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古巴最高领导人菲德尔·卡斯特罗于今年7月31日因肠出血紧急住院接受手术治疗，目前他的职权暂由其弟弟、古巴国防部长劳尔·卡斯特罗代理。
现年80岁的卡斯特罗是一部传奇，一部跨越世纪的传奇。他在位将近半个世纪，领导1200万人口的小小古巴，与拥有2.5亿人的“超级邻居”美利坚合众国长期抗衡，如此胆略豪情令世人侧目。
卡斯特罗在国际政坛上的显赫地位，引来了不少杀身之祸。庆幸的是，这位传奇人物有如神助，竟然逃过了638次暗杀。古巴前特工组织负责人最近披露了许多惊心动魄，又不乏怪异可笑的暗杀行动。
For nearly half a century, the1)CIA and Cu-ban2)exiles have been trying to3)devise ways to4)assassinate Fidel Castro, who is currently5)laid low in Cuba following an operation for6)intestinal bleeding. None of the plots, of course, succeeded.
Fabian Escalante, who for a time had the job of keeping the commandant alive, has calculated that there have been a total of 638 attempts on Castro’s life. That may sound like a staggeringly high figure.
The most spectacular of the plots against Castro will be examined in a documentary entitled 638 Ways to Kill Castro, as well as in a companion book of the same name written by the now-retired Escalante—a man who, while in his post as head of the Cuban secret service, played a part in7)heading off a number of the plots. While the exploding cigar that was intended to8)blow up in Castro’s face is perhaps the best-known of the attempts on his life, others have been equally9)bizarre.
Knowing his10)fascination for11)scuba-diving off the coast of Cuba, the CIA at one time invested in a large volume of Caribbean12)mollusks. The idea was to find a shell big enough to contain a13)lethal quantity of explosives, which would then be painted in colors14)lurid and bright enough to attract Castro’s attention when he was underwater. Documents released under the Clinton administration confirm that this plan was considered but, like many others, did not make it far from the drawing-board. Another15)aborted plot related to Castro’s underwater activities was for a diving-suit to be prepared for him that would be infected with a16)fungus that would cause a17)chronic and18)debilitating skin disease.
One of the reasons there have been so many attempts on his life is that he has been19)in power for so long. Attempts to kill Castro began almost immediately after the 1959 revolution, which brought him to power. In 1961, when Cuban exiles with the backing of the US government tried to overthrow him in the Bay of Pigs20)fiasco, the aim was to assassinate Fidel and Raul Castro and Che Guevara. Two years later, on the day that President Kennedy was assassinated, an agent who had been given a pen-21)syringe in Paris was sent to kill Castro, but failed.
On one occasion, a former lover was22)recruited to kill him. The woman was given poison pills by the CIA, and she hid them in her23)cold cream jar. But the pills melted and she decided that, all things considered, putting cold cream in Castro’s mouth while he slept was a bad idea. According to this woman, Castro had already guessed that she was aiming to kill him and he duly offered her his own pistol. “I can’t do it, Fidel,” she told him.
The most recent serious assassination attempt that we know of came in 2000 when Castro was due to visit Panama. A plot was24)hatched to put 90kg of high explosives under the25)podium where he was due to speak. That time, Castro’s personal security team carried out their own checks on the scene, and helped to abort the plot.
Officially, the US has abandoned its attempt to kill its26)ar-chenemy, but Cuban security are not27)taking any chances. Any gifts sent to the ailing leader as he lay ill were carefully28)scrutinized, just as they were when those famous exploding cigars were being constructed by the CIA’s technical services department in the early 60s. They never got to him, but those cigars29)contaminated with botulinum toxin were understood to have been made using his favourite brand. Castro gave up smoking in 1985.
All these plots inevitably changed the way Castro lived his life. While in his early years in office, he often walked alone in the street, but that practice had to change. Since then30)doubles have been used, and over the decades Castro has moved between around 20 different addresses in Cuba to make it harder for any potential hitmen to reach him.
