After Vatican talks, Cuba says it will release prisoners

“In the spirit of goodwill, and the close and fluid relations between the Cuban state and the Vatican, with which communication has historically been maintained regarding the review and release of prisoners, the Cuban government has decided to release 51 people sentenced to imprisonment in the coming days,” the Foreign Ministry said last week.

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”.

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. Ferrer left Cuba last October and is now in the United States.

The non-profit organisation Prisoners Defenders has said there were 1214 political prisoners in Cuba as of February 2026.

It was unclear how many of the 51 prisoners included in the latest release have been held on common crimes or charges related to public displays of dissent.

“This sovereign decision is a common practice in our criminal justice system and has characterised the humanitarian trajectory of the revolution, which this time coincides with the approach of the religious celebrations of Holy Week,” the Cuban government said.

The government has always rejected any suggestion it makes decisions under US pressure. The timing of the March 12 announcement coincided with the most intense pressure campaign applied by Washington in decades.

US President Donald Trump has made a series of threatening statements concerning Cuba in recent weeks.

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Cuba to release 51 people from prison in unexpected move | ABC News (ABC/AP/Reuters)