Cuba Kills Four in Clash With Crew of Intruding US-Registered Boat

Four people who entered Cuban waters aboard a US-registered speedboat were shot dead by border guards, Cuba’s government said.

Cuba’s Interior Ministry said the Florida-registered vessel — registration number FL7726SH — was detected near Cayo Falcones in Villa Clara province on Wednesday morning. (Photo: Martin Abegglen, Wikimedia Commons) 

Authorities said the boat’s passengers opened fire on a coast guard vessel that approached them, Bernd Debusmann Jr. and Max Matza reported for BBC News.

Six additional passengers were wounded in the incident, which took place near an island off Cuba’s northern coast.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the nationalities of those on board were unclear and that the United States would “make determinations based on the facts.”

“Right now, we’re still gathering facts,” Rubio said, adding that the vessel was not carrying US government personnel.

Cuba said it did not know the identities of those on board or what the vessel was doing in the area. Authorities said an investigation had been launched to “clarify” the incident.

In a statement posted on X, Cuba’s Interior Ministry said the Florida-registered vessel — registration number FL7726SH — was detected near Cayo Falcones in Villa Clara province on Wednesday morning.

When a Cuban patrol boat carrying five border guard officers approached the vessel for identification, “the crew of the violating speedboat opened fire,” wounding the Cuban commander, the ministry said.

“As a consequence of the confrontation, as of the time of this report, four aggressors on the foreign vessel were killed and six injured,” the statement said. The injured were evacuated and provided medical assistance.