近半个世纪以来，美国中央情报局和古巴的流亡人士都在使尽浑身解数要置古巴总统菲德尔·卡斯特罗于死地，当然，这些阴谋无一得逞，最近卡斯特罗倒是倒下了，他因为肠出血进行了一次手术。
法比恩·埃斯卡兰特曾有一段时间负责保卫古巴最高领导人的人身安全。他统计了一下，针对卡斯特罗的暗杀行动至今已有638次之多，这听起来是一个多么惊人的数字。
一部名为《卡斯特罗638次与死神擦肩而过》的纪录片及同步上市的由埃斯卡兰特撰写的同名导视书将完整再现卡斯特罗当年亲历的几次颇具戏剧色彩的暗杀行动。埃斯卡兰特现已退休，当年曾是古巴特工组织的负责人，参与化解了不少暗杀卡斯特罗的阴谋。卡斯特罗一生中遭遇的最著名的险境莫过于有人设计让雪茄在他的脸前爆炸，其它形形色色的暗杀也同样怪诞。
得知卡斯特罗热衷于携带水肺的潜水运动，美国中情局曾经投资养殖了大量的加勒比海贝，企图从中培植出一个能容纳足量炸药的海贝，之后再将其涂得五彩斑斓来吸引水下的卡斯特罗。克林顿政府解禁的文件证实：这一计划曾一度进入当局的视野，但最终如同当时许多类似的计划一般，未能成型。无独有偶，当时还有一个夭折了的阴谋：有人曾设计给卡斯特罗准备一件染有真菌的游泳衣，他一旦穿上以后，就会染上一种慢性而致命的皮肤病。
卡斯特罗招来如此多杀身之祸的原因之一是他在位的时间实在太长。几乎从1959年古巴革命后他上台的那一刻起，针对他的暗杀行动就接踵而至。1961年，在美国政府的支持下，古巴流亡分子策划了试图推翻卡斯特罗的“猪湾事件”但遭挫败，其目的就是要暗杀卡斯特罗、其弟弟劳尔·卡斯特罗，以及切·格瓦拉。两年后，在美国总统肯尼迪遇刺的同一天，一个身在巴黎的刺客被指派用钢笔注射器去行刺卡斯特罗，但刺杀行动没有成功。
还有一次卡斯特罗的前情人也被收买去暗杀他。美国中情局给了她一些毒药，而她把毒药藏在她的雪花膏里，谁知毒药竟融化了。她思前想后，觉得趁卡斯特罗熟睡的时候，把雪花膏进他的嘴里是个馊主意。据这个女士后来回忆，卡斯特罗其实早已猜到她是为行刺他而来的，便顺势掏出自己的手枪递给她。那个女士却对他说：“菲德尔，我做不到。”
最近一次最令大家虚惊一场的刺杀行动发生在2000年，当时卡斯特罗按计划即将访问巴拿马。有人把90公斤烈性炸药放在卡斯特罗随后要进行演讲的讲台下面。那一次恰好卡斯特罗的私人警卫队亲自检查了现场，从而挫败了这场阴谋。
美国官方政府已经正式宣布放弃铲除他们的头号敌人，但古巴安全部门仍然丝毫不敢懈怠。卡斯特罗卧床期间，所有送给他的礼物都经过仔细检查，就好像上世纪六十年代美国中情局技术服务部为卡斯特罗准备的会爆炸的“雪茄炸弹”也经过严格检验一样。那些含有肉毒菌的香烟一直没到卡斯特罗手里，但他们毕竟利用了卡斯特罗的爱烟心理，还有他最喜爱的香烟牌子。卡斯特罗在1985年戒掉了烟。
一次次的暗杀阴谋不可避免地改变了卡斯特罗的生活习惯。他刚掌权的时候，经常独自一人穿行于大街上，但这个习惯不得不改掉了。后来，卡斯特罗有了自己的替身。过去几十年间，卡斯特罗在古巴的住所换了二十几次，就是为了不让任何潜在的杀手轻易接近他。
现年80岁的卡斯特罗是一部传奇，一部跨越世纪的传奇。他在位将近半个世纪，领导1200万人口的小小古巴，与拥有2.5亿人的“超级邻居”美利坚合众国长期抗衡，如此胆略豪情令世人侧目。
卡斯特罗在国际政坛上的显赫地位，引来了不少杀身之祸。庆幸的是，这位传奇人物有如神助，竟然逃过了638次暗杀。古巴前特工组织负责人最近披露了许多惊心动魄，又不乏怪异可笑的暗杀行动。
For nearly half a century, the1)CIA and Cu-ban2)exiles have been trying to3)devise ways to4)assassinate Fidel Castro, who is currently5)laid low in Cuba following an operation for6)intestinal bleeding. None of the plots, of course, succeeded.
