Víctor Dreke

Víctor Emilio Dreke Cruz (born 1937) is a Cuban Communist leader and a General in the Revolutionary Armed Forces.

During the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and the years that followed, Dreke was one of the commanders of the so-called "Lucha Contra Bandidos" (War Against Bandits), a war against the CIA-backed anti-communist forces in the Escambray mountains in Las Villas province of Cuba.

In 1965, Victor Dreke served as Second in Command under Ernesto "Che" Guevara in the Cuban-led military expedition to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, by request of the followers of Patrice Lumumba, to assist in the African people's fight for independence. During this time Guevara wrote about Dreke in his report to Castro, "He was...one of the pillars on which I relied. The only reason I am not recommending that he be promoted is that he already holds the highest rank." ["Conflicting Missions: Havana, Washington, and Africa 1959-1976". Gleijeses, Piero. 2002]

Dreke returned to Africa in 1966 - 1968 to head Cuba's military mission in Guinea-Bissau/Cape Verde, where the native people were fighting for their independence from Portugal. Dreke fought alongside Amilcar Cabral there and also headed Cuba's mission in the Republic of Guinea.

Víctor Dreke is a close friend of the Socialist Workers Party, and American Communist Party, and Dreke’s autobiographical book, "From the Escambray to Congo: In the Whirlwind of the Cuban Revolution", was published in both English and Spanish by Pathfinder Press, the publishing arm of the SWP.

Victor Dreke is currently Vice President of the Cuba-Africa Friendship Association.

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