By Ayose Naranjo
HAVANA, May 22 (Reuters) - Thousands of Cubans gathered on Friday before the U.S. embassy in Havana to protest a U.S. decision to indict former president Raul Castro over the downing of two civilian airplanes 30 years ago.
The pro-government demonstration, which began shortly after sunrise on Havana's waterfront, came as Cuban officials rallied this week around the island's revolutionary hero.
The 94-year-old elder statesman was not present.
Cuban lawmaker Gerardo Hernandez, a national hero and former spy, conveyed a message thanking the Cuban people and friends around the world for their solidarity.
"As long as I live, I will remain at the forefront of the Revolution, with one foot in the stirrup," Hernandez quoted Castro as saying.
Thousands of Cubans waved flags during the nearly hour-long rally, chanting "Viva Raul!" and "Patria o Muerte (Homeland or Death)!".
President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero attended the rally, as did several of Castro's family, including daughter Mariela Castro, son Alejandro Castro and grandson Raul Rodriguez Castro.
Rodriguez Castro, known in Cuba as "Raulito" (Little Raul) or "El Cangrejo" (The Crab), often serves as his grandfather's bodyguard and met last week with CIA Director John Ratcliffe during a rare visit by a U.S. spy chief to Havana.
Mariela Castro, interviewed shortly after the protest, told Cuban state-run media that her father was doing fine.
"Raul is doing very well, very calm, like an old guerrilla fighter; he observes and smiles. He always said: 'No one takes me alive; they'll catch me fighting,'" she said.
Cuba says Castro's indictment on murder charges on Wednesday was based on "spurious" allegations designed to serve as a pretext to invade as President Donald Trump's administration pushes to upend the island's government.
(Reporting by Ayose Naranjo; Editing by Dave Sherwood and Aida Pelaez-Fernandez; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Rosalba O'Brien)
