Raul Castro, head of Cuba's army and brother of Cuban President Fidel Castro, listens to a speaker while sitting in front of Cuba's Minister of Communication Ramiro Valdez during a meeting of the National Assembly in Havana December 22, 2006. Cuba's National Assembly began its year-end session on Friday without ailing leader Fidel Castro, who was last seen in public on July 26. REUTERS/Claudia Daut (CUBA)