Former Cuban leader Raúl Castro made his first public appearance Friday since the Trump administration charged him with murder over the 1996 shoot-down of planes operated by a Cuban exile group.

Castro appeared on state television during an Interior Ministry celebration in Havana, according to Reuters.

The appearance came weeks after the Department of Justice unsealed an indictment accusing Castro of playing a role in the downing of two aircraft operated by the Miami-based exile organization Brothers to the Rescue nearly 30 years ago.

Castro was charged with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, destruction of aircraft and four counts of murder.

DOJ, TREASURY INVESTIGATE NONPROFITS AND LEADERS ALLEGEDLY COORDINATING WITH CUBA IN INFLUENCE CAMPAIGN

Castro, who turned 95 on Wednesday, was last seen publicly during May Day celebrations in Havana, days before the indictment was unsealed.

Prior to his May Day appearance, Castro had remained out of public view for months, appearing only at a public ceremony in Cuba's capital in January honoring 32 Cuban soldiers killed during the U.S. military operation that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

The indictment centers on a February 1996 incident in which Cuban military aircraft allegedly shot down two unarmed civilian planes operated by Brothers to the Rescue, killing four men: Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña and Pablo Morales.

OBAMA’S BASEBALL OUTING WITH CASTRO REIGNITES FURY AFTER TRUMP DOJ DROPS HAMMER ON CUBAN LEADER

Prosecutors allege the aircraft were flying outside Cuban territory when they were destroyed.

The indictment came amid rising tensions in the Caribbean and a series of comments from Trump and his surrogates hinting at possible regime change in the island nation.

President Donald Trump previously praised the indictment, saying Cuban Americans whose families suffered under the communist regime had waited decades for accountability.

TRUMP DECLARES NATIONAL EMERGENCY OVER CUBA, THREATENS TARIFFS ON NATIONS THAT SUPPLY OIL TO COMMUNIST REGIME

"We have big news on Cuba, as you know, with the indictment of Castro," Trump said. "A lot of people have suffered very big, very, very, at levels that few people would understand."

Trump also suggested tensions with Cuba would not escalate following the indictment.

"There won’t be escalation," he said. "We won’t have to."

MADURO'S CAPTURE IS 'BEGINNING OF THE END' FOR CUBA'S REGIME, HOUSE INTELLIGENCE CHAIR SAYS

Still, the decision to indict Castro fueled comparisons to the pressure campaign Trump previously used against Maduro.

"At the very least, it means symbolically that he is now set up just as Nicolás Maduro was," Christine Balling, a Cuba expert at the Institute of World Politics and former advisor to U.S. Special Operations Command South, previously told Fox News Digital.

The U.S. indicted Maduro on narco-terrorism charges while tightening sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector, backing opposition efforts to remove him from power and increasing military operations in the Caribbean.

"I don't think that we are necessarily going to conduct the same operation," Balling said. "Raúl Castro is 94 years old. It might not be worth the trouble."

Still, Balling argued that the indictment sent "a very straightforward message that we are 100% behind the fall of the Castro regime."

Fox News Digital's Robert McGreevy, Greg Wehner and Morgan Phillips, along with Fox News' David Spunt, Bill Mears and Jake Gibson contributed to this report. Reuters also contributed to this report.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) responded to a recent report in the New York Times, in which several ex-girlfriends of Democrat U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner (D-ME) described his "unsettling" behavior. Collins called the allegations against Platner "troubling."

The post Susan Collins Responds to Graham Platner Ex’s Describing ‘Unsettling’ Behavior: Allegations Are ‘Troubling’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Friday on CNN's "The Lead," Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) said the Department of Justice's so-called anti-weaponization fund was a "gross abuse of discretion."

The post GOP Rep. Fitzpatrick: ‘Gross Abuse of Discretion to Advance’ Weaponization Fund appeared first on Breitbart.

Friday on CNN's "The Arena," Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) said he was not planning to vote for Todd Blanche to be Attorney General.

The post Fetterman: Blanche Not Someone I Could Support for AG appeared first on Breitbart.

Israel secretly deployed elite military and intelligence personnel to Azerbaijan during the U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran as part of a broader network of covert positions established across the Middle East to support operations against the Islamic Republic, according to a report published Friday.

