Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega, leading political figure, dead at 82

FILE PHOTO: Archbishop of Havana Cardinal Jaime Ortega, who helped restore relations between Cuba and the United States, leads a mass at Havana Cathedral in Cuba, May 7, 2016. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini

HAVANA (Reuters) - Roman Catholic Cardinal Jaime Ortega, who came to leverage a rare level of political influence in Cuba for someone outside the Communist Party and played a key role in the island's now-defunct detente with the United States, died on Friday at the age of 82.

A series of Masses will be held in the Cathedral of Havana from Friday afternoon through Sunday, Jenny Martinez Lara, of the church's Felix Varela Cultural Center, told Reuters.