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What was the Bay of Pigs?

The Bay of Pigs is the name of an unsuccessful invasion of Cuba, which the United States government supported in 1961. The U.S. government ordered the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to train and arm about 1,500 Cuban expatriates (citizens of a foreign country) living in the United States. On April 17, 1961, this group of men, who opposed the Communist regime (a government system in which the state controls the economy and only one political party holds power) of Fidel Castro (1926– ) in Cuba, landed at the Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) in west-central Cuba. Castro's forces killed or captured most of the rebels. This botched invasion embarrassed U.S. President John Kennedy (1917–1963) and made the United States look both weak and incompetent. Moreover, the United States paid Cuba $53,000,000 in food and medicine (acquired from private donors) to gain the release of the prisoners.

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