What we know so far

The passengers aboard a Florida-registered speedboat that entered its waters and opened fire on its soldiers were Cuban nationals living in the United States who were planning to carry out a terror attack on the island, according to Cuba’s government.

In a statement late Wednesday, the Cuban ministry said that the speed boat was carrying 10 “armed individuals” who “intended to carry out an infiltration for terrorist purposes.”

The ministry said that “assault rifles, handguns, improvised explosive devices (Molotov cocktails), body armor, telescopic sights, and camouflage uniforms” were seized following the shootout.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that American officials were investigating what he called a “highly unusual” incident.

What Cuba says happened

The Cuban ministry announced earlier Wednesday that its border guard had killed four people and wounded six others aboard the boat after it was intercepted about one mile northeast of Cayo Falcones on the northern coast of Cuba’s Villa Clara province. According to the Cuban ministry, when a border guard vessel approached the speed boat and asked for identification, its crew opened fire, injuring a border guard commander. The border guard returned fire, the ministry said.

The six wounded passengers received medical assistance and were detained. They were identified as:

“Most have prior records involving criminal and violent activity,” according to the ministry.

Two of the detainees, Amijail Sánchez González and Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez, were wanted by Cuban authorities “for their alleged involvement in the promotion, planning, organization, financing, support, or execution of terrorist acts,” the ministry said.

One of the four people killed was identified as Michel Ortega Casanova. Three others have not yet been identified.

The Cuban government also announced the arrest of an 11th person, Duniel Hernández Santos, who “had allegedly been sent from the United States to facilitate the landing and reception of the armed group and has confessed to his role.”

“The investigation remains ongoing until all facts have been fully established,” the ministry said.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel defended the border guard Thursday in a post on X, saying that Cuba “does not attack or threaten.”

“We have stated this repeatedly, and we reiterate it today: Cuba will defend itself with determination and firmness against any terrorist or mercenary aggression that seeks to undermine its sovereignty and national stability,” Díaz-Canel wrote.

What U.S. officials are saying

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday in St. Kitts, where he was attending a regional summit with Caribbean leaders, Rubio said U.S. officials were in the process of gathering information about the shootout.

“Suffice it to say, it is highly unusual to see shootouts in open sea like that. It’s not something that happens every day,” Rubio said. “It’s something, frankly, that hasn’t happened with Cuba in a very long time.”

Rubio said that both the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Coast Guard are investigating the incident. He said that the boat was not carrying U.S. government personnel and was not involved in a U.S. government operation.

“The majority of the facts being publicly reported are those by the information provided by the Cubans,” Rubio said. “We will verify that independently as we gather more information, and we’ll be prepared to respond accordingly.”

He added: “We’re going to have our own information on this. We’re going to figure out exactly what happened.”

The backdrop

The speedboat incident comes amid ongoing tensions between the United States and Cuba, which flared following the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a U.S. military operation.

President Trump said that Cuba’s communist regime was “ready to fall” in the aftermath of Maduro’s capture.

Rubio made similar comments at the time, saying, “If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned.”

During an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council, Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuba’s ambassador to the United Nations, condemned Maduro’s arrest.

“Cuba condemns in the strongest terms the military aggression of the U.S. against Venezuela,” Guzmán said, describing the raid as an “unacceptable and barbaric act.”