FORMER Cuban leader Fidel Castro has died at the age of 90.

The Communist leader led the country after a revolution that saw it become a one-party state.

Castro held power as prime minister from 1959-1976 and as president from 1976 to 2008 before handing the top job to his brother Raul Castro.

In recent years, Castro made very few public appearances but was pictured meeting with foreign leaders only 10 days ago. 

AP reported it was Raul Castro who announced his brother's death on Cuban state media. 

Fidel Castro's leadership as a dictator led to decades of tough sanctions from the nearby United States as well as other countries.  

The sanctions were only relaxed after negotiations between the two countries that were made public in late 2014. 

Barack Obama became the first U.S president to visit Cuba in 80 years when he touched down in early 2016.