First Thing: US indicts former Cuban president Raúl Castro as it seeks to oust regime

Charges filed against Raúl Castro for allegedly shooting down planes in 1996. Plus, US employers spend more than $1.5bn a year to fight labor unions

Good morning.

On Wednesday, the US issued a federal criminal indictment against Raúl Castro, Cuba’s former president, and five others, in a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign to oust the country’s communist regime.

What are the details? Castro, 94, was charged with conspiracy to kill US nationals, four counts of murder and two counts of destruction of aircraft related to an incident in 1996 – in which four men were killed by the Cuban military, when two small planes were shot down during a humanitarian mission in the Florida Straits.

How has Cuba reacted? Miguel Díaz-Canel, the Cuban president, condemned the indictment as a political stunt that sought only to “justify the folly of a military aggression against Cuba”.

What does the video show? Images of dozens of men and women kneeling in rows, with their foreheads to the ground and their hands zip-tied behind their back. Ben-Gvir posted it on his social media account. He appears waving an Israeli flag, mocking and taunting the detainees.

What are global leaders saying? The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, one of the country’s staunchest allies, described Ben-Gvir’s behaviour as “despicable” and said the minister had “betrayed the dignity of his nation”. Others criticizing the video were Italy, Spain, the European Council, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and others. The Spanish foreign minister called the treatment “monstrous, disgraceful and inhumane”.

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