Doctor claims former Cuban leader Fidel Castro suffered stroke

Fidel Castro’s last public appearance was in March when he greeted Pope Benedict XVI in Cuba. (Getty)

A Venezuelan doctor says former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has suffered a stroke, leaving him in a "very close to a nuerovegetative state," the Miami Herald reported Friday.

“He suffered an embolic stroke and recognizes absolutely no one,” the physician, José Marquina,  told the Herald, assuring that this was direct insider information.

“The people with a condition of this nature have difficulty eating and, of course, they end up with total deficit in their neurologic capacities.”

Castro has not been seen in public since March, during Pope Benedict XVI trip to Cuba. The doctor says due to Castro's current state, it's unlikely he'll be seen again, though he could live for weeks, the Miami Herald reports.

Castro, whose revolution seized power in Cuba in 1959, left office in 2006 due to a life-threatening intestinal condition. His younger brother Raul now serves as president.

Click here for more from the Miami Herald.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.