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The province of Sancti Spíritus held the National Defense Day this Friday with ambush drills, combat caliber shooting, and weapons handling classes, in an event that the military presented as preparation for a potential external aggression.
The epicenter of the activities was the Defense Council of the Jesús María Zone, in the capital municipality, where Osmundo Martínez Montes de Oca, president of the Municipal Defense Council, received a report on the number of people to be protected, the missions of the Production and Defense Brigades, and the urban characteristics of the area, reported the official newspaper Escambray.
The most striking moment of the day was a drill in which troops from territorial militias and defense brigades set an ambush for a supposed enemy squad trying to penetrate the territory from the southern area of the city.
The militia used the element of surprise and their knowledge of the terrain to thwart the simulated incursion and prevent the "attackers" from taking positions within the urban area, the source emphasized.
At the shooting range in the city, combat-caliber shooting was practiced, while in other locations, theoretical-practical classes on the use and maintenance of weapons were conducted.
Throughout the province, the functioning of evacuation, mobilization, and communication mechanisms in wartime conditions was also verified, as well as the performance of work groups in defense councils at all levels, the media outlet emphasized.
The Municipal Defense Council emphasized the importance of timely informing the population in the event of an attack and deemed food production a priority task both in times of peace and during armed conflict.
The events in Sancti Spíritus are part of the militaristic escalation that the regime has maintained since January 2026, when the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces declared the Year of Preparation for Defense and established the National Defense Day as a weekly exercise under the doctrine of the so-called People's War.
Throughout the year, other provinces have witnessed similar scenes. At the end of May, Cienfuegos was the stage for military drills by land and air, while in the municipality of Cotorro in Havana, participants rehearsed the assembly and disassembly of AKM rifles and the production of bread under wartime conditions.
In April, Villa Clara showcased maneuvers with mules and ox carts that sparked widespread mockery on social media due to the use of what are considered outdated methods.
The backdrop of all these exercises is an unprecedented economic and energy crisis.
On June 13, Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz participated in a military event for the National Defense Day in Havana and stated on social media X that "Cuba wants peace and is preparing to defend its sovereignty."
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