, because when tourists come to Cuba, they come to fill the pockets of the Cuban government, because they got state-owned hotels, and that money doesn’t reach the people, only the system - it’s money which is used to strengthen the strategy of repression. Business people who invest in Cuba bring workers from their countries or chose employees who have been selected by the Cuban government. It’s not the Cuban people will not benefit from this opening, only the government. This will not bring change to Cuba. |
| Who will bring this change? | Who will bring this change? |
| Cuban needs freedom. And freedom will not be brought by the US or any other country. Freedom can only be established by Cubans themselves. We are worried that will they are making concessions to the Castro government, the regime is getting stronger all the while. | Cuban needs freedom. And freedom will not be brought by the US or any other country. Freedom can only be established by Cubans themselves. We are worried that will they are making concessions to the Castro government, the regime is getting stronger all the while. |
| Has Barack Obama given in to Castro? | Has Barack Obama given in to Castro? |
| He’s given him a lot and got nothing in return. He has not put any conditions – and we’re seeing the result of that already: no dissidents were invited to the inauguration of the embassy. | He’s given him a lot and got nothing in return. He has not put any conditions – and we’re seeing the result of that already: no dissidents were invited to the inauguration of the embassy. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 4.15pm BST | at 4.15pm BST |
| 3.53pm BST | 3.53pm BST |
| 15:53 | 15:53 |
| Here is a short video showing the moment the flag was raised: | Here is a short video showing the moment the flag was raised: |
| 3.48pm BST | 3.48pm BST |
| 15:48 | 15:48 |
| John Kerry greets the three marines who lowered the flag at the US embassy’s closing in 1961: | John Kerry greets the three marines who lowered the flag at the US embassy’s closing in 1961: |
| And here is screen grab of the flag going up: | And here is screen grab of the flag going up: |
| 3.42pm BST | 3.42pm BST |
| 15:42 | 15:42 |
| The ceremony is now over and the US delegation has left the embassy grounds. | The ceremony is now over and the US delegation has left the embassy grounds. |
| Kerry, who is using a walking stick after breaking his leg during the negotiations over the Iran nuclear deal, looked quite emotional after delivering his impassioned speech and watching the flag being raised. | Kerry, who is using a walking stick after breaking his leg during the negotiations over the Iran nuclear deal, looked quite emotional after delivering his impassioned speech and watching the flag being raised. |