Miguel Díaz-Canel, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) and President of the Republic, honored Raúl Castro Ruz and Juan Almeida Bosque, on the occasion of the 66th anniversary of their promotion to the rank of commanders of the Rebel Army.

«Men tested by history,» said the head of state in X, and recalled that both combatants participated in decisive actions such as the assault on the Moncada Barracks (Santiago de Cuba, 1953) and the landing of the Granma (1956), which began the guerrilla war in the Sierra Maestra.

In his message Díaz-Canel recalled that on February 27, 1958, Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro signed two orders in which he promoted Raúl and Almeida from captains to commanders of the Rebel Army, with the order to lead the new guerrilla columns six and three, respectively.

With 57 troops, on March 6 Juan Almeida created in Puerto Arturo the Third Mario Muñoz Front, where more than 200 victorious war actions would take place in the six thousand square kilometers it would cover.

At the site known as Piloto del Medio, on March 11, Raul Castro, with his 67 combatants, plus 11 incorporated during the march, opened the Second Frank País Eastern Front, which would sustain more than 250 combat actions in the 12 thousand square kilometers it came to control.