The concept of "proportionality" has become the central theme of the official narrative regarding the armed confrontation that took place in front of Corralillo, between a boat from Florida and a group of Cuban border guards.
According to figures presented in the television program Razones de Cuba, the boat from the Border Guard Troops received 13 bullet impacts, while the vessel coming from the United States recorded 21.
The First Colonel Ybey Carballo Pérez stated that the "operational model is rational" for the Cuban border guard troops and that firearms are only used "when there is a prior aggression."
According to their account, the first shot came from the intercepted boat and left the captain of the Cuban vessel wounded in the abdomen. From that moment on, they maintained that the crew acted in accordance with established protocols.
Colonel Víctor Álvarez Valle, in charge of the investigation, specified that the exchange occurred about 20 meters apart and emphasized that the impacts on both vessels were concentrated above the waterline.
That detail was presented as evidence that it was not fired to sink the ship.
Initially, three of the individuals on board were confirmed deceased, and seven were injured. Later, one of the injured individuals passed away.
The casualty count from the boat in Florida, in contrast to a single injured person among the Cuban forces, raises questions about whether the intensity of the fire adhered strictly to the principle of using only the minimum necessary force.
Beyond the number of impacts, proportionality will depend on clarifying through independent expert assessments who fired first and whether there were real alternatives before a lethal outcome.
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