UPDATE 11.15am: Cuba will observe nine days of mourning for Fidel Castro, including a three-day journey by his ashes along the route taken by the rebel army he led on a victorious march across the island in 1959.

The plans were announced by the Organising Committee of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party, State and Government, which said Cubans can show their respects for Mr Castro from 9am on Monday at the Havana memorial to national hero Jose Marti, a poet and leader of Cuba’s 19th century fight for independence from Spain.

Mourners will be able to pay their respects on Monday and Tuesday at the memorial in the Plaza of the Revolution as well as specially-designated sites across the country.

Cubans will be able to “pay homage and sign the solemn oath of fulfilling the concept of revolution … as an expression of the will to continue Castro’s ideas and our socialism”, the committee said.

Officials said Mr Castro will be cremated, but gave no details about how or when.

The committee said Cubans will be called to a demonstration on Tuesday night in Havana’s Plaza of the Revolution, the site of a series of huge rallies led by Mr Castro as he consolidated power in the years after the revolution.

On Wednesday, Mr Castro’s ashes will begin traveling eastward across Cuba, following in reverse the route taken by his rebels from the Sierra Maestra mountains to the capital, Havana.

The cortege is to take three days.

On December 3, a mass commemoration will be held at the Antonio Maceo plaza in central Santiago de Cuba, the largest city in the east.

Mr Castro’s ashes are to be interred the following day at the nearby Santa Ifigenia Cemetery, where Jose Marti is also buried.

Castro, the Cuban revolutionary leader who built a communist state on the doorstep of the United States and for five decades defied efforts to topple him, died at 90.

News of his death prompted a massive outpouring of grief in his homeland but celebrations in other parts of the world, including Miami, where generations of exiled Cubans live.

It was Castro’s brother and successor as Cuban president Raúl Castro who broke the news of his passing on Cuban television with a trembling voice.

“With profound pain, I stand to inform our people, our friends of our America and the world that today, Nov. 25, 2016, at 10:29 pm, the commander and leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, passed away,” he said.

“In compliance with the expressed will of the Companion Fidel, his remains will be cremated.

“In the early hours of Saturday the 26th, the funeral organizing committee will provide our people with detailed information on the organization of the posthumous tribute that will be done for the founder of the Cuban Revolution. Ever onward to victory!”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBV88edVd-c

The guerilla fighter-turned-Cuban-president has always encouraged mixed reactions thanks to his unconventional methods and his death was no different.

US president-elect Donald Trump produced one of the most unconventional responses among the world’s politicians.

Fidel Castro is dead!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 26, 2016

Other world leaders hailed Castro as “iconic”.

“Fidel Castro was one of the most iconic personalities of the 20th century,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, lamenting his “sad demise”.

“India mourns the loss of a great friend.”

I extend my deepest condolences to the Government & people of Cuba on the sad demise of Fidel Castro. May his soul rest in peace.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 26, 2016

Mikhail Gorbachev, the final leader of the Soviet Union which had long acted as an economic and political prop for Cuba, said Castro left a lasting mark on his country and on world history.

“Fidel held his ground and strengthened his country at the time of the harshest American blockade, at the time of massive pressure on him,” Gorbachev was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying.

“Nevertheless he led out his country from the blockade to the path of self-sustained and independent development.”

In a telegram of condolence to Raul Castro, Russian President Vladimir Putin called the late leader an “inspiring example for many countries”.

“Fidel Castro was a frank and tried and true friend of Russia,” the Kremlin quoted the message as saying.

In Venezuela, a long-time Cuba ally and staunch opponent of the United States’ political stance, President Nicolas Maduro, said Castro had inspired and would continue to inspire his country.

“We will keep on winning and keep fighting. Fidel Castro is an example of the fight for all the people of the world. We will go forward with his legacy,” Maduro told television station Telesur.

"Fidel Castro will be remembered as a giant among global leaders." https://t.co/hX84AajZ5l pic.twitter.com/AXciQ6Qcns

— President of Ireland (@PresidentIRL) November 26, 2016

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa said: “A great has left us. Fidel has died. Long live Cuba! Long live Latin America!”

South African President Jacob Zuma thanked the Cuban leader for his help and support in the struggle to overthrow apartheid.

“President Castro identified with our struggle against apartheid. He inspired the Cuban people to join us in our own struggle against apartheid,” he said.

1. Today the world lost an iconic revolutionary leader Fidel Castro who liberated his nation from all vestiges of imperialism.

— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) November 26, 2016

French President Francois Hollande mourned the loss of a major figure and welcomed the rapprochement between Havana and Washington, while noting concerns over human rights under Castro.

“Fidel Castro was a towering figure of the 20th century. He incarnated the Cuban revolution, in both its hopes and subsequent disillusionments,” Hollande, the Socialist party leader, said in a statement.

“France, which condemned human rights abuses in Cuba, had equally challenged the US embargo on Cuba and France was glad to see the two countries re-establish dialogue and open ties between themselves.”

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto mourned Castro as “a friend of Mexico, promoter of a bilateral relationship based on respect, dialogue and solidarity”.

Elation in Miami

Meanwhile, Cuban Americans in Miami took to the streets of Little Havana in the early hours of Saturday morning to celebrate, popping champagne bottles, letting off fireworks and shouting ‘Cuba libre!’ (‘Free Cuba!’).

