Some Cubans in Havana have been expressing their sadness and speaking of the importance of Castro to their country's history.

Freedom of speech is severely limited in Cuba, so most people with different views are unlikely to express them publicly.

Dissident Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez tweets from Havana:

#Cuba His legacy: a country in ruins, a country in which young people don't want to live. #DeathOfFidelCastro

Karen Allen
BBC southern Africa correspondent, Johannesburg

The news of Fidel Castro's death has evoked a deep sense of sympathy and solidarity across large swathes of Africa.

He was a man who inspired post-colonial struggles across the continent that he himself once described as "the most beautiful cause of mankind". 

His ties to South Africa in particular - and the fight against apartheid - have been widely honoured. 

Many thousands of Cuban soldiers lost their lives far away from home in countries such as Angola, fighting African wars of liberation. Some will argue that on this day when one of the most important figures of the 20th Century is no more, they must be remembered, too. 

Image source, AFP

... and other questions for the revolutionary leader:

Supporters and opponents of Fidel Castro have clashed outside the Cuban embassy in the Spanish capital, Madrid. 

The two sides traded insults and police had to intervene to separate some protesters.

Spain is home to many Cuban dissidents after then-Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero struck a deal with Raul Castro Raul in 2010 to transfer more than 100 political prisoners and their families to Spain.

Image source, AFP

People on the streets of Havana have been expressing sadness at the death of Fidel Castro.

Will Grant
BBC News, Havana

Cubans have been preparing for this moment, a post-Fidel Cuba, for several years now as he retired from public life and largely disappeared from view.

But now that it has actually arrived, some are asking whether it will make any political difference to Cuba’s trajectory.

It is unlikely to, mainly because Raul Castro has already been implementing economic changes intended to attract foreign direct investment and ease the tight restrictions on ordinary Cubans. 

Plus, of course, there is the new rapprochement with Washington. While it is still not clear what a Trump presidency will mean in that regard, those changes are unlikely to be reversed because of Fidel Castro’s death. 

Nor will Cuba change its one-party political system in his absence. Politically, his legacy lives on.

Image source, EPA

The leader of Britain's Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, said Fidel Castro had been "such a huge figure in our lives", recalling the revolution, the missile crisis and personal visits to Cuba.

He praised the Castros for their recent rapprochement with the US:

"It is to the credit of both the Castros, Fidel and his younger brother, that they and President Obama reached an accord and reached an agreement so that there are now better, more normal relationships between Cuba and the USA." 

But Mr Corbyn also recognised that not everything was rosy in Cuba:

"There were problems and there are problems of excesses by all regimes and I recognise that. I have spoken out about human rights abuses anywhere in the world. But we have to look at the thing in its totality. One doesn't excuse that - one does recognise the economic and social changes that have happened in Cuba as a result of the revolution in 1959."

Bolivia's left-wing President Evo Morales calls Fidel Castro a "giant in the history of humanity". 

Mr Morales visited Fidel Castro in August of this year, one of many visits he made to see the man he considered "an inspiration".

In a tweet, Mr Morales also expressed his "admiration and respect for Fidel, the leader who taught us to fight for the sovereignty of the state and the dignity of the people of the world".

Wi-fi hotspots would have been unheard of under Fidel Castro - but there are now more than 40 on the streets of the capital, Havana. Residents gathered around them to read more about his death and contact friends and relatives. Very few people have internet access at home.

Image source, AP

Image source, AP

Did Castro manage to create a Cuba "for all Cubans and the good of all Cubans"? He built an impressive health system but is considered a failure on economic development by some, writes Dr Stephen Wilkinson, editor of the International Journal of Cuban Studies. 

And beyond his supporters in Cuba, Fidel Castro will be most fondly remembered in Latin America and Africa - where Nelson Mandela himself attributed his release from jail and the ultimate defeat of apartheid to Castro's intervention in the Angolan war, Dr Wilkinson says.

Image source, AFP

During the official mourning period, radio and television will broadcast "informative, patriotic and historic" programmes, Cuba's Council of State announced. 

Flags will fly at half mast and there will be no public events apart from those related to Fidel Castro's death.

Fidel Castro's ashes will be laid to rest in the Santa Ifigenia cemetery in the south-eastern city of Santiago de Cuba. 

A grandiose cemetery, Santa Ifigenia was built in 1868 for the victims of the War of Independence.

It is the resting place of Cuban independence hero Jose Marti.

The BBC's Will Grant in Havana says that even though there was a sense of inevitability about Castro's death, given the former president's age, the news caught people off guard somewhat as photos had been released of him looking reasonably well in recent days.

Image source, AFP / www.cubadebate.cu

During his almost five decades in charge of Cuba, Fidel Castro was pictured with many key international figures, while others froze him out of their relations.

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Cubans will be given a chance to bid farewell to Fidel Castro in a mass gathering to be held in Revolution Square in Havana on 29 November, Cuba's Council of State has announced.

His ashes will then be taken along the "Caravan of Freedom", the path he and his guerrilla fighters took during the Cuban Revolution.

Fidel Castro's ashes will be laid to rest on 4 December, Cuba has announced.

A period of official mourning has been declared until that day.

Cuban exiles in Miami, who have longed for the demise of the Castro regime, sang and danced in celebration - even in the rain.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Russian President Vladimir Putin sends a message to Cuban President Raul Castro:

"The name of this eminent statesman is rightly considered a symbol of a whole era in world history. 

"The free and independent Cuba which he and his allies built became an influential member of the international community and was an inspirational example for many countries and peoples. 

"Fidel Castro was a true and loyal friend of Russia. He personally invested a great deal in the establishment and development of Russian-Cuban relations, close strategic cooperation in all spheres. 

"This strong and wise man always looked to the future with confidence. He embodied the high ideals of a politician, citizen and patriot, truly convinced of the cause to which he devoted his entire life. 

"His memory will live on always in Russians' hearts.