The post Report: Israel Deployed Elite Forces to Azerbaijan as Part of Secret Regional Iran War Network appeared first on Breitbart.

Graham Platner, Maine's likely Democrat nominee for U.S. Senate, was hand-plucked by a pair of socialist political operatives who sought him out after catching wind of him through the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) network.

The post Maine Socialist Graham Platner Propped Up by Radical Couple Behind Other Far-Left Politicians appeared first on Breitbart.

India-born Rep. Shrinivas Thanedar (D-MI) says it is essential that the federal government accelerate the inflow of migrants into seasonal jobs throughout his very poor district in Michigan.

The post ‘Essential’: Indian Rep. Thanedar Wants More Migrants in His Poor District appeared first on Breitbart.

The U.S. State Department announced a new round of sanctions Thursday on the crème de la crème of Cuba's communist Castro family dynasty.

The post Trump Tightens the Screws: Sanctions Target Cuba’s Castro Family and Figurehead ‘President’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Roger Kamba, Minister of Public Health for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), complained on Friday that travel restrictions against his country due to the Ebola outbreak are “discriminatory” and cannot be justified by science or medicine.

The post DR Congo Denounces Ebola Travel Restrictions as ‘Discriminatory’ appeared first on Breitbart.

House lawmakers moved a measure this week to lower gas prices at military exchanges, making fuel cheaper for U.S. service men and women.

The post Measure Discounting Gasoline for Service Members Advances in Congress appeared first on Breitbart.

A Massachusetts town has canceled a planned visit by Prager U's "Freedom Truck" mobile history museum -- marking America's 250th anniversary -- saying that "even the appearance of political alignment could negatively impact" community trust.

The post Massachusetts Town Cancels PragerU’s ‘Freedom Truck’ Visit, Citing ‘Political Alignment’ Negatively Impacting Community ‘Trust’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Democrat candidates across the country have been speaking out against President Donald Trump with ease but appear to struggle to answer basic policy questions on the campaign trail.

The post Democrat Candidates Hate on Trump with Ease but Struggle to Talk Policy appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on FNC's "Hannity," Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, discussed the Department of Justice's investigation of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the allegation that it was bankrolling so-called extremists it was supposedly opposed to.

The post Jim Jordan: SPLC ‘Nearly Tripled’ Its Revenue After Charlottesville appeared first on Breitbart.

Corporate special interests, including the tech industry and the United States Chamber of Commerce, have launched a "quiet" lobbying effort against President Donald Trump's crackdown on visa overstays, the Washington Post reports.

The post Corporate Special Interest Launches ‘Quiet’ Lobbying Effort to Stop Trump’s Crackdown on Visa Overstays appeared first on Breitbart.

AG James Uthmeier announced he will be settling a case and securing a declaration that Florida's 3-day waiting period is unconstitutional. 

The post Florida Attorney General Uthmeier: 3-Day Gun Purchase Waiting Period ‘Unconstitutional’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Putin said that Russia will strengthen its air defenses to counter recent Ukrainian drone attacks, which have reached deep inside his country.

The post Putin Vows to Boost Russian Air Defences After Humiliating Ukrainian Drone Strikes on St Petersburg appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on "The Alex Marlow Show," Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) said California Democrats are going to make up votes to win the elections.

The post Exclusive — Sen. Tuberville: California Democrats Going to ‘Come Up with the Amount of Votes’ They Need appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on "The Alex Marlow Show," Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow said the Democrats are attempting to steal the California elections.

The post Marlow: Democrats Try to Steal LA, California Races appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on "The Alex Marlow Show," Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) should go back to Brooklyn.

The post Tuberville Responds to AOC: She Needs to Go Back to ‘Brooklyn’ appeared first on Breitbart.

A viral rumor began sweeping the web this week that none other than podcast king Joe Rogan would be joining the team of 60 Minutes.

The post CBS News Says Claims of Joe Rogan Joining ’60 Minutes’ False appeared first on Breitbart.

The United States, along with the other countries that make up the Shield of the Americas, condemned the "ongoing efforts" in Bolivia to "overthrow the legitimately and overwhelmingly elected" government of President Rodrigo Paz on Friday.

