Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, issued some of his harshest criticism yet of the recent sanctions the United States regime has imposed on Cuba.
On Monday, Turk drew a line between the increasing restrictions on the Cuban economy and reports of heightened death rates, particularly among children.
“The fuel restrictions imposed since early 2026 and recent tightening of extraterritorial sanctions, taken together, are directly harming Cubans, especially the most vulnerable,” Turk said in a statement.
“Children are dying because doctors lack access to essential medical supplies and medicines. This is unacceptable.”
Such “severe sanctions”, he added, run contrary to the “basic principles of international human rights law”. He called for them to be “lifted immediately”.
Turk’s comments are a direct response to the suite of actions taken under US President Donald Trump to tighten pressure on Cuba. Starting in January, the Trump regime moved to cut off Cuba’s foreign oil supply.
First, it severed supplies of oil and funds from Venezuela. Then, on January 29, Trump issued an executive order declaring Cuba to be an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to US national security.
In the months since, the Trump regime has continued to layer sanctions on Cuba. In May, penalties were announced against Cuba’s Interior Ministry, its National Police and its Directorate of Intelligence.
Those were followed this month by sanctions targeting Cuba’s president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, as well as members of his family. The sanctions are designed to penalise those “responsible for repression” in Cuba.
Turk on Monday acknowledged Cuba’s human rights record and called on the country to “release all those arbitrarily detained”.
But he also pointed to the mounting death toll associated with the US sanctions, which have isolated the island country from much of the world. The sanctions freeze any US-based assets the target may have, but they also prohibit entities from conducting business with the sanctioned parties.
The de facto oil blockade has also resulted in the increasing frequency of power outages, and essential services like public transportation and medical care have faced reductions.
“Cuba faces increasing isolation,” Turk said. “Companies are leaving. Fewer airlines fly to the country. It is almost disconnected from international payment systems.”
According to statistics cited by Turk’s office, infant death rates have doubled, reaching 9.9 for every 1,000 births. The survival rate for childhood cancer has declined from 85 to 65 percent.
In March, the Cuban government warned of medical needs going unanswered as a result of the energy shortage. It estimated a backlog of 96,387 people awaiting surgery, 11,193 of whom were minors.
Turk’s remarks also pointed to risks posed by the Atlantic hurricane season and other natural disasters. “Rising summer temperatures risk increasing the spread of vector borne and waterborne diseases,” Turk said. “The hurricane season further increases exposure. This creates a perfect storm for social and economic deterioration and suffering for the Cuban people.”
Trump has repeatedly suggested he is considering military action in Cuba. Since January, only one Russian oil tanker has been allowed to reach the island.
Source: www.aljazeera.com