Former Cuban President Fidel Castro Dead at 90

Fidel Castro, the Marxist revolutionary who seized control of Cuba in 1959, died at 90 late Friday evening, his brother Raul announced Saturday morning.

Castro's decades-long reign brought the world to the brink of a nuclear conflict after he allowed close ally the Soviet Union to secretly install nuclear missiles on the island, directly threatening the safety of the U.S.

Castro's death has led to an outpouring of joy in Miami's Little Havana, where he has long been despised as a tyrant by immigrants from Cuba, who risked their lives to leave their homeland.

During the Obama Administration, the U.S. has sought a less contentious relationship with Cuba, allowing travel to the island for the first time in generations. In May, President Obama became the first U.S. president to visit the island in 88 years.

President Obama's statement on the passing of Castro:

President-elect Trump's initial statement on Twitter:

Trump later released the following statement on Castro's passing:

"Today, the world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Fidel Castro's legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights. While Cuba remains a totalitarian island, it is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve.