The Cuban regime released Yoani Sánchez following protests both on and off the island, including condemnation from the US: 'It was that support that finally broke the deadlock'

Cuban journalist Yoani Sánchez was released on Thursday, November 5, after spending about nine hours in custody in Havana, following an illegal abduction carried out by the Cuban regime's repressive forces.

Her release was confirmed by the independent newspaper she directs, 14ymedio, and by her on social media. According to a statement by her husband, journalist Reinaldo Escobar, to Martí Noticias, the authorities accused her of an alleged crime of "attempt against the constitutional order."

"I just got home. Thank you all for your solidarity and for spreading the word about the arbitrary detention I suffered this morning," Sánchez wrote on X. In that message, she attributed her release to the support she received and to the widespread coverage of what happened. "That support was what finally broke the chains."

The journalist said she will provide details about her arrest on Friday, though she also wants to share the conditions of other people she encountered during her detention.

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"As a journalist, I will chronicle the pain and utter vulnerability experienced by those who lack public visibility—sometimes they don't even have a cell phone to report what is happening to them," she said. In another post, she added, "I have a duty to make their stories public."

Sánchez had left her home in the Nuevo Vedado neighborhood of Havana around 9:30 a.m. to shop at a nearby market. According to her newsroom's account, she told her colleagues she would be back soon, but about ten minutes later she messaged them to alert them to her arrest. Since then, the team has lost contact with her.

Escobar later confirmed the arrest and attributed it to the regime's security forces. After her release, she explained to Martí Noticias that Sánchez had managed to contact her family using a borrowed phone because hers wasn't working. During that conversation, he told her of the charge.

Available information does not allow a precise determination of the legal scope of that charge. CNN reported that it had requested comments from the Cuban government, but had not received a response at the time of publication.

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The arrest sparked a condemnation from Juan Pablo Segura, the U.S. State Department's Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs. In a post on X, the official stated that the detention was part of the Cuban regime against the independent press. He also mentioned the arrests of Adel Bonne and Camila Acosta earlier this week and the imprisonment of Henry Constantín.

The cases Segura cited involve journalists from various media outlets. According to Martí Noticias, Adelth Bonne Gamboa, a contributor to CubaNet, was detained on Monday, November 2, interrogated, and fined. Acosta, also a CubaNet journalist, was detained the following day and reported, after being released, that her phone had been rendered inoperable. Constantín, editor-in-chief of "La Hora de Cuba," has been held in pretrial detention since mid-September on charges of disobedience.

Sánchez gained international recognition for her blog Generación Y, which she began publishing in 2007. In 2014, she founded 14ymedio, through which she has continued her critical coverage of Cuban society. Her career highlights include the 2008 Ortega y Gasset Award for Digital Journalism, as well as earlier detentions and restrictions on her movement.