The AMIA bombing occurred on 18 July 1994 in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, and targeted the
Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina
Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA; ) is a Jewish Community Centre located in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Established as ''Jevrá Kedushá'' in 1894, its mission was conceived to promote the well-being and development of Jewish life in Ar ...
(AMIA; ), a
Jewish Community Centre
A Jewish Community Center or a Jewish Community Centre (JCC) is a general recreational, social clubs, social, and Fraternal and service organizations, fraternal organization serving the Jewish community in a number of cities. JCCs promote Jewish ...
. Executed as a
suicidal attack, a
bomb-laden van was driven into the AMIA building and subsequently detonated, killing 85 people and injuring over 300.
[ To date, the bombing remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Argentine history. Argentina is home to a Jewish community of 230,000,] making it the largest in Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
and the sixth-largest in the world outside of Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
.
Over the years, the AMIA bombing has been marked by accusations of cover-ups. All suspects in the "local connection" (among them, many members of the Buenos Aires Provincial Police
The Buenos Aires Provincial Police (Spanish: ''Policía de la Provincia de Buenos Aires'', informally ''Policía Bonaerense'') is the police service responsible for policing the Province of Buenos Aires, in Argentina.
It is one of the biggest po ...
) were found to be not guilty in September 2004. In August 2005, federal judge Juan José Galeano, who was in charge of the case, was impeached and removed from his post on a charge of "serious irregularities" due to his mishandling of the investigation. In 2005, Catholic Church cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who would later become Pope Francis
Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
in 2013, was the first public personality to sign a petition for justice in the AMIA bombing case. He was one of the signatories on a document called "85 victims, 85 signatures" as part of the bombing's 11th anniversary.
On 25 October 2006, Argentine prosecutors Alberto Nisman
Natalio Alberto Nisman (5 December 1963 – 18 January 2015) was an Argentine lawyer who worked as a federal prosecutor, noted for being the chief investigator of the 1994 car bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires, which killed 85 people, t ...
and Marcelo Martínez Burgos formally accused the Iranian government
The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran ( fa, نظام جمهوری اسلامی ایران, Neẓām-e jomhūrī-e eslāmi-e Irān, known simply as ''Neẓām'' ( fa, نظام, lit=the system) among its supporters) is the ruling state a ...
of directing the bombing, and the Lebanese Islamist militant group Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
of carrying it out. According to the prosecution's claims in 2006, Argentina had been targeted by Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
after Buenos Aires' decision to suspend a nuclear technology transfer contract to Tehran. This has been disputed as the contract was never terminated, and Iran and Argentina were negotiating on the restoration of full cooperation on all bilateral agreements from early 1992 until 1994, when the bombing occurred.
In 2015, Alberto Nisman filed a 300-page document accusing former Argentine president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and politician who has served as the Vice President of Argentina since 2019. She also served as the President ...
of covering up Iran's role in the incident. However, Nisman was murdered hours before he was due to testify against the former president, which the Federal Court of Buenos Aires ruled was a “direct consequence” of Nisman's accusations against Kirchner. In 2017, Argentine judge Claudio Bonadio accused Kirchner of treason and called on the Argentine Senate
The Honorable Senate of the Argentine Nation ( es, Honorable Senado de la Nación Argentina) is the upper house of the National Congress of Argentina.
Overview
The National Senate was established by the Argentine Confederation on July 29, 185 ...
to permit her arrest and trial for allegedly covering up Iranian involvement in the 1994 attack. In 2021, the case against Kirchner was unanimously declared legally null and void by an Argentine federal court; the court found there to be no wrongdoing on Kirchner's part.
The 13th anniversary of the bombing was commemorated on 18 July 2007. In addition to nationwide exhibitions and ceremonies, radio and television stations and police cars all across Argentina sounded sirens at 9:53 a.m., which marked the time of the AMIA bombing.["AMIA Bombing Commemorated", ''Dateline World Jewry'', ]World Jewish Congress
The World Jewish Congress (WJC) was founded in Geneva, Switzerland in August 1936 as an international federation of Jewish communities and organizations. According to its mission statement, the World Jewish Congress' main purpose is to act as ...
