UPDATE 2-Cubans gather before US embassy in Havana to protest Raul Castro indictment

Thousands of Cubans ​gathered on Friday before the U.S. ‌embassy in ​Havana to protest a U.S. decision to indict former president Raul Castro over the downing of two civilian airplanes 30 years ‌ago. The pro-government demonstration, which began shortly after sunrise on Havana's waterfront, came as Cuban officials rallied this week around the island's revolutionary hero.

The 94-year-old elder statesman was not present. Cuban lawmaker Gerardo Hernandez, ‌a national hero and former spy, conveyed a message thanking the Cuban people and ‌friends around the world for their solidarity.

"As long as I live, I will remain at the forefront of the Revolution, with one foot in the stirrup," Hernandez quoted Castro as saying. Thousands of Cubans waved flags during the nearly ⁠hour-long rally, ​chanting "Viva Raul!" and "Patria o ⁠Muerte (Homeland or Death)!".

President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero attended the rally, as did several of Castro's family, including ⁠daughter Mariela Castro, son Alejandro Castro and grandson Raul Rodriguez Castro. Rodriguez Castro, known in Cuba as "Raulito" (Little Raul) or "El ​Cangrejo" (The Crab), often serves as his grandfather's bodyguard and met last week with CIA ⁠Director John Ratcliffe during a rare visit by a U.S. spy chief to Havana.

Mariela Castro, interviewed shortly after ⁠the ​protest, told Cuban state-run media that her father was doing fine. "Raul is doing very well, very calm, like an old guerrilla fighter; he observes and smiles. He always said: 'No ⁠one takes me alive; they'll catch me fighting,'" she said.

Cuba says Castro's indictment on murder charges ⁠on Wednesday was based ⁠on "spurious" allegations designed to serve as a pretext to invade as President Donald Trump's administration pushes to upend the island's government.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)