HAVANA — In a significant development over the weekend, the Cuban government announced that 32 of its military officers were killed in Venezuela due to an American military operation. This statement, delivered on Sunday, marked the first official acknowledgment of the casualties following the U.S. strikes in the region.

The Cuban personnel, comprising both military and police forces, were engaged in a mission at the behest of Venezuela’s government, as per a statement broadcast on Cuban state television on Sunday night. However, the specifics of their operations in the South American nation remain undisclosed.

Cuba, a staunch ally of Venezuela, has a history of deploying its forces to assist with various operations there. Over the years, the Caribbean nation has consistently supported Venezuela’s government, and the presence of Cuban forces is not unusual. Speculation about the fatalities had been rife across the island throughout the weekend.

In response to the incident, U.S. President Donald Trump addressed the media while on Air Force One. Speaking to reporters during his flight from Florida to Washington, Trump commented, “You know, a lot of Cubans were killed yesterday. There was a lot of death on the other side. No death on our side.”

SEE ALSO: Maduro to appear in Manhattan federal court on Monday for arraignment on alleged drug charges

The U.S. operation Saturday seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife to face prosecution on an indictment accusing them of participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy.

While Venezuela’s government has acknowledged that a number of people died in the American blasts, they did not confirm how many were killed to The Associated Press.

Cuba’s government announced two days of mourning for the Cuban officers who were killed, and former president and revolutionary leader Raúl Castro and President Miguel Díaz-Canel sent condolences to their families. The names of the dead and the positions they held were not immediately disclosed by Cuban authorities.

“Faithful to their responsibilities for security and defense, our compatriots fulfilled their duty with dignity and heroism and fell after fierce resistance in direct combat against the attackers or as a result of the bombings of the facilities,” the official statement said.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, also pointed to Cuban involvement in Venezuela over the weekend, saying that Maduro’s internal security apparatus was headed by Cubans and that they were “propping up Maduro.”

“All the guards that help protect Maduro – this is well known – their whole spy agency, all that were full of Cubans,” Rubio said.

___

Associated Press reporters Megan Janetsky in Mexico City and Darlene Superville aboard Air Force One contributed to this report.