The memory of the 32 Cuban combatants who died in the line of duty during the events of January 3rd in Venezuela was perpetuated with the inauguration of a mausoleum in honor of the heroes at the General Cemetery of the South in Caracas.
Under a light drizzle, members of the collaboration missions and diplomats, accompanied by their children, paid tribute to the 32 combatants of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) and the Ministry of the Interior who gave their lives in defense of “this sister land.”
As part of the tribute, the Cuban ambassador to Caracas, Jorge Mayo, and Major General Raúl Omar Acosta laid a floral offering with the flags of Cuba and Venezuela on behalf of the State Mission.
The military attaché of the Cuban embassy in Caracas, Colonel Marcos Hernández, evoked the ties between great figures in the history of the two countries: Simón Bolívar, José Martí, Narciso López, Cecilio Acosta, and the Maceo brothers, who forged the nation and united Cubans and Venezuelans “beyond geographical proximity.”
Hernández recalled that on January 3, U.S. imperialism carried out the criminal and treacherous attack against Venezuela, relying on technological and numerical superiority, the element of surprise, and overwhelming firepower.
The marble of this mausoleum bears their names, but it is the heart of Cuba and Venezuela, where they will live eternally through their example.
This action, he denounced, was a demonstration of “the most absolute contempt for international law,” in which the constitutional president, Nicolás Maduro, and the First Lady, Congresswoman Cilia Flores, were kidnapped and have been imprisoned for five months in a New York jail.
In this regard, he praised the resolute resistance of the Cuban and Venezuelan combatants, whose blood “watered the sacred path of independence” begun by the heroes of independence.
This meant that their enduring examples of loyalty to the homeland, to the unity of the peoples of Latin America, and to fidelity to the noblest principles of humanity, guide today those who have chosen the path of dedication to the Communist Party of Cuba, to Fidel, to Raúl, and to the internationalist legacy of the Revolution.
The high-ranking FAR officer stated that, faced with the economic, financial, and energy blockade imposed by imperialism to try to strangle the island, the example of these heroes “underscores the commitment to confront current challenges and dangers” and the resolve to defend the sovereignty of the homeland “regardless of the magnitude of the threat.”
More details of the inauguration ceremony are available in the video.
IMAGE CREDIT: Tribute in Caracas to Cubans and Venezuelans who died on January 3rd. Photo: Prensa Latina.
(With information from Canal Caribe and Prensa Latina)
[ SOURCE: CUBA DEBATE ]
