Federal authorities snatch Elian from Miami home

Angry crowd gathers in Little Havana neighborhood

April 22, 2000
Web posted at: 6:00 a.m. EDT (1000 GMT)

In this story: Talks went on late into night Elian found by fishermen RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Federal agents early Saturday stormed the Miami home where Elian Gonzalez has been staying with relatives and took the 6-year-old boy to an unknown destination.

The surprise operation, shortly after 5 a.m., followed hours of fruitless talks among the Justice Department, the lawyer for the boy's father and outside mediators seeking a peaceful resolution of the long-running dispute over custody of Elian.

The seizure shocked the small group of protesters who had gathered outside the modest Miami home of Elian's relatives.

Elian could be seen in the arms of a female federal agent, rushed from the house and bundled into a van in an operation that lasted only minutes.

Angry demonstrators cursing and hurling missiles as a white van with Elian inside sped away.

U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno had apparently been negotiating through intermediaries in Miami early Saturday to hammer out the details of the transfer of Cuban boy Elian Gonzalez from his Miami relatives to his father.

The U.S. relatives of Elian had two separate meetings Friday in Miami with representatives of the Justice Department, sources close to the negotiations said. Talks involving intermediaries and attorneys for both sides continued overnight.

A Justice Department spokeswoman said "outside parties" were also involved in the process of putting together a plan for an agreement that would include an immediate transfer of Elian to his father's care.

A hearing on that request was set for May 11.

Elian was rescued by two fishermen while clinging to an inner tube off the Florida coast on November 25. He and two others survived, but his mother and 10 others drowned when their boat sank while trying to reach the United States from Cuba.

The boy's Miami relatives have cared for him ever since. They insist Elian will be better off living with them and argue that the boy would be psychologically harmed and face persecution if he is returned to communist-ruled Cuba.

Justice Department Correspondent Pierre Thomas, Senior White House Correspondent John King, and correspondents Mark Potter, Jean Meserve and Susan Candiotti contributed to this report.

Reno ponders force, other options, to end Elian standoff
April 22, 2000
Reno ponders force, other options, to end Elian standoff
April 22, 2000
Elian's father pleads for son; Clinton backs boy's return
April 21, 2000
Elian's father pleads for U.S. public support; mass protest held in Havana
April 20, 2000
Transferring custody of Elian not ruled out, Reno says
April 19, 2000
Elian's well-being debated as court considers case
April 18, 2000
Unless barred by court order, INS to remove Elian from Miami home
April 17, 2000

U.S. Attorney General
U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service
U.S. Department of Justice
Executive Office of the Governor of Florida
Eleventh Circuit Published Opinions
United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
LibertyForElian.org - Foundation to Help Save Elian
Granma Internacional Digital, Cuba
  •  Kidnap in Miami
Cubaweb
Cuban American National Foundation

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