An arrest warrant has been issued in the U.S. for 95-year-old Raúl Castro

 A Florida court has issued an arrest warrant for former Cuban leader Raúl Castro, according to NBC.

The decision to seek his arrest stems from his alleged involvement in the downing of two humanitarian aircraft in 1996.

Raúl Castro is the younger brother of Fidel Castro. He served as president of Cuba from 2008 to 2018, having previously headed the country’s Ministry of Defense for many years. Raúl Castro is currently 95 years old.

 The incident took place on February 24, 1996. The Cuban Air Force shot down two civilian Cessna 337 aircraft belonging to "Brothers to the Rescue," a Miami-based organization of Cuban exiles. While the group’s primary mission was searching for Cuban refugees at sea, it also carried out anti-government activities—most notably, dropping leaflets over Cuba. Four people aboard the two planes were killed, while the crew of a third aircraft managed to return to Florida.

According to U.S. authorities, the planes were shot down over international waters north of Cuba. Havana, however, maintained that the organization’s actions posed a threat to the country’s security and that the aircraft had violated Cuban airspace.