1997 Cuba hotel bombings

1997 Cuba hotel bombings
Date 1997
Deaths 1
Non-fatal injuries
 11

The 1997 Cuba hotel bombings were a series of bombings of Cuban hotels, which were designed to destroy the recently resurgent Cuban tourism trade. The bombings resulted in the death of an Italian tourist, Fabio di Celmo, and the injury of 11 others. Targets included the Hotel Capri, Hotel Nacional de Cuba, Hotel Copacabana and the Meliá Cohiba Hotel.[1] The Cuban-born Venezuelan Luis Posada Carriles admitted organising the bombings. In a taped interview with The New York Times, Posada said: "It is sad that someone is dead, but we can't stop."[2] Posada was reportedly disappointed with the reluctance of American news organisations to report the bombing attacks, saying "If there is no publicity, the job is useless.[3]

In March 1999 Raúl Ernesto Cruz León, who Posada admitted was a mercenary under his employment, was sentenced to death by the Cuban authorities after admitting to the attacks,[3] alongside fellow Salvadoran Otto Rene Rodriguez Llerena.[4] The sentences were commuted in 2010 to 30 years in prison.[4][5] In December 2010 another Salvadoran, Francisco Chávez Abarca, was sentenced to 30 years for his part in the bombings, having confessed on television to being hired by Posada Carriles.[4]

In March 2005 Posada entered the US on a false passport and requested political asylum.[6] Presidents Fidel Castro of Cuba and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela both demanded extradition.[7] He lived in Miami until he was detained by homeland security following an interview he gave to the Miami Herald, in which claimed to have entered the US without papers. He was then placed under house arrest.[8][6] In September 2005 a US immigration judge ruled he could not be extradited to Venezuela or Cuba as he faced the threat of torture in these countries.[9] In January 2009 Posada was indicted on charges of obstruction of justice, immigration fraud, and perjury by a federal grand jury.[10] He was cleared on all counts in April 2011.[11]

References

  1. ↑ Fox News, 10 February 2011, Cuban Official Details 1997 Hotel Bombings in Posada Carriles Case
  2. ↑ Arrest of Cuban ex-CIA figure puts Bush in tough political spot San Francisco Chronicle
  3. 1 2 Bardach, Ann Louise. Cuba Confidential: Love and Vengeance in Miami and Havana. p180-223.
  4. 1 2 3 Reuters, 22 December 2010, Salvadoran sentenced to 30 years for Cuba bombings
  5. ↑ Eurasia Review, Terrorism In Latin America: Peru, Cuba And Venezuela
  6. 1 2 Kornbluh, Peter (2005-05-19). "The Posada File". The Nation. ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  7. ↑ "Flashback | Posada speaks to Herald". miamiherald. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  8. ↑ "Judge throws out charges against anti-Castro militant - CNN.com". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  9. ↑ "No deportation for Cuban militant". 2005-09-28. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  10. ↑ Carroll, Rory; correspondent, Latin America (2011-04-10). "Cuba denounces acquittal of former CIA agent Luis Posada as a farce". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  11. ↑ Press, The Associated (2011-04-08). "Cuban Exile Luis Posada Carriles Is Acquitted". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
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