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Castro seizes power
Fidel Castro seized power in the military coup d etat in 1959, carried out by his guerrilla force called the 26 July Movement. Castro was not communist at this stage, although leading members of his government were, inclduing his brother Raul. The US became hostile to Cuba because it perceived Castro's reforms, such as nationalising schools and redistributing large portions of land to the peasants, as being communist in nature.