a physician by training, sergio del valle became a part of the movement against the government of fulgencio batista in the 1950s and, by 1957, was fighting in fidel castro's rebel army's second column under the leadership of camilo cienfuegos. after castro took power, del valle served in a number of top positions, most notably his key military post at the time of the missile crisis. in subsequent decades, he was interior minister (1968–79) and public health minister (1979–86).