The celebration in Miami after the death of Fidel Castro. @USATODAY pic.twitter.com/xWl1lbwfsC

— Alan Gomez (@alangomez) November 26, 2016

Fireworks and everything pic.twitter.com/Jfd9tH1p6N

— Bertis Rodriguez 🖤 (@Bertis_Breezy) November 26, 2016

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the first Cuban-American elected to US Congress, released a statement on Castro’s death, labelling him a “tyrant and thug”.

A bearded, cigar-smoking romantic revolutionary

It was as a young radical that Fidel Castro debuted on the international stage, inspiring his supporters and overthrowing the Cuban government.

The year was 1959 and within weeks the bearded, cigar-smoking rebel had become Cuba’s leader, a title he held onto for the rest of his life.

To many, Castro was a romantic revolutionary, a persuasive and moving speaker who had the affection of his people.

His longevity and the stability of his tenure as the top figure in Cuban politics withstood the fall of the Soviet empire and the unravelling of Communist doctrine in China.

He dominated far-left politics in the second half of the 20th century, establishing his power over Cuban society with the help of the Soviet Union, and assisting like-minded regimes and figures in neighbouring countries.

Castro thumbed his nose at US sanctions, survived a reported 638 assassination attempts and ultimately departed the world stage on his own terms.

A divisive figure at home and abroad, many Cubans opposed his regime while others supported the socialist policies of his government.

He was a charismatic, hands-on politician, with a history of violent, forceful politicking.

In 1977, American journalist Barbara Walters travelled to Cuba to interview the figure of fascination and fear for cold-war America.

After the interview, at 1am, he made grilled cheese sandwiches and said he would shave his beard if America lifted its embargo.

“He was very charismatic, very charming and funny,” recalled Walters on the eve of her retirement in January 2014.

“Your feeling is that he’s much bigger than he actually is.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-WW63Lmai8

Born into a privileged family

Born Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz near Birán, Cuba on August 13, 1926, he was the third of six children.

His father Angel was a successful sugar planter and his mother Lina was, at the time of Fidel’s birth, the maid of Angel’s first wife.

Angel formally recognised his son when Fidel was 17.

He was educated by Jesuits and lived a privileged life amid Cuba’s poverty and first developed his political ideology while studying law at the University of Havana in the 1940s.

By the time he graduated in 1950, Mr Castro had been heavily involved in revolutionary movements, opposing right-wing governments — and not just in Cuba.

In 1947, outraged by social injustice, Castro travelled to the Dominican Republic in an attempt to overthrow the dictator Rafael Trujillo.

The coup failed before it even started but the flame of reform within Castro was lit and he turned his attention to right-wing Cuban ruler Fulgencio Batista.

Batista had assumed control of Cuba in 1933 through a military coup, and ruled for 11 years before stepping down.

By then, Castro had joined the Partido Ortodoxo, a political party targeting corruption in Cuba.

After Batista resumed his position in 1952, Mr Castro began a lengthy rebellion against him, which led to jail, exile, and ultimately, Mr Castro’s 49-year rule of Cuba.

In July 1953 Castro was arrested after a failed attempt to wrest power from Batista and later that year was sentenced to 15 years jail.

Building a movement

While in jail, Mr Castro and his fellow revolutionaries, including his brother Raul, built the 26th of July Movement, which would eventually overthrow the Batista government.

Under pressure, Batista granted Mr Castro amnesty and released him from prison in 1955.

Mr Castro travelled to Mexico, where he met Argentinian Marxist Che Guevara and spent time raising funds and building opposition to Batista.

He returned to Cuba in 1956 to conduct a guerrilla war against the Batista government, and in 1959, his 26th July Movement successfully assumed power of the country after Batista was forced to flee.

Mr Castro then became prime minister, establishing a Maxist-Leninist regime and leading to the exile of thousands of Cubans.

While the United States initially acknowledged his government’s legitimacy, Mr Castro’s covert military and economic relations with the then Soviet Union led to a breakdown of relations.

He continued to accept both military and economic aid from the Soviet Union, bringing the world to the brink of nuclear war in 1961 in what became known as the Bay of Pigs invasion.

This nail-biting event was followed by the imposition of a trade embargo by the US government and the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 in which the US established a military blockade of Cuba.

Castro responded to the US embargo by further linking Cuba and the Soviet Union, and by supporting political movements which opposed US policies.

When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Cuba was left without a strong ally, and economically devastated.

But the dictatorial Castro retained control of the country and remained popular with Cubans who received free health care and education.

Under his rule, literacy rose to 98 per cent, 10,000 new schools were opened and infant mortality decreased.

He was elected Cuban president in 1976 and continued in this role until health problems overwhelmed him.

His closely guarded private life

Known to be incredibly private about his personal life, Mr Castro was reported to have married twice and have numerous children.

In 2006, he underwent surgery for intestinal bleeding and was forced to hand power to his brother Raul while recuperating.

He ultimately relinquished the position of president to Raul Castro in 2008, at the age of 81.

After retiring, Mr Castro wrote political columns for the official press in Cuba and was the subject of numerous false death rumours.

He was awarded China’s Confucius Peace Prize in 2014 for his “important contributions” to world peace.

He also gave up smoking the cigars, ironically just as the US signalled the end of their trade embargo with Cuba, which has stymied cigar fans for 52 years.

– with ABC