Mikulski: Overwhelmed with Emotion of Alan Gross Release
U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) today heralded the release of Marylander Alan Gross from his imprisonment in Cuba since December 3, 2009.
“I was so pleased to be at Andrews AFB this morning to welcome Alan Gross as he touched ground back in the United States of America. I am so honored to be part of his first day back home in five years. Today is a new day and a monumental breakthrough,” she said in a release. “Last night I got the call from Vice President Biden that Alan Gross will be coming home after so many years of imprisonment by the Cuban government, and I was overwhelmed with emotion. I am so honored and want to thank all those who helped make this happen. During his long imprisonment, Alan’s health deteriorated. He suffered tremendously. His wife Judy and two daughters fought every single day for his release. Today that ends and Alan is free. I applaud his release and hope that he can finally get the care and assistance he so desperately needs. I am looking forward to learning more details when the President speaks this afternoon.”
In March, she wrote to President Obama calling for the administration to redouble their efforts to secure the release of Mr. Gross ahead of the President’s trip to the Vatican. On the third anniversary of his imprisonment in 2012, Mikulski lead bipartisan Senators in introducing a resolution calling for his release. In 2011, Mikulski joined a bipartisan group of senators sending a letterdirectly to the Cuban government calling Alan Gross’ continued incarceration a ‘major setback in bilateral relations.’
She has stayed directly in touch with Mrs. Gross and the Gross family, and has called for ‘whatever steps necessary’ to secure his release, according to a press release from her office.
Alan Gross was arrested on December 3, 2009. After a two-day trial, he was given a 15-year prison sentence by Cuban authorities for facilitating communications between Cuba’s Jewish community and the rest of the world. Gross was in Cuba working as a sub-contractor for the United States Agency for International Development.
A 65-year-old husband and father, Mr. Gross has lost a significant amount of weight since his arrest and suffers from severe degenerative arthritis that affects his mobility, as well as other health problems. Members of his family have also faced serious illnesses during this time, according to Mikulski’s press release.
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