Fidel Castro votes in Cuba election Published duration 4 February 2013

media caption The BBC's Sarah Rainsford said Castro was stooped and spoke with a faint, weak voice

Fidel Castro has voted in Cuba's parliamentary elections, the first time the frail ex-leader has been seen in public for several months.

State TV showed the 86-year-old voting at a polling station where he is said to have spent up to an hour talking to other voters and the media.

The BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Havana says he was stooped and spoke with a faint, weak voice.

A crowd surrounded his car, cheering as he was driven off, she adds.

All organised opposition is banned in Cuba and all candidates for elections have been selected by the ruling Communist Party or its affiliated associations.

More than 600 delegates will take their seats in the National Assembly and approve the candidates for Cuba's key political positions.

With President Raul Castro - Fidel's younger brother - already 81, Cubans are watching for any sign as to who might follow him, our correspondent says.