Harare, February 13, 2026 – The “Let Cuba Live” plea from prominent U.S. figures is featured today in Zimbabwe’s leading newspaper, The Herald, condemning President Donald Trump’s executive order to intensify the blockade against the island by cutting off its fuel supplies.
The international petition, signed by elected officials, artists, and civil society organizations in the United States, asserts that the measure will worsen humanitarian conditions by cutting off the island’s access to oil and energy supplies.
According to The Herald, the open letter describes the policy as a deliberate act intended to inflict mass suffering on the civilian population by disrupting essential services such as healthcare, food distribution, transportation, and water supply systems.
“This policy is unacceptable. It deepens a humanitarian crisis that we ourselves have created,” the signatories stated before adding that “Cuba poses no threat” and “subjugating a population through starvation is not diplomacy, it is a form of terrorism.”
According to the newspaper, the complaint argues that restricting fuel imports to an island nation constitutes collective punishment, rather than a legitimate foreign policy measure, deliberately provoking a humanitarian crisis through economic pressure.
The Herald highlights among the signatories some 22 members of the New York City Council, actors Mark Ruffalo, Kal Penn, and Susan Sarandon, writer Alice Walker, and New York City Councilwoman Alexa Avilés.
The petition also highlights the support of organizations such as the Movement for Black Lives, the People's Forum, IFCO-Pastors for Peace, the ANSWER Coalition, and 50501.
The petition remains open for public signature and demands that the United States revoke the Executive Order and end the policies that, according to the petition, are deliberately targeting the civilian population.
The "Let Cuba Live" petition—the leading Zimbabwean newspaper emphasizes—urges the international community to oppose collective punishment and the creation of humanitarian crises for political purposes.