Posada Speaks Out After Acquittal

Through a destroyed jaw -- courtesy of being shot in the face during an assasination attempt in 1990 -- Ex-CIA operative and longtime Fidel Castro foe Luis Posada Carriles says his recent El Paso, Texas, trial on terrorism-related charges was a bitter pill to swallow.

The 83-year-old Cuban militant spoke to Miami reporters Wednesday for the first time since his acquittal Friday on 11 federal counts. Among them, Posada was accused of lying to authorities about his involvement in a string of 1997 Havana bombings, which killed an Italian tourist and injured 12 others.

Posada said it was painful to be accused by the United States, a country whose military uniform he once wore and a country which he loves. 

Defense attorney DJ Millan indicated that holding the trial in El Paso was an advantage, even though the goverment decided to try him there because they thought he wouldn't have support.

"It's very rare in El Paso, to find a person who hasn't lost someone to war, who hasn't seen a son or daughter go to war," he said of the extremely patriotic city, "so if you wear a uniform, they are going to look especially at your case before they decide to convict you."

Posada also said that though he is old, he remains a committed soldier in the Cuban struggle and hopes to peacefully reintegrate himself into the Miami Cuban exile community.

"When you look at this life, clearly here is a man of his time who lived with the dream of a free Cuba," defense attorney Arturo Hernandez said, pointing out that he received hundreds of small donations, which sustained their case.

The defense claimed the prosecution spent $25 million on the case.