Cuba’s government on Tuesday published the names, ranks and ages of 32 military officers killed during the U.S. operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, announcing two days of national mourning. The deceased — drawn from Cuba’s Revolutionary Armed Forces and Ministry of the Interior — ranged in age from 26 to 60 and included colonels, lieutenants, majors, captains and reserve soldiers, according to Cuban state media, which published individual headshots showing the officers in olive-green military uniforms.

The disclosures marked the most detailed public accounting yet of Cuba’s military presence in Venezuela, where the two governments have maintained bilateral agreements since 2000, and prompted an emergency session of the Organization of American States in Washington, where international representatives split sharply over the legality of the U.S. action.

Cuba declares mourning, vows defiance

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez said Tuesday that Cubans were “prepared to give their lives” against any U.S. intervention as the island confronted the prospect of a changed regional order without Maduro as Venezuela’s leader.

“The U.S. president, displaying a complete lack of understanding about Cuba and repeating the agenda of lies of Cuban-American politicians and other interest groups, blasphemes against and threatens our people,” Rodríguez wrote on X. “Our valiant people, true to their history of struggle, will defend their nation against any imperialist aggression.”

Cuba had first acknowledged the deaths in a statement issued Sunday, saying the personnel were in Venezuela as part of agreements between the two governments. That statement said they fell “after fierce resistance in direct combat against the attackers, or as a result of the bombing of the facilities.”

Cuban state media published names, ranks and photographs of each of the 32 on Tuesday, but did not specify the officers’ missions or describe exactly how each died.

Luis Domínguez, who operates Represores Cubanos — a website that documents alleged human rights abuses by Cuban officials — said the public statements of solidarity should be read skeptically. “You have to say that to say the same thing as the government,” he said. “Inside, Cubans have to be saying something else.”

Officers identified

Among those named, Domínguez said he believes 67-year-old Col. Humberto Alfonso Roca Sánchez was the garrison commander of Punto Cero, where Fidel Castro once lived. He said 62-year-old Col. Lázaro Evangelio Rodríguez Rodríguez is believed to have overseen Cuba’s coast and border guards.

Cuba and Venezuela have maintained bilateral agreements in security and energy since 2000, including the sale of subsidized oil to Cuba, but the extent of military or advisory exchanges between the two governments has rarely been reported, according to the Associated Press.

The independent Cuban blog La Joven Cuba published a profile of 1st Lt. Yunio Estévez, 32, a communications expert from Guantánamo province who had three children and was reportedly shot during the attack. The post was later removed at the family’s request, the website said.

Nations divide at OAS emergency session

The U.S. strike prompted the Organization of American States to convene a special session Tuesday in Washington. About a dozen protesters gathered outside beforehand holding signs that read “No war on Venezuela” and “Arepas Not Bombs.”

Inside, a protester interrupted U.S. Ambassador Leandro Rizzuto’s address. “The majority of people are against this!” cried out Medea Benjamin, co-founder of Code Pink, a U.S.-based anti-war nonprofit. “Hands off Venezuela!” OAS officials called for security guards, who led her from the room.

Rizzuto resumed his speech, calling the operation a “targeted law enforcement action” against an “indicted criminal.”

“Let me be clear, the U.S. did not invade Venezuela,” Rizzuto said. “President Trump offered Maduro multiple offramps. This was not an interference in democracy…it actually removed the obstacle to it.”

Rizzuto also called on Venezuela to release an estimated 1,000 political prisoners and said the U.S. supports a request by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to visit detention facilities in person.

Colombia’s vice minister of foreign relations, Mauricio Jaramillo, condemned the U.S. action as a “clear violation of international law” that set “an extremely worrying” precedent.

After Rizzuto spoke, Peruvian Ambassador Rodolfo Coronado called for a minute of silence for the victims of Maduro’s rule.