June 5, 2026
This article about Cuba’s medical solidarity with the world was written by Luis Hernández Navarro and published in the progressive Mexican newspaper La Jornada on June 2. (El artículo en espanol: cuba-y-ebola-la-epopeya.) Translation, John Catalinotto
Cuban doctors aid Liberia and Sierra Leone to fight ebola outbreak in 2016.
Cuba achieved the feat of bringing healthcare and helping to defeat an epidemic in distant lands, just as it had previously played a key role in the decolonization of Africa and the end of apartheid.
Ebola is an acute infectious disease. It causes high fevers, hemorrhages and even death. It can spread rapidly. A few days ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new outbreak of the disease a public health emergency of international concern.
The epidemic broke out on May 15. The African Union (AU) public health agency reported last Thursday that there were 246 “suspected deaths” attributed to the virus outbreak, mostly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and, to a much lesser extent, in Uganda and South Sudan. Last Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised the risk level for the outbreak from “high” to “very high.” There are no vaccines or treatments available for the strain affecting the population, named Bundibugyo.
According to the WHO, the disease is spreading amid poverty and armed conflicts between multiple groups, including the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), the Codeco militias and the M23 group, which is backed by Rwanda and funded by the West.
Ahead of the World Cup, in response to the outbreak, Canada, the U.S. and Mexico have strengthened health measures to ensure “that the tournament is safer.” The DRC is a qualified team and will play against Colombia on June 23 in Guadalajara.
This is not the first time there have been Ebola outbreaks in Africa. In August and September 2014, the World Health Organization and the governments of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea called for international aid to combat the largest recorded epidemic of the deadly virus.
Just three days after a call from Ban Ki-moon, then Secretary-General of the United Nations, to then Cuban President Raúl Castro, more than 12,000 healthcare professionals volunteered to go to Africa to fight the disease. Ultimately, 256 doctors, nurses and healthcare technicians were selected and trained.
The Caribbean volunteers in West Africa were part of the Henry Reeve [*] Brigade, created in September 2005, which gained widespread recognition years later for its significant role in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in countries such as Italy.
U.S. rejected Cuban medical aid for Katrina
The first medical contingent was an initiative of President Fidel Castro to assist residents of New Orleans and the surrounding swampy areas of Louisiana in the U.S. affected by Hurricane Katrina [in 2005]. The offer of selfless support was rejected by Washington. However, the Henry Reeve Brigade has continued to provide medical support to dozens of countries on different continents.
The island’s medical solidarity with Africa is almost as old as its revolution. Although nearly half of its doctors had left the island for the U.S., on May 23, 1963, Havana sent a delegation of 56 volunteer doctors, dentists, nurses and technicians — including 10 women — to independent Algeria, where only about 600 health professionals remained. That was the first medical initiative on that continent, of many more to come, sustained for over half a century.
It was a response to a system of values that, years later — on Oct. 18, 2014 — Fidel Castro wrote about in his “Reflections”: “Medical personnel who go anywhere to save lives, even at the risk of losing their own, are the greatest examples of solidarity that human beings can offer, especially when they are not motivated by any material interest. … ”
In 2014, doctors, nurses, technicians and public health specialists left Cuba for Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to provide care — despite language barriers and extremely precarious conditions — to thousands of sick people who seemed to have no future other than death, and to their families. They left behind their homes and loved ones, risking their lives.
Margaret Chan, then Director-General of the WHO, said something about the island’s effort that is often forgotten by those who accuse Havana of posing a threat to U.S. security: “I am deeply grateful for the generosity of the Cuban government and these health professionals, who will do their part to help contain the worst Ebola outbreak in history. This collaboration will make a significant difference in Sierra Leone.
“The Cuban government’s commitment is an example of the kind of international effort needed to scale up response activities and strengthen national capacities.
“Cuba is known worldwide for its ability to train outstanding doctors and nurses, as well as for its generosity in helping other countries on their path to progress,” Chan added.
Eight months after leaving, in May 2015, the last member of the Cuban medical brigade returned home. By then, the Ebola epidemic in West Africa had been virtually eradicated. Unlike the old (and new) colonizers, the volunteers returned with empty pockets but with hearts full of satisfaction. They did not carry ivory, diamonds or riches in their luggage. They brought home the pride of having saved thousands of lives, prevented suffering and healed the helpless.
Among others, two magnificent works offer insight into the Cuban epic in the fight against Ebola — a story so necessary to remember in these times of disease and villainy. One is the book “Red Zone: Cuba and the Battle Against Ebola in West Africa,” by Enrique Ubieta. The other is the documentary “Cubans, Between Life and Ebola” (https://shorturl.at/FCP9D), by filmmaker Yordanis Rodríguez Laurencio.
Cuba achieved the feat of bringing healthcare and helping to defeat an epidemic in distant lands, just as it had previously played a key role in the decolonization of Africa and the end of apartheid, in the midst of the U.S. blockade. As stated in these pages and in the letters from the Southeast, if it managed to do that despite the blockade, what might it have accomplished without it?
La Jornada
[* Henry Reeve (1850–1876) was a Brooklyn-born Union Army veteran who became a decorated Brigadier General in the Cuban Liberation Army during the Ten Years’ War. Revered in Cuba as a national hero, he fought in over 400 battles and famously tied his permanently injured leg to his saddle to keep leading cavalry charges. (Wikipedia)]
