Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, former Cuban president, whose rise as a revolutionary made him the face of socialist rebellion for more than half a century, died on 25th November following a long battle with illness.
Castro rose to power as leader of a guerrilla army that overthrew Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959.
He remained in office for almost 40 years, until health problems and intestinal surgery forced him to hand over control to his younger brother, Raul, in 2006. He officially resigned as president in 2008.
Castro was born 13th August 1926 on his family’s sugar plantation. His father had come to Cuba from Spain as an immigrant labourer but eventually became a landowner. Castro attended Catholic schools and studied law at the University of Havana.