President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum to the Cuban government, urging it to release political prisoners or face continued blackouts, fuel shortages and other problems.
Washington is currently maintaining a blockade in the region, preventing Cuba from receiving shipments of oil and other resources. The move is aimed at pressuring the Cuban government to remove the Castro family from power, release political prisoners, hold free elections, and restore civil liberties to the public. The president has also imposed tariffs on countries that provide oil to the Cuban regime.
CUBA COLLAPSING: The Cuban Communist Regime just started releasing prisoners HOURS after their amnesty announcement…completely folding under President Trump’s brutal pressure campaign and oil blockade.
— Liz Churchill (@liz_churchill10) April 4, 2026
Obama kissed their asses for years and got ZERO. pic.twitter.com/5ojSWbnh0n
Cuban officials have been forced to ration fuel and take other emergency actions to protect agriculture, education, and health care, Reuters reported.
Cuba announced in March that it would free 51 prisoners as a goodwill effort related to its relationship with the Vatican, according to The Associated Press.
Cuba’s government said Thursday night that it would release 51 people from the island’s prisons in an unexpected move.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the release in the upcoming days stems from a spirit of goodwill and close relations with the Vatican.
The government did not identify who it would release, except to say that “all have served a significant part of their sentence and have maintained good conduct in prison.”
The announcement was made just hours Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel is scheduled to speak early Friday in another rare meeting with the press “to address national and international issues.”
The government said it has granted pardons to 9,905 inmates since 2010. It added that in the past three years, another 10,000 people sentenced to imprisonment were released.
In January 2025, Cuba released prominent dissident José Daniel Ferrer as part of a government decision to gradually free more than 500 prisoners following talks with the Vatican.
The Trump administration reportedly warned #Havana: free political prisoners or face consequences.
— The Foundation For Human Rights in Cuba (@TheFHRC) April 20, 2026
At the center: Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and Maykel “Osorbo” Castillo Pérez, creators of “Patria y Vida,” the song that became an anthem for freedom in Cuba and shook the regime.… pic.twitter.com/s5IfBRagH9
However, human rights groups point out that this move did not address the wider issue of political repression and free speech. Over 700 political prisoners remain behind bars, according to Human Rights Watch.
The Cuban regime has a long history of suppressing political dissent and punishing criticism of the government. It routinely uses arbitrary incarceration, arrests, and harassment to intimidate critics into staying silent.
The blockade has affected about nine million people due to fuel shortages that have disrupted electricity, transportation, food distribution, and access to medicine. The nation’s power grid has collapsed multiple times. Still, the regime has resisted Trump’s demands for the time being.