, September 2007 In 2019, Argentina officially designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.
Bombing
On 18 July 1994, a suicide bomber drove a Renault Trafic
The Renault Trafic (pronounced as "traffic") is a light commercial van produced by the French automaker Renault since 1980. It is also marketed as the Fiat Talento, the Nissan NV300, the Nissan Primastar, the Mitsubishi Express and, until the ...
van bomb loaded with about of ammonium nitrate
Ammonium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a white crystalline salt consisting of ions of ammonium and nitrate. It is highly soluble in water and hygroscopic as a solid, although it does not form hydrates. It is ...
fertilizer and fuel oil explosive mixture, into the Jewish Community Center building located in a densely constructed commercial area of Buenos Aires. The explosive is thought to have been arranged to focus the blast on the building away, exhibiting a shaped charge
A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to form an explosively formed penetrator (EFP) to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Different types of shaped charges are used for various purposes such as cutting and forming metal, ini ...
or explosively formed penetrator
An explosively formed penetrator (EFP), also known as an explosively formed projectile (EFP), a self-forging warhead, or a self-forging fragment, is the product of a shaped charge designed to penetrate armor effectively. As the name suggests, the ...
effect. The exterior walls of this five story building were of brick masonry construction, which supported the floor slabs. The air blast from the bomb totally destroyed the exposed load-bearing wall A load-bearing wall or bearing wall is a wall that is an active structural element of a building, which holds the weight of the elements above it, by conducting its weight to a foundation structure below it.
Load-bearing walls are one of the ea ...
s which, in turn, led to progressive failure of the floor slabs and virtually total collapse of the building. Such bearing-wall buildings are notable for their tendency to be brought down in this manner by localized damage.
Other bombings
The bombing came two years after the 17 March 1992 bombing of the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires which killed 29 and wounded 242, and was Argentina's deadliest attack until the AMIA bombing. The Islamic Jihad Organization
The Islamic Jihad Organization – IJO ( ar, حركة الجهاد الإسلامي, Ḥarakat al-Jihād al-'Islāmiyy) or ''Organisation du Jihad Islamique'' (OJI) in French, but best known as "Islamic Jihad" (Arabic: ''Jihad al-Islami'') for ...
, which according to Robert Baer
Robert Booker Baer (born July 11, 1952) is an American author and a former CIA case officer who was primarily assigned to the Middle East.Robert Bae"Don't Assume Ahmadinejad Really Lost" ''Time'' website, June 16, 2009 He is ''Times intellig ...
operates under the umbrella of Hezbollah and is linked to Iran, claimed responsibility for that bombing. It was suspected that the AMIA bombing was connected to the embassy attack.[Norton, Augustus Richard, ''Hezbollah: A Short History'', Princeton University Press, 2007, p.79] To date, authorities have been unable to locate those responsible for either of the two bombings.
The day after the AMIA attack, a suicide bombing on a Panamanian commuter plane killed all 21 passengers, 12 of whom were Jews. Investigators determined that the bombing was perpetrated by a "Lya Jamal" – thought to be "an Arab traveling under an alias, using fraudulently obtained Colombian documents."
Eight days after the AMIA attack, the Israeli embassy in London was car-bombed, and thirteen hours later a similar car bomb exploded outside a Jewish community centre in London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. No one was killed but 22 were injured and "millions of pounds of damage" was done. Five Palestinians were later arrested in London and two convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison in connection with the bombings.
Investigation and responsibility
In 2018 judicial authorities announced that former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
Cristina is a female given name, and it is also a surname. Notable people with the name include:
Given name
*Cristina (daughter of Edward the Exile), 11th-century English princess
*Cristina (singer), Cristina Monet-Palaci (1956–2020), American s ...
would face trial on charges she covered up the role of Iranians in bombing. Federal Judge Claudio Bonadio said that eleven other former officials and people close to Kirchner's government will also be tried on charges of cover-up and abuse of power. Kirchner has denied the charges.
