Fidel Castro's enemies may have prayed for almost half a century for this day, but there is little sign that the resignation of the figurehead of the Cuban revolution will bring about much immediate change.

As some of the alleged "worst of the worst" held at Guantánamo Bay face trial, this shattering account of the Cuban limbo is timelier than ever. Stafford Smith has defended over 50 inmates, but the systemic cruelty he shows feels almost less shocking than the downright incompetence. If arguments for torture have ever tempted you, he prescribes a cure. The abuses recounted here have "radicalised thousands, if not millions".

Sir: Terence Blacker ("I have become a sentimental Communist", 7 December) may have enjoyed visiting the other reality that he found in Cuba, but it is a reality of his own wishing.

THE CHANTELLS AND FRIENDS: CHILDREN OF JAH (Blood and Fire)

TWO MEN were shot dead and a third seriously wounded in what police say is continuing drug gang warfare in London.

With Cuba now one of the hottest holiday destinations, dance styles such as salsa livening up the clubs, and Cuban restaurants springing up on high streets, a Latin American wave is sweeping through the UK. London's Barbican Centre dives right into the surf this week with !Cuba Presente!, the UK's biggest-ever celebration of Cuban arts. On the 40th anniversary of the Cuban revolution, the festival will include performances by such luminaries as Ibrahim Ferrer and Ruben Gonzalez, concerts of new and traditional music, dance and literature events, exhibitions, and a film week featuring Wim Wenders' new movie on the making of the Buena Vista Social Club. !Arriba!

A WEEK ago today, Lloyd Thomas was a multi-millionaire, a self- made Jamaican of working-class origin who started in the hardware business with less than pounds 100. On Tuesday he found himself hiding underneath a still smouldering pile of timber inside his premises, hearing a gang of 40 heavily armed youths searching for him and saying they would kill him "because he's rich".

The Jamaican High Commissioner replies to a recent article by Kenneth Taylor on the killing of British returnees

A spate of savage killings has shocked Jamaica. The 29 victims are all elderly, returning from Britain and America to the rural idylls they remember from their childhoods. But times have changed and they're not welcome anymore...