Cuba says four people killed, six injured after Florida speedboat opens fire in Cuban waters

Cuban officials said Wednesday that four people were killed, and six others were injured, after a speedboat that had allegedly come from Florida entered its waters and began firing at Cuban border patrol troops.

The Cuban Ministry of the Interior said the boat, which displayed a Florida registration number, approached within 1 nautical mile northeast of the El Pino canal in Cayo Falcones. 

When five members of the Border Guard Troops approached the Florida boat for identification, people on the boat allegedly began shooting at the Cubans and injured its commanding officer.

"As a result of the confrontation .... four aggressors were killed and six were injured, who were evacuated and received medical assistance," the ministry said in a statement. 

"Faced with current challenges, Cuba reaffirms its commitment to protecting its territorial waters, based on the principle that national defense is a fundamental pillar for the Cuban State in order to protect its sovereignty and stability in the region," it added.

A United States official told the New York Times that the boat was a U.S. civilian vessel that was part of a small fleet to get relatives out of Cuba and was not a U.S. Coast Guard or Naval vessel. 

It was not immediately clear why, or if, the boat opened fire on Cuban troops, but it comes amid increased tension between the United States and Cuba after the U.S. captured ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro last month.