Fabian Escalante, who for a time had the job of keeping the commandant alive, has calculated that there have been a total of 638 attempts on Castro’s life. That may sound like a staggeringly high figure.
The most spectacular of the plots against Castro will be examined in a documentary entitled 638 Ways to Kill Castro, as well as in a companion book of the same name written by the now-retired Escalante—a man who, while in his post as head of the Cuban secret service, played a part in7)heading off a number of the plots. While the exploding cigar that was intended to8)blow up in Castro’s face is perhaps the best-known of the attempts on his life, others have been equally9)bizarre.
Knowing his10)fascination for11)scuba-diving off the coast of Cuba, the CIA at one time invested in a large volume of Caribbean12)mollusks. The idea was to find a shell big enough to contain a13)lethal quantity of explosives, which would then be painted in colors14)lurid and bright enough to attract Castro’s attention when he was underwater. Documents released under the Clinton administration confirm that this plan was considered but, like many others, did not make it far from the drawing-board. Another15)aborted plot related to Castro’s underwater activities was for a diving-suit to be prepared for him that would be infected with a16)fungus that would cause a17)chronic and18)debilitating skin disease.
One of the reasons there have been so many attempts on his life is that he has been19)in power for so long. Attempts to kill Castro began almost immediately after the 1959 revolution, which brought him to power. In 1961, when Cuban exiles with the backing of the US government tried to overthrow him in the Bay of Pigs20)fiasco, the aim was to assassinate Fidel and Raul Castro and Che Guevara. Two years later, on the day that President Kennedy was assassinated, an agent who had been given a pen-21)syringe in Paris was sent to kill Castro, but failed.
On one occasion, a former lover was22)recruited to kill him. The woman was given poison pills by the CIA, and she hid them in her23)cold cream jar. But the pills melted and she decided that, all things considered, putting cold cream in Castro’s mouth while he slept was a bad idea. According to this woman, Castro had already guessed that she was aiming to kill him and he duly offered her his own pistol. “I can’t do it, Fidel,” she told him.
The most recent serious assassination attempt that we know of came in 2000 when Castro was due to visit Panama. A plot was24)hatched to put 90kg of high explosives under the25)podium where he was due to speak. That time, Castro’s personal security team carried out their own checks on the scene, and helped to abort the plot.
Officially, the US has abandoned its attempt to kill its26)ar-chenemy, but Cuban security are not27)taking any chances. Any gifts sent to the ailing leader as he lay ill were carefully28)scrutinized, just as they were when those famous exploding cigars were being constructed by the CIA’s technical services department in the early 60s. They never got to him, but those cigars29)contaminated with botulinum toxin were understood to have been made using his favourite brand. Castro gave up smoking in 1985.
All these plots inevitably changed the way Castro lived his life. While in his early years in office, he often walked alone in the street, but that practice had to change. Since then30)doubles have been used, and over the decades Castro has moved between around 20 different addresses in Cuba to make it harder for any potential hitmen to reach him.
