US calls for release of imprisoned contractor in Cuba

Dec 2, 2011, 21:33 GMT

Washington - The United States on Friday called for Cuba to release contractor Alan Gross, who has been imprisoned for two years by the communist government for handing out telecommunications equipment on the island.

The White House expressed its deepest sympathies to Gross and his family and called for his prompt release.

'Cuban authorities have failed in their effort to use Mr Gross as a pawn for their own ends. They must heed the call of Mr Gross's family and friends, the international community and the United States to immediately release Mr Gross,' spokesman Jay Carney said.

Saturday marks the second anniversary of Gross' arrest while employed by a firm working for the US State Department for handing out the satellite telecommunications equipment in defiance of laws on the Caribbean island. He was sentenced in March to 15 years in prison.

'Tomorrow Alan Gross will begin his third year of unjustified imprisonment in Cuba,' State Department Spokesman Mark Toner said.

'Mr Gross is a 62-year-old husband, father, and dedicated professional with a long history of providing assistance and support to underserved communities in more than 50 countries,' Toner said. 'We continue to call on the Cuban government to release Alan Gross and return him to his family, where he belongs.'

A Cuban court said Gross had created secret networks to provide access to the internet to help opposition groups organize against the government of President Raul Castro. The US government said Gross was not a spy, but was involved in distributing equipment and access to the internet for Jewish groups in Cuba.

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