He was a revolutionary and a liberator: delivering his island nation from the colonial powers and mafia dons that ruled over it from the 16th century halfway into the 20th, and inspiring other independence movements in Latin America and Africa.

The nightclubs shut down early and the young people, dressed for a night out, spilled into the darkened streets.

Some had already been told the news, called by loved ones watching state television at home. Some were just finding out, their cellphones pressed to their ears as they absorbed what happened.

Others still did not know — Fidel Castro had died.

Fidel Castro, the frail and aging former president of Cuba, made his first public appearance this week in more than a year, shaking hands with a group of Venezuelan visitors, according to official Cuban media.

It was also his first public appearance since President Obama announced a new policy toward normalizing relations with Cuba.

The 88-year-old Castro was last seen in public in January 2014 at the inauguration of an artist's studio.

Mariela Castro, Cuban president Raul Castro's daughter and a member of parliament, scoffed at the idea that Cuba would return to capitalism in the wake of the two countries' newly restored relations.

President Obama said Wednesday that Cuba should not put American businesses at a disadvantage and that increased commerce would do good for both countries. He explained that the U.S. would facilitate transactions and make it easier for America to export and sell goods to Cuba.

Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro said he doesn't even suffer from headaches in an article he published in state-media Monday criticizing those who spread rumors he was on his death bed.

The article, ironically titled "Fidel is Dying," is accompanied by photos taken by son Alex Castro that show the revolutionary icon standing outside near some trees wearing a checked shirt and cowboy hat, including one in which he is seen reading Friday's copy of the Communist Party newspaper Granma.