By ANITA SNOW
 Associated Press Writer

 HAVANA -- (AP) -- Fidel Castro launched a rare televised attack on the
 communist island's dissidents early today, mocking them and accusing them of
 taking advantage of the upcoming Ibero-American summit to carry their
 ``counter-revolutionary'' message to foreign leaders.

 He named some of the dissidents during the broadcast. He said one, Elizardo
 Sanchez, had approached embassies here about meeting with leaders during the
 Nov. 15-16 gathering of heads of state from Spain, Portugal and Latin America.

 ``They were planning a parallel summit,'' Castro said angrily.

 Sanchez's phone was busy after the more than five-hour program featuring Castro
 and three Cuban journalists who work for government-controlled media.

 The dissidents have made no secret of their plans to use the gathering to draw
 attention to their complaints -- among them that the communist government does
 not allow freedom of expression, assembly and movement.

 They have grown bolder as the summit approaches, even gathering with foreign
 journalists in a restaurant patio during last week's visit here by Illinois Gov.
 George Ryan. Cuba's largely timid opponents most often meet with reporters only
 indoors.

 It was not immediately clear if Castro planned any action against the dissidents
 before the summit. Cuba's human rights record remains a shadow over the
 gathering, which Cuba hopes will help improve relations with Spanish- and
 Portuguese-speaking nations.

 Some countries attending the summit, notably Spain, have pushed for freeing four
 internationally known Cuban dissidents, sentenced earlier this year to prison
 terms ranging from 4 1/2 to six years.

 During the broadcast today, Castro discussed the four, reading portions of their
 documents calling on Miami exiles to encourage relatives on the island to
 undertake civil disobedience.

 ``These are political prisoners?'' he asked.

 King Juan Carlos I and Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar have said they
 will attend the summit. But at least five heads of state have said they will not
 attend, despite vigorous efforts by Cuba's Foreign Ministry.

 Costa Rican President Miguel Angel Rodriguez says he will not be there because
 Castro did not guarantee him the right to meet with dissidents. Nicaraguan
 President Arnoldo Aleman says he won't go because of political differences with
 Castro, and El Salvador's president, Francisco Flores, says he will not come
 because his country and Cuba have no diplomatic relations.

 The other two no-shows -- Chilean President Eduardo Frei and outgoing Argentine
 President Carlos Menem -- are not coming to protest Spain's attempt to extradite
 former Chilean military leader Gen. Augusto Pinochet from Britain for trial on
 torture charges.

 During the televised appearance today, Castro focused much time on a highly
 publicized 40-day liquid fast by dissidents earlier this year.

 Castro offered extensive details about what the group ate daily, including milk with
 chocolate, chicken soup, yogurt, ice cream, and fruit juice. He joked, ``with all
 that, they should have gained weight.''

 Castro also read detailed visitor lists and said 54 foreign journalists and five
 Interests Section officials visited the group the final day of its fast.

 The Cuban president said he had no problem with the correspondents, adding that
 ``this isn't a war with the agencies.'' But he criticized American officials who
 visited, including Michael Kozak, then the U.S. Interests Section mission chief.

 Castro also accused Interests Section officials of trying to block his meeting last
 week with Ryan, the first American governor to visit the island since the 1959
 revolution. The president did not describe the alleged attempts to block the
 meeting.

 Ryan had a seven-hour meeting with Castro last week before returning to the
 United States. He repeatedly called for an end to the U.S. trade embargo during
 his four-day stay.

 Telephones at the Interests Section rang unanswered early today.