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The Civil Defense of Cuba distributed in the province of Granma –though it is nationally circulated– a "Family Guide for Protection Against Military Aggression", a nine-page document that instructs families on how to survive bombings with the resources they have on hand, including bread, cereals, canned goods, and medications that, in Cuba in 2026, are virtually impossible to obtain.
The document, prepared by the National Staff of Civil Defense in April 2026 with the slogan "Protect, resist, survive and overcome," became known to the public accidentally: Yudelkis Ortiz, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in Granma, published the results of the Provincial Defense Council meeting on Facebook and then deleted the post, which suggests that she revealed something that was not authorized to be made public.
The guide recommends preparing a family backpack that includes candles, matches, a lighter, a flashlight, a radio with alternative power, non-cooked food for three days—cans, cookies, fruits, bread, cereals, candies—a container with drinking water, personal hygiene items "according to your means," and medications for chronic illnesses.
The recommended first aid kit is even more revealing: pain relievers such as dipyrone, paracetamol, and aspirin, antihistamines, disposable gloves, antiseptics, gauze, bandages, adhesive tape, scissors, tweezers, thermometer, burn ointments, and masks.
The problem is that 70% of essential medicines from the Basic Medicine List are unavailable in Cuban state pharmacies, and only 3% of citizens managed to find the medications they needed, according to the Cuban Observatory of Social Rights.
Regarding food, a recent survey revealed that one in three Cuban households is facing hunger, 25% go to bed without dinner, and 97% of the population has lost access to basic food items, with a cost of living exceeding 40,000 pesos per month compared to an average salary of 6,000 pesos.
In the event of an air raid alert, the document instructs to seek refuge in "basements, semi-basements, tunnels, ditches with depths that allow protection from the blast wave" and not to leave until receiving the all-clear signal.
If there is no time to reach a shelter, the guide advises lying face down, protecting the head, and opening the mouth to reduce the damage from the shockwave.
Ortiz justified the initiative before deleting his post: "The best way to prevent war is by preparing ourselves. We are implementing that idea, that concept in Granma."
The distribution of the document is carried out through the movement "Mi Barrio por la Patria," the Community Youth Network, and meetings in workplaces, educational institutions, and residential areas of the province.
The initiative is part of the declaration of 2026 as "Year of Preparation for Defense", which since January 11 has established Saturdays as permanent military training days for the civilian population, with exercises that include AK-47 rifles, drones, anti-tank mines, and yokes of oxen for road blocking.
The most recent trigger was the statement by Donald Trump on May 2 in Palm Beach: “We will be taking Cuba almost immediately. Cuba has problems.”
Díaz-Canel responded by warning that Trump "is escalating his threats of military aggression against Cuba to a dangerous and unprecedented level," while Raúl Castro sent letters to the Central and Eastern Army calling to "firmly confront any enemy aggression," and on May 1 declared to be "with one foot in the stirrup and ready for the machete charge".
The figure of Ortiz adds a layer of irony to the episode: just two days before presiding over the Defense Council meeting, the PCC secretary in Granma attended a spiritualist gathering in Bayamo to "ward off" external threats against Cuba.
The guide itself summarizes the regime's logic: "With the same zeal and discipline that we have prepared to face disaster events, we must prepare to protect life if the enemy attacks us militarily."
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