"The member countries of Shield of the Americas denounce ongoing efforts to overthrow the legitimately and overwhelmingly elected government of President Rodrigo Paz in Bolivia," the statement read. "We stand with Paz’s democratic government as it fights back against attempts to drag Bolivia backwards through cynical efforts to prevent the delivery of food, medicine and other vital supplies to the Bolivian people through fake road blockades."

The statement added that "Mob rule cannot replace the decision that a majority of Bolivians made at the ballot box to turn the page on two decades of corrupt governments."

It also said that anyone who is funding protests with "dirty money" from drug trafficking and transnational crime "should be held accountable. Those who have legitimate grievances should take advantage of the government’s willingness to dialogue, and denounce those who would abuse their causes to regain power."

PETE HEGSETH WARNS NARCO-TERRORISTS AS U.S. BACKS BOLIVIA'S GOVERNMENT AMID COUP WARNINGS

The State Department made the joint statement along with Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago.

The statement comes as Bolivia's capital, La Paz, has been rocked by weeks of social unrest as mass protests have blocked streets in major cities amid economic inflation and rising fuel prices.

Bolivian Defense Minister Marcelo Salinas resigned Tuesday.

Upon taking office, Paz supported a land reform bill to boost agribusiness that Indigenous farmers said put them at risk of eviction. He further scrapped fuel subsidies, sending prices surging by nearly 90%. Motorists complained that the gasoline was contaminated and ruined their cars.

PETE HEGSETH MAKES HOMELAND SECURITY TOP MISSION IN FIRST INTERVIEW AS SECRETARY OF WAR

The Trump administration has said drug traffickers are responsible for inciting the mass unrest.

Meanwhile, former President Evo Morales of the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party, the country's first Indigenous president who ruled for an unprecedented 14 years, is calling for early elections. "Paz only has two paths left: a suicidal decision like militarization or ... an election in the next 90 days," he wrote on X.

For almost two years now, Morales has been hiding out in Bolivia's central coca-growing Chapare region, evading an arrest warrant on human trafficking charges relating to allegedly having sex with a 15-year-old girl. He rejects the allegations as politically motivated.

On Thursday, War Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X, that the War Department and the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C), a recently established multinational military and political alliance, reject all attempts to overthrow the government of Rodrigo Paz Pereira six months into his term.

"The United States is watching. Bolivia must not allow itself to fall prey to the old status quo of narco-terrorist dominance in the region," Hegseth wrote. "We will continue to support our A3C partners like Bolivia to ensure that narco-terrorists are deterred from profiting on death and destruction in our hemisphere."

Fox News' Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) did not endear himself to Bears fans during a recent interview in which he discussed Soldier Field's shortcomings.

The post ‘What a Joke’: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Blasted by Fans After Admitting He Left Packers Game Early appeared first on Breitbart.

A federal judge, appointed by former President Barack Obama, has blocked President Donald Trump's administration from halting legal immigration and asylum applications from nearly 40 countries deemed "high-risk" by officials.

The post Obama-Appointed Judge Blocks Trump from Halting Immigration from ‘High-Risk Countries’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on "The Alex Marlow Show," Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow discussed alarming new reports about the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) investigation.

The post DOJ Investigation Proves SPLC Funded More of Far Right appeared first on Breitbart.

Global cloud software company Teradata has told its 5,100 employees they will not receive annual salary raises this year as it redirects funds toward AI investments.

The post Chips over People: Cloud Software Company Freezes Annual Salaries to Fund AI Investment appeared first on Breitbart.

Friday on ABC's "The View," co-host Sunny Hostin said she was "embarrassed at how America is now seen across the globe."

The post ABC’s Hostin: I’m Embarrassed at How America Is Now Seen Across the Globe appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on "The Alex Marlow Show," Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) said race should not be a factor in redistricting.

The post Exclusive: Tuberville Says ‘We’ve Got to Get Race Out of Politics of Redistricting’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Thursday on "The Alex Marlow Show," Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) called for an end to the filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act.

The post Exclusive: Tuberville Warns ‘We’re Going to Lose the Damn Country’ if We Don’t Bust Filibuster, Pass SAVE America Act appeared first on Breitbart.

President Donald Trump endorsed Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on Thursday, and his decision was in line with Graham moving to pass the SAVE America Act.

The post President Trump Links His ‘Total Endorsement’ of Lindsey Graham to Battle for SAVE America Act appeared first on Breitbart.