The victims were 54 and 32 years old; both alleged perpetrators were arrested, according to the ‘Alas Tensas’ Gender Observatory
14ymedio, Madrid, November 10, 2026 – Two women were murdered by their partners on November 8 and 9 in Manzanillo, Granma, and Nueva Gerona, Isle of Youth, respectively. The victims were Juana María Guzmán Torres, 54, and Yasmina Ruano González, 32. Both crimes were confirmed Tuesday by the Alas Tensas Gender Observatory (Ogat), bringing the number of femicides recorded by 14ymedio in Cuba so far in 2026 to 59.
The first occurred last Sunday in the La Cañada neighborhood of the city of Manzanillo. Guzmán Torres, known as Mayi, was an early childhood educator and, according to the feminist platform, was killed by her partner. Ogat verified that the perpetrator was arrested by the police.
The victim leaves behind two adult children. In its statement, the observatory extended its condolences to her family and to those who knew her as “teacher” during their childhood, as well as to the people who “are mourning her today on social media.”
Alas Tensas indicated that Yasmina Ruano’s murder took place in front of the victim’s young son, who was between six and eight years old
One day later, on Monday, Yasmina Ruano González was murdered in her home in the 26 de Julio housing development, known as Francoy, in Nueva Gerona, Isle of Youth. Alas Tensas reported that the “alleged perpetrator” was also her partner and that the crime took place in front of the victim’s young son, who was between six and eight years old.
The platform described the situation of the child as particularly serious. He witnessed his mother’s murder and “is left in an even more vulnerable situation because his father does not live in Cuba.” For this reason, it is calling for “specialized, timely, and sustained psycho-emotional care,” as well as a safe environment for care and support.
According to community sources consulted by the organization, the killer was arrested by the police that same day. Ruano González also leaves behind a daughter, whose age the observatory has been unable to determine.
With these two deaths, Alas Tensas has recorded 63 femicides in Cuba since January, four more than 14ymedio, which does not classify murders of women during robberies or other random circumstances as gender-based killings.
The two new crimes add to other cases of gender-based violence recorded in recent weeks. On October 30, Yarielys Gigato Medina was murdered in Pinar del Río by a former partner who subsequently turned himself in to the authorities. The woman, a mother of three, was beaten with a blunt object and attacked with a bladed weapon, according to information collected by the observatory. Ileana Álvarez, director of Ogat, denounced the “shocking cruelty” of the crime at the time.
Nine days earlier, on October 21, Marili Reina Fajardo, 45, had been murdered in Brisas del Mar, in the municipality of Habana del Este. Her body was found with “signs of extreme violence and sexual assault,” according to Alas Tensas, which included the case among the femicides under observation while investigations proceeded.
That same month, the observatory confirmed the death of Ana Vivian Suárez Cruz, a 21-year-old woman who was seven months pregnant, as a femicide. She had been found dead on August 13 in La Palma, Pinar del Río. Her former partner was being held as the main suspect, while investigators examined the possibility that the crime had been presented as a suicide.
As femicides continue to accumulate in Cuba, the state justice system does not even publicly identify the victims in its official statements
As femicides continue to accumulate in Cuba, the state justice system does not even publicly identify the victims in its official statements. On November 4, the People’s Provincial Court of Ciego de Ávila announced a life sentence without revealing the name of the killer or the identities of the two people he murdered in August 2025 in Florencia. They were Adrián Cruz Díaz, who murdered his former partner, Marialina García Borroto, and her romantic partner, Abel Morales Castro. The convicted man had already served a prison sentence for another murder.
In addition to the femicides confirmed this year, the observatory has recorded 38 attempted femicides and two murders of men in contexts of gender-based violence. It is also investigating another 11 possible femicides and 18 attempted femicides that occurred in 2026, along with 12 possible gender-based murders and five attempts dating from 2025.
Among the cases still awaiting clarification, Ogat is demanding access to the investigative reports concerning the deaths of Anais Tamayo Puente, Danaibis Tamayo Ramírez, and Odalis Brizuela Zayas. The platform is also continuing to monitor the case of Bárbara Sánchez González as a possible femicide disguised as a suicide.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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