No suspects have been convicted for the bombing and there have been a number of allegations made, with later investigations charging the government of Iran. The investigations were marred by incompetence. In 1999 an arrest warrant was issued against Hezbollah member Imad Mugniyah
Imad Fayez Mughniyeh ( ar, عماد فايز مغنية; 7 December 1962 – 12 February 2008), Pseudonym, alias al-Hajj Radwan (), was the founding member of Lebanon's Islamic Jihad Organization and number two in Hezbollah armed strength, Hezbo ...
in connection with the attack. Argentine justice accused Tehran in 2006 of being behind the attacks, and indicted several senior Iranian officials, including Hashemi Rafsanjani
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani ( fa, اکبر هاشمی رفسنجانی, Akbar Hāshemī Rafsanjānī, born Akbar Hashemi Bahramani, 25 August 1934 – 8 January 2017) was an Iranian peoples, Iranian politician, writer, and one of the founding fath ...
and Ahmad Vahidi
Ahmad Vahidi ( fa, احمد وحیدی, born 27 June 1958) is an Iranian military commander of the Revolutionary Guards and current Minister of Interior since August 25, 2021. In addition, he is currently member of the Expediency Discernment Cou ...
, as well as Hezbollah's Imad Mughniyah
Imad Fayez Mughniyeh ( ar, عماد فايز مغنية; 7 December 1962 – 12 February 2008), alias al-Hajj Radwan (), was the founding member of Lebanon's Islamic Jihad Organization and number two in Hezbollah's leadership. Information about ...
. In 2007, several of the charged were placed on Interpol
The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...
's most wanted list; Interpol's bylaws prevented listing top officials such as Rafsanjani, however.[Feldstein, Federico Pablo, and Carolina Acosta-Alzuru. "Argentinean Jews as scapegoat: A textual analysis of the bombing of AMIA." Journal of Communication Inquiry 27.2 (2003): 152–170.](_blank)
/ref>[Karmon, Ely. "Iran and its proxy Hezbollah: Strategic penetration in Latin America." Elcano Newsletter 55 (2009): 32.](_blank)
/ref> As of 2017 the charged suspects (who remain alive) remain fugitive
A fugitive (or runaway) is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also known ...
s.[Death of a Prosecutor](_blank)
''The New Yorker'', Dexter Filkins, 20 July 2015[Interpol arrest warrant for Iranian AMIA bombing suspect still in place](_blank)
JTA, 3 August 2015 In August 2021, two of the charged suspects, Ahmad Vahidi
Ahmad Vahidi ( fa, احمد وحیدی, born 27 June 1958) is an Iranian military commander of the Revolutionary Guards and current Minister of Interior since August 25, 2021. In addition, he is currently member of the Expediency Discernment Cou ...
and Mohsen Rezai
Mohsen Rezaee ( fa, محسن رضایی, born Sabzevar Rezaee Mirgha'ed ( fa, سبزوار رضایی میرقائد) on 1 September 1954) is an Iranian conservative politician affiliated with the Resistance Front of Islamic Iran and senior milit ...
, were appointed to government of Ebrahim Raisi
Sayyid Ebrahim Raisolsadati ( fa, سید ابراهیم رئیسالساداتی; born 14 December 1960), commonly known as Ebrahim Raisi ( fa, ابراهیم رئیسی ), is an Iranian principlist politician, Muslim jurist, and the eight ...
in the posts of interior minister and vice president of economic affairs, respectively.
Claim of responsibility
Shortly after the attack Ansar Allah, a Palestinian
Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...
Jihadist
Jihadism is a neologism which is used in reference to "militant Islamic movements that are perceived as existentially threatening to the West" and "rooted in political Islam."Compare: Appearing earlier in the Pakistani and Indian media, Wes ...
organization widely held as a front for Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
, reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack, and for the Alas Chiricanas Flight 901
Alas Chiricanas Flight 901, registered HP-1202AC, was an Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante aircraft flying en route from Colón city to Panama City which exploded shortly after departing Enrique Adolfo Jiménez Airport, on the night of July 19, 19 ...
bombing via leaflets distributed in Sidon
Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...
and a communique in the Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar
''An-Nahar'' ( ar, النهار, lit=The Day or The Morning) is a leading Arabic-language daily newspaper published in Lebanon. In the 1980s, ''An-Nahar'' was described by the ''New York Times'' and ''Time Magazine'' as the newspaper of record ...
