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Cuban leader Fidel Castro nearly died after "capriciously" rejecting a colostomy when he fell ill on a domestic flight to Havana, US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks said. The cable, titled "How believable is a Castro comeback?" comes from the US Interests Section Havana marked "confidential" and is dated March 16, 2007. It cites an unnamed "respected, retired Cuban doctor" as its main source on Castro's health. After a full day of activities on July 26, 2006, Castro fell ill. There was no doctor aboard the flight, and upon landing, he was "diagnosed with diverticulitis of the colon," reads the cable. The illness is not necessarily dangerous if properly treated. Castro "had a perforation in the large intestine and needed to have a colostomy done." But Castro, "capriciously, did not permit the colostomy," instead arguing that doctors should splice out the infected part and reattach the intestine to his colon. The illness forced Castro to cede power to his brother, Raul Castro, in July 2006. Raul Castro later became Cuba's president. AFP |
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