On Sunday, September 29, 2024, State Security apprehended Berta Soler, the leader of the Ladies in White, as she attempted to leave her home in the Lawton neighborhood of Havana to attend mass.
Her husband, Ángel Moya Acosta, a former political prisoner and activist, posted images of the arrest on social media, condemning it as part of a systematic crackdown on the Ladies in White.
According to Moya, the Cuban regime's repressive forces have ramped up arrests to prevent the Ladies in White from attending mass, not only at Santa Rita Church but also in other parishes across Havana, Matanzas, Santa Clara, and various other provinces.
The arrest of Berta Soler occurred around 1:00 p.m., when regime forces intercepted her, blocking her from peacefully demonstrating in the streets, a common part of her human rights activism in Cuba.
Just last week, Berta was detained and disappeared for several days under Cuban authorities' custody. She was released on September 25, only to be arbitrarily detained again four days later.
The Ladies in White organization, recipients of the Sakharov Prize, continues to face repression aimed at silencing their peaceful protests against the Cuban government.