.
Ibrahim Hussein Berro
Israeli diplomatic sources who read the "final" report by SIDE on the attack said in 2003 that the attack was a suicide bombing carried out by Ibrahim Hussein Berro
Ibrahim Hussein Berro ( ar, ابراهيم حسين برّو) (c. 1973 – 1994) was a member of Hezbollah allegedly responsible for the 1994 AMIA Bombing in Buenos Aires, which killed 85 people. Berro, a 21-year-old citizen of Lebanon, is accu ...
, a 21-year-old Hezbollah operative who has been honored with a plaque in southern Lebanon for his "martyrdom" on 18 July 1994, the date of the bombing. This investigation was carried out jointly with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
. Hussein had been identified by FBI and Argentine intelligence, and corroborated by at least three witnesses. According to official Argentine government prosecutor, Alberto Nisman
Natalio Alberto Nisman (5 December 1963 – 18 January 2015) was an Argentine lawyer who worked as a federal prosecutor, noted for being the chief investigator of the 1994 car bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires, which killed 85 people, t ...
, Hussein's two US-based brothers had testified that he had joined the radical Shia militant group Hezbollah. "The brothers' testimony was substantial, rich in detail and showed that he was the one who was killed," Nisman added.
However, a BBC correspondent reported that "independent" investigators were skeptical, and they pointed out repeated incompetence and deception in the official investigation. No proper autopsies
An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any d ...
or DNA tests were done. The police had also simply dumped a head, thought to be that of the bomber, into a bin.
On 5 July 2017, The Algemeiner
The ''Algemeiner Journal'', known informally as ''The Algemeiner'', is a newspaper based in New York City that covers American and international Jewish and Israel-related news.
History
In 1972, Gershon Jacobson founded the Yiddish-language ...
reported that DNA not assignable to any of the victims has been identified. This new evidence will allow investigators to test the prevailing suspicion that the bombing was committed by Ibrahim Hussein Berro.
Juan José Galeano's investigations
Federal judge Juan José Galeano followed investigations concerning the "local connection", which included members of the ''Policía Bonaerense'' (Buenos Aires Provincial Police
The Buenos Aires Provincial Police (Spanish: ''Policía de la Provincia de Buenos Aires'', informally ''Policía Bonaerense'') is the police service responsible for policing the Province of Buenos Aires, in Argentina.
It is one of the biggest po ...
). He quickly arrested Carlos Telleldín, alleged to have provided the van used in the bombing, and some 20 officers from the Bonaerense. But a video broadcast on Argentine TV showed him offering Telleldín $400,000, in return for evidence, which led to Galeano's removal from the case in 2003, and his impeachment
Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements.
In ...
in August 2005.
Judge Galeano had also issued warrants for the arrests of 12 Iranians, including Hade Soleimanpour, Iran's ambassador
An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
to Argentina in 1994. The latter was arrested in the UK on 21 August 2003, at the request of the Argentine authorities. He was later released because, according to the Home Office, there was not even enough evidence presented to make a ''prima facie
''Prima facie'' (; ) is a Latin expression meaning ''at first sight'' or ''based on first impression''. The literal translation would be 'at first face' or 'at first appearance', from the feminine forms of ''primus'' ('first') and ''facies'' (' ...
'' case for the extradition to proceed.
Judge Galeano also interviewed Abolghasem Mesbahi, aka "Witness C", an alleged former Iranian intelligence officer who reportedly said a former Argentine president accepted a $10 million payment from Tehran to block the investigation. Former President Carlos Menem
Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. Ideologically, he identified as a Peronist and supported economically liberal policies. H ...
denied the claims, but admitted he had a secret Swiss bank account
Banking in Switzerland dates to the early eighteenth century through Switzerland's merchant trade and has, over the centuries, grown into a complex, regulated, and international industry. Banking is seen as Culture of Switzerland, emblematic of ...
following a report in ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''. Menem claimed in 2004 that the attack had been related to his support to the US during the First Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
and to his visit to Israel during his mandate. Abolghasem Mesbahi claimed to the Argentine court that Iran had planned the bombing, thinking the centre was a base for the Israeli secret service.
