After the fall of the Soviet Union , Cuba had entered a period of severe recession , the so-called '' periodo especial '' . In the second half of the 1990s the economy in Cuba began to recover thanks to huge investments in tourism . In this context , a series of bombings in 1997 was brought against the most important tourist destinations by some anti-Castro Cuban : the goal was to bring the collapse of Cuba 's economy to be able to get the popular support necessary to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro . During the attacks , carried out on September 4 , 1997 , Salvadoran terrorist Raúl Cruz León , placed a charge of C-4 explosives in the lobby of the Hotel Copacabana
bombings in 1997
1997 Cuba hotel bombings
Fabio di Celmo