近半个世纪以来，美国中央情报局和古巴的流亡人士都在使尽浑身解数要置古巴总统菲德尔·卡斯特罗于死地，当然，这些阴谋无一得逞，最近卡斯特罗倒是倒下了，他因为肠出血进行了一次手术。
法比恩·埃斯卡兰特曾有一段时间负责保卫古巴最高领导人的人身安全。他统计了一下，针对卡斯特罗的暗杀行动至今已有638次之多，这听起来是一个多么惊人的数字。
一部名为《卡斯特罗638次与死神擦肩而过》的纪录片及同步上市的由埃斯卡兰特撰写的同名导视书将完整再现卡斯特罗当年亲历的几次颇具戏剧色彩的暗杀行动。埃斯卡兰特现已退休，当年曾是古巴特工组织的负责人，参与化解了不少暗杀卡斯特罗的阴谋。卡斯特罗一生中遭遇的最著名的险境莫过于有人设计让雪茄在他的脸前爆炸，其它形形色色的暗杀也同样怪诞。
得知卡斯特罗热衷于携带水肺的潜水运动，美国中情局曾经投资养殖了大量的加勒比海贝，企图从中培植出一个能容纳足量炸药的海贝，之后再将其涂得五彩斑斓来吸引水下的卡斯特罗。克林顿政府解禁的文件证实：这一计划曾一度进入当局的视野，但最终如同当时许多类似的计划一般，未能成型。无独有偶，当时还有一个夭折了的阴谋：有人曾设计给卡斯特罗准备一件染有真菌的游泳衣，他一旦穿上以后，就会染上一种慢性而致命的皮肤病。
卡斯特罗招来如此多杀身之祸的原因之一是他在位的时间实在太长。几乎从1959年古巴革命后他上台的那一刻起，针对他的暗杀行动就接踵而至。1961年，在美国政府的支持下，古巴流亡分子策划了试图推翻卡斯特罗的“猪湾事件”但遭挫败，其目的就是要暗杀卡斯特罗、其弟弟劳尔·卡斯特罗，以及切·格瓦拉。两年后，在美国总统肯尼迪遇刺的同一天，一个身在巴黎的刺客被指派用钢笔注射器去行刺卡斯特罗，但刺杀行动没有成功。
还有一次卡斯特罗的前情人也被收买去暗杀他。美国中情局给了她一些毒药，而她把毒药藏在她的雪花膏里，谁知毒药竟融化了。她思前想后，觉得趁卡斯特罗熟睡的时候，把雪花膏进他的嘴里是个馊主意。据这个女士后来回忆，卡斯特罗其实早已猜到她是为行刺他而来的，便顺势掏出自己的手枪递给她。那个女士却对他说：“菲德尔，我做不到。”
最近一次最令大家虚惊一场的刺杀行动发生在2000年，当时卡斯特罗按计划即将访问巴拿马。有人把90公斤烈性炸药放在卡斯特罗随后要进行演讲的讲台下面。那一次恰好卡斯特罗的私人警卫队亲自检查了现场，从而挫败了这场阴谋。
美国官方政府已经正式宣布放弃铲除他们的头号敌人，但古巴安全部门仍然丝毫不敢懈怠。卡斯特罗卧床期间，所有送给他的礼物都经过仔细检查，就好像上世纪六十年代美国中情局技术服务部为卡斯特罗准备的会爆炸的“雪茄炸弹”也经过严格检验一样。那些含有肉毒菌的香烟一直没到卡斯特罗手里，但他们毕竟利用了卡斯特罗的爱烟心理，还有他最喜爱的香烟牌子。卡斯特罗在1985年戒掉了烟。
一次次的暗杀阴谋不可避免地改变了卡斯特罗的生活习惯。他刚掌权的时候，经常独自一人穿行于大街上，但这个习惯不得不改掉了。后来，卡斯特罗有了自己的替身。过去几十年间，卡斯特罗在古巴的住所换了二十几次，就是为了不让任何潜在的杀手轻易接近他。