On 2 September 2004, all suspects in the "local connection" (among whom members of the Buenos Aires police) of AMIA case were found to be not guilty. Five persons, including four policemen, were therefore acquitted because of lack of evidence.
On 3 August 2005, Judge Galeano's impeachment was successful, and he was formally removed from his post as a federal judge for "serious" irregularities and his mishandling of the investigation. Argentine newspaper '' Clarín'' reports that charges will be pressed against him shortly. Judge Galeano has denied these allegations.
In March 2005, Swiss judge Jacques Antenen, in charge of investigations concerning the murder of an Iranian dissident, re-opened the case concerning Iranian intelligence service bank accounts in Switzerland. The same account would have been used both for this assassination and for the alleged payment of ex-President Carlos Menem. Swiss Justice had already been notified of the existence of an account owned by the Red Spark Foundation (based in Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy ...
), in which Ramón Hernández
Ramón José Hernández Marin (; born May 20, 1976) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Oakland Athletics (1999–2003), San Diego Padres (2004–2005), Baltimore Orioles (2006 ...
, former secretary of Carlos Menem, had authority to sign documents. Six million dollars would have been deposited in this account, although in some moment the exact amount was said to be of $10 million.
In 2006, the Court of Cassation
A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In th ...
declared that the previous court had made a false version of the investigated acts in order to cover irresponsibilities.
Investigations under Néstor Kirchner's government
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007, Governor of Santa Cruz Province from 1991 to 2003, Secretary General of UNASUR and ...
's government issued a decree
A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used for ...
in July 2005 formally accepting a share of the blame for the failure of investigations about the attack. He called the unresolved investigations a "national disgrace.". President Kirchner said governments had covered up facts, and that the decree established a mechanism for victims to receive compensation. Shortly after assuming his functions in spring 2003, he opened up Argentine intelligence files on the case, and lifted a decree preventing SIDE agents from testifying in the case.
Argentina's justice, Israel, and the United States suspected in 2005 that Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
was behind the attack, with backing from Iran. Hezbollah has denied responsibility. The Iranian government maintains its innocence, condemning the terrorist attack and calling for urgent punishment of those responsible.
On 25 October 2006, prosecutors in Buenos Aires formally charged Iran and Shi'a
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
militia Hezbollah with the bombing, accusing the Iranian authorities of directing Hezbollah to carry out the attack and calling for the arrest of former President of Iran Ayatollah
Ayatollah ( ; fa, آیتالله, āyatollāh) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy in Iran and Iraq that came into widespread usage in the 20th century.
Etymology
The title is originally derived from ...
Hashemi Rafsanjani
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani ( fa, اکبر هاشمی رفسنجانی, Akbar Hāshemī Rafsanjānī, born Akbar Hashemi Bahramani, 25 August 1934 – 8 January 2017) was an Iranian peoples, Iranian politician, writer, and one of the founding fath ...
and seven others, including some who still hold official positions in Iran.
The Justice of Argentine called for the arrest of top Iranian authorities. The Iranian defense minister, Ahmad Vahidi
Ahmad Vahidi ( fa, احمد وحیدی, born 27 June 1958) is an Iranian military commander of the Revolutionary Guards and current Minister of Interior since August 25, 2021. In addition, he is currently member of the Expediency Discernment Cou ...
was accused of masterminding the attack.
Argentine's government required the extradition of those accused of the attack but Iran has always refused to accept the verdict of the Argentine's Justice.
In November 2007, Interpol on behalf of the Argentine government, published the names of six individuals (Imad Mughniyah
Imad Fayez Mughniyeh ( ar, عماد فايز مغنية; 7 December 1962 – 12 February 2008), alias al-Hajj Radwan (), was the founding member of Lebanon's Islamic Jihad Organization and number two in Hezbollah's leadership. Information about ...
