Pablo Morales had promised God that if he reached the land of freedom alive, he would do for other Cubans what Hermanos al Rescate had done for him. He died fulfilling that promise.
This is how Sylvia Iriondo remembers the shooting down of the Brothers to the Rescue planes on February 24, 1996, in a testimony that reconstructs the story of one of the four volunteers killed by Cuban Air Force jets over the Florida Strait.
Iriondo recounts that on the same day, in the hangar of Hermanos al Rescate, before departing on the humanitarian flight, Morales shared his story with him.
When crossing the Strait on a raft and unsure if he would reach his destination, he saw the organization's planes flying over his boat, dropping water and essential supplies, while alerting the U.S. Coast Guard.
"Pablito was telling me the very same day there in the hangar of Hermanos al Rescate, before departing on the humanitarian flight, that he lifted a prayer to God and told Him, his Father, that if he arrived safely in lands of freedom, he would do for his other brothers on the Island what Hermanos al Rescate had done for him when they were flying over that raft, which was uncertain if it would make it or not," Iriondo recalled.
Born in Havana on May 16, 1966, Morales fled Cuba on a raft on August 5, 1992, according to case documents before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
He was a permanent resident of the United States, the only one of the four victims who did not have American citizenship; the other three - Armando Alejandre Jr., Carlos Costa, and Mario de la Peña - were American citizens.
On February 24, 1996, Morales was traveling as a co-pilot alongside Carlos Costa when their small aircraft was destroyed by air-to-air missiles fired from Cuban fighters in international airspace.
Their bodies, like those of the other three victims, were never recovered.
"Pablito died fulfilling his promise to God. Pablito died in the Florida Strait in international airspace during a rescue flight to save other Cuban brothers who were on the same path from which he had been saved," Iriondo stated.
Thirty years after the crime, the United States Department of Justice filed criminal charges against Raúl Castro and five other Cuban military officials on May 20, 2026, a symbolic date that coincides with the anniversary of Cuba's independence.
The charges include conspiracy to assassinate U.S. citizens, destruction of aircraft, and four counts of murder.
Iriondo, who survived the attack by traveling on the third plane—piloted by José Basulto and which managed to escape—described the indictment as a historic but insufficient advancement over time.
"One step in the right direction for justice to be served. The fact is that there is already an indictment against the dictator Raúl Castro. Obviously, if this had happened before the other dictator Fidel Castro died, he too would have been responsible," he declared.
Iriondo also pointed out that the three-decade delay was due to a lack of political will: "There was no will, there was no will on the part of the American administrations. They always fell short at one point or another, and now there has been will, there has been follow-up, and that is why we are taking an effective first step for those responsible for this atrocious crime to face justice."
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