Pino del Agua II: another rebel victory.
Recognized by our Commander in Chief as a military coup that consolidated the rebel territory in the Sierra Maestra, the combat that, for the second time, the bearded men fought in the small town of Pino del Agua, constitutes one of the most remarkable episodes of the Cuban revolutionary history.
Although the area was occupied by the Batista forces, Fidel Castro and his men used their inventiveness to create the so-called «Sputnik» or «M-26» bombs, with which, through the stupor and psychological fear that their use implied, they managed to harass the power of an enemy that outnumbered them.
On the battlefield that February 16th, 1958, together with the Castro Ruz brothers, there were great architects of the Rebel Army such as Ernesto Guevara, Camilo Cienfuegos, Juan Almeida Bosque, Ramiro Valdés and Guillermo García, among other brave men who, after a bloody and hard-fought battle, managed to dismantle the enemy resistance and demoralize the arrogance of its leader.
From 18 to 25 casualties and the seizure of 33 rifles, five machine guns and an abundant army were, according to the Guerrillero Heroico, the main damages that the insurgents caused to the tyranny, which saw its offensive slowed down and some time later found, in the Frank País and Mario Muñoz fronts, two spirited contenders.
The second confrontation in Pino del Agua, was undoubtedly a fierce but glorious passage in the history of Cuba, where the tactical ingenuity and the will to fight of the rebel squadron showed the strength, sacrifice and greatness of our people in their unceasing yearning for sovereignty, emancipation and justice.
Written by Yadiel Barbón Salgado.
