The political prisoner Dariel Cruz, who is only 23 years old, is one of the 553 prisoners that the regime agreed to release following negotiations between the Vatican and the United States.
Residing in the neighborhood of Güinera, in the Havana municipality of Arroyo Naranjo, Cruz spent almost three years in prison for participating in the historic protests of July 2021 in Cuba.
Initially sentenced to 15 years in prison for "sedition", this Wednesday the young man walked alongside his mother through the neighborhood streets, where he was welcomed with hugs and expressions of affection from neighbors and friends.
The reunion with his grandmother was especially emotional.
"In the evening, they sent for me and called my mom saying that I was free", he explained in statements collected by the network Telemundo.
In response to the question about how he feels, he replied:
"How do you think it makes me feel to come out of a hell to be with my family and my daughter? I'm calm now. I feel happy and at peace, and I'm behaving well to move forward," he said.
Although his sentence was neither annulled nor commuted, the authorities informed him that he would be able to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.
Release of political prisoners in Cuba
A total of 28 Cuban political prisoners, including José Daniel Ferrer, Luis Robles Elizástigui, and protesters from July 11th, have been released in the first 36 hours following the agreement reached by the Havana regime with the United States through the Vatican.
The Cuban government announced on January 14, 2025, the gradual release of 553 individuals who were serving sentences for various offenses.
In a statement, the regime outlined that these releases would take place under special conditions, allowing those released to remain under surveillance and with pending legal commitments, such as temporary extrapenal licenses.
Cubalex, an organization dedicated to the defense of human rights, is conducting an independent verification of each of the confirmed cases.
Although these individuals have been released from prison, they are not fully free, as they still have to fulfill other legal obligations under specific conditions, reports Cubalex.
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