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Elian Gonzalez Was Taken From Miami and Returned to Cuba 15 Years Ago Wednesday

Wednesday marks 15 years since Elian Gonzalez, then just 5 years old, was taken by U.S. federal agents at gunpoint in Miami and returned to his father in Cuba.

The young Cuban rafter was at the center of a bitter custody battle between his relatives in Miami who wished to keep him in the United States and his father in Cuba. The international custody battle became a hot button issue during the 2000 U.S. presidential campaign and a central focus for the U.S. and Cuban governments alike.

The boy was just shy of his sixth birthday when the small boat that was carrying him, his mother and a dozen others went down near Florida. Gonzalez's mother was among those who perished. Little Elian was found floating in an inner tube and rescued by fishermen who then turned the small boy over the U.S. officials.

The Cuban government organized mass marches proclaiming the boy's right to be with his father in Cuba. Meanwhile, the child's Miami relatives, supported by members of Miami's Cuban community, insisted that the child should not be returned to the island nation, and that his mother's dying wish to bring the boy to the U.S. should be honored.

Then-Attorney General Janet Reno ultimately ordered that the boy be returned to Cuba with his father and set a deadline of April 13. Miami relatives defied the order, leading to the house becoming surrounded by police and protesters as continued negotiations took place.

The months-long saga culminated with a dramatic raid on the Miami house, where U.S. federal agents retrieved Gonzalez at gunpoint in the early morning hours and he was flown back to the island in June of 2000.

The iconic photo of that historic moment, taken by Alan Diaz for the Associated Press, won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography.

Gonzalez's great uncle, Delfin Gonzalez was inside the home when authorities stormed in with guns drawn. He says it's a day he'll never forget. His uncle says he hasn't spoken to his nephew since the day of the raid. He believes Gonzalez has now taken a path he may not have otherwise chosen in the United States.

The now 21-year-old Gonzalez has lived his live almost entirely out of sight despite the fact that he is hailed as a hero in Cuba. His father and Cuban officials are fiercely protective of the young man's privacy and rights to a relatively normal life.

As of 2013, Gonzalez was studying industrial engineering at Camilo Cienfuegos University of Matanzas, roughly 90 minutes from Havana. Prior to that, he attended a Cuban military academy as a cadet.

In an interview around the time of his 20th birthday, Gonzalez spoke of his admiration for retired leader Fidel Castro, who reportedly kept a close eye on the boy and his welfare over the years.

"He always came for my birthday. I always looked forward to that moment," Gonzalez said in the 2013 interview published on the official website Cubadebate. "I'm a person of few words (and) I clammed up when he was there, but it was enough to see him and give him that hug."

"I always remember what he told me: That I was already somebody, that the whole world knew who I was, and now what I had to do was be good at something, that's what he asked of me," Gonzalez went on to say. "He never cared which path I took ... the intention was that I be good at whatever I did."

Gonzalez made another rare appearance last December as three members of the so-called "Cuban Five" appeared before the National Assembly upon their release as a part of the historic agreement to restore relations between the U.S. and Cuba.

Gonzalez, to date, has not offered any public comments on the thawing of relations.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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