Alina Fernandez Revuelta, daughter of Cuban President Fidel Castro, has left Cuba and been granted political asylum in the United States, a State Department official said Wednesday.

Fernandez, who is about 40 and has long been a critic of her father's revolution, departed Cuba on Monday for Spain and flew to Atlanta Tuesday afternoon after her asylum request was granted, said the official, who spoke only on condition of anonymity.She left behind a teenage daughter in Cuba, the official said, adding that her whereabouts Wednesday were unknown.

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Rep. Lincoln Diaz Balart, R-Fla., said Fernandez's desertion is "very symbolic of the national consensus in Cuba" against Castro.

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