Expect nuclear war if US attacks Iran

Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro, in his first open-air rally since a near-death illness four years ago, has warned about the threat of a nuclear war if the United States or Israel attack Iran.

The 84-year-old revolutionary leader, wearing his trademark olive green uniform, completed a return to public life on Friday and addressed thousands of students and others at the University of Havana in his first mass rally since an illness forced him to officially step down as the country’s president.

He said a nuclear conflict was inevitable if the United States, in alliance with Israel, tried to impose international sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program.

On June 9, the UN Security Council approved a resolution, brokered and pushed through by Washington, which imposed new sanctions on Iran. The measure was soon followed by more unilateral sanctions by the US and the European Union, mainly targeting the Islamic Republic’s oil and gas sectors.

Castro slammed Washington for creating a “system that threatens the survival of humanity,” adding, “The problem of people today, I mean the more than seven billion human beings, is to prevent such a tragedy from happening.”

In his speech, he also sounded the alarm over climate change, which he said “threatens human existence.”

“Faced with the skeptics, our duty is to keep up the fight. I am convinced that a good number of people are becoming conscious of the reality,” he added.

“I thank you all for your presence and moral support in this fight for peace,” Castro said at the end of his 44-minute speech, far shorter than the hours-long speeches he once gave.

“I exhort you to not abandon this battle. As in past fights, we can win,” the father of Cuba’s 1959 revolution said in conclusion.

After his 2006 illness, Castro disappeared from public view and was seen only occasionally in photographs and videos, and formally handed over the presidency of Cuba to his younger brother, Raul Castro, in 2008.

In recent weeks he has emerged from seclusion, making at least eight public appearances in three weeks, culminating August 8 with an address before the country’s National Assembly — his first in four years.