, Ali Fallahijan, Mohsen Rabbani, Ahmad Reza Asghari, Ahmad Vahidi
Ahmad Vahidi ( fa, احمد وحیدی, born 27 June 1958) is an Iranian military commander of the Revolutionary Guards and current Minister of Interior since August 25, 2021. In addition, he is currently member of the Expediency Discernment Cou ...
and Mohsen Rezaee
Mohsen Rezaee ( fa, محسن رضایی, born Sabzevar Rezaee Mirgha'ed ( fa, سبزوار رضایی میرقائد) on 1 September 1954) is an Iranian conservative politician affiliated with the Resistance Front of Islamic Iran and senior mili ...
) officially accused for their role in the terrorist attack. They were entered in the Interpol red notice list.
Speaking on state radio, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hoseyni described the accusations against the country as "a Zionist plot". Both Hezbollah and Iran deny any involvement in the bombing. According to Hoseyni, the accusations were intended to divert "world attention from the perpetration of crimes by the Zionists against women and children in Palestine".
On 6 March 2007, former Congressman Mario Cafiero and former government official Luis D'Elia provided evidence at a press conference that Abolghasem Mesbahi, along with two other Iranians that gave alleged evidence implicating Iran in the bombing, were members of the People's Mujahedin of Iran
The People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) or Mojahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) ( fa, سازمان مجاهدين خلق ايران, sâzmân-e mojâhedīn-e khalq-e īrân), is an Iranian pol ...
(MEK), which is an organization that advocates the overthrow of the Islamic Republic of Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
and was designated until 2012 as a terrorist organization by the US. They also said that there were arrest warrants issued by Interpol for the other two Iranians, Hadi Roshanravani and Hamid Reza Eshagi.
Developments under Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's government
In November 2008, Carlos Menem was called to testify in an upcoming trial over the AMIA case.
In March 2009, a former investigator in the case, Claudio Lifschitz
Claudio is an Italian and Spanish first name. In Portuguese it is accented Cláudio. In Catalan and Occitan it is Claudi, while in Romanian it is Claudiu.
Origin and history
Claudius was the name of an eminent Roman gens, the most important me ...
, claimed he was abducted and tortured by men who told him not to investigate SIDE's involvement in the case.
In August 2009, BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...
reported that Ahmad Vahidi
Ahmad Vahidi ( fa, احمد وحیدی, born 27 June 1958) is an Iranian military commander of the Revolutionary Guards and current Minister of Interior since August 25, 2021. In addition, he is currently member of the Expediency Discernment Cou ...
had become Iran's defense minister
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in s ...
-designate under the 2009 Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدینژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956), administration, and is on Interpol
The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...
's wanted list
A wanted poster (or wanted sign) is a poster distributed to let the public know of a person whom authorities wish to apprehend. They generally include a picture of the person, either a photograph when one is available or of a facial composite ...
over the AMIA bombing. Vahidi led a unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guard called Quds Force
The Quds Force ( fa, نیروی قدس, niru-ye qods, Jerusalem Force) is one of five branches of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) specializing in unconventional warfare and military intelligence operations. U.S. Army's Iraq War ...
at the time of the attack, and has been accused of planning the bombings. Iran dismissed this development as a "Zionist plot". On 1 June 2011, Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
apologized to Argentina for Ahmad Vahidi's unannounced visit to the country, and announced that he would be leaving Bolivia immediately.
On 31 March 2012, Menem was ordered to stand trial for obstruction of justice in the probe of the AMIA bombing. Menem is accused of helping to cover up the tracks of local accomplices of the attackers.
In 2012, Argentina's President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and politician who has served as the Vice President of Argentina since 2019. She also served as the President ...
announced at the United Nations General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
that Iran and Argentina would meet to discuss Iranian involvement in the attacks. In 2014 she also criticized her country's Jewish leaders for not supporting Argentina's pact with Iran in order to jointly investigate the 1994 AMIA bombing attack:
My country is the only country of the Americas other than the United States of America that was the target of terrorist attacks: one in 1992 when the embassy of Israel was blown up, and the second in 1994 when the headquarters of the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA) was bombed. This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the bombing of AMIA. I dare say before this Assembly—in the presence of some of the family members of the victims who have always been with us—that the Government headed by President Kirchner did the utmost and went the greatest lengths to uncover the real culprits, not only because it opened all my country's intelligence files and created a special prosecutor investigation unit, but also because, when in 2006 the justice system of my country accused Iranian citizens of involvement in the bombing of AMIA, I myself was the only President who dared to propose asking the Islamic Republic of Iran to cooperate with and assist in the investigation. That request was made intermittently from 2007 to 2011, until the Islamic Republic of Iran finally agreed to a bilateral meeting, allowing it to be included in the agenda. That meeting led to the signing by both countries of a memorandum of understanding on legal cooperation that allowed for the Iranian citizens who had been accused, and who live in Tehran, to be deposed before the judge. But what happened when we signed that memorandum? It seemed as if all hell had broken out, both nationally and internationally. The Jewish associations that had sought our support for so many years and that had come here with us to ask for help turned against us, and when an agreement was finally reached on legal cooperation they accused us of complicity with the State of Iran. The same thing happened here in the United States. When the vulture funds lobbied before the United States Congress, they accused us of collaborating with the Islamic Republic of Iran, which at the time was known as the Terrorist State of Iran. They even lobbied on their websites, posting pictures of me on the Internet with former President Ahmadinejad as if we were business partners. Just this week, we learned that the iconic Waldorf Astoria hotel, in this city, was the setting for a meeting between the Secretary of State of this country and his Iranian counterpart. We are not criticizing them. Quite the contrary, anything that represents dialogue and understanding seems very good to us. But we wish to ask those who have been accusing Iran of being a terrorist State.
Argentina's Foreign Minister Hector Timerman and Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi
Ali Akbar Salehi ( fa, علیاکبر صالحی, ; born 24 March 1949) is an Iranian academic, diplomat and former head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, who served in this position from 2009 to 2010 and also from 2013 to 2021. He se ...
met on the sidelines of the UN in New York and promised to continue talks until the 1990s bombings are resolved.
Memorandum of understanding
On 27 January 2013, the Government of Argentina announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran to establish a "truth commission" to investigate the AMIA bombing. According to President Kirchner, the commission was established to "analyze all the documentation presented to date by the judicial authorities of Argentina and Iran…and to give its vision and issue a report with recommendations about how the case should proceed within the legal and regulatory framework of both parties."
The news generated several criticisms with David Harris from the American Jewish Committee
The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the dean of American Jewish org ...
stating that "the idea of establishing a 'truth' commission on the AMIA tragedy that involves the Iranian regime would be like asking Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
to help establish the facts of Kristallnacht
() or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (german: Novemberpogrome, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) paramilitary and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation from ...
". The U.S. State Department
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...
's top official in charge of Latin American
Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...
affairs, Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson, said she is "skeptical that a just solution can be found" through the Argentine-Iran "truth-commission." The Jewish community in Argentina issued the statement "to ignore everything that Argentine justice has done and to replace it with a commission that, in the best of cases, will issue, without any defined deadline, a 'recommendation' to the parties constitutes, without doubt, a reversal in the common objective of obtaining justice."
On 28 February 2013, the Argentine Chamber of Deputies
The Chamber of Deputies ( es, Cámara de Diputados de la Nación), officially the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation, is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress ( es, Congreso de la Nación). It is made up of 257 ...
approved the memorandum of understanding with Iran by 131 votes in favor to 113 votes against. Israel expressed disappointment at this development. Guillermo Borger, president of the AMIA, criticized the legality of the memorandum and announced that he would take it to the Supreme Court of Argentina
The Supreme Court of Argentina ( es, link=no, Corte Suprema de Argentina), officially known as the Supreme Court of Justice of the Argentine Nation ( es, link=no, Corte Suprema de Justicia de la Nación Argentina, CSJN), is the highest court of l ...
.
In May 2014, the memorandum was declared unconstitutional by the Court. The memorandum was voided when Mauricio Macri
Mauricio Macri (; born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. He has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding in 2005. He previo ...
became president of Argentina, as he withdrew the appeal that the Kirchners government had filed.
Recent developments
On 24 May 2013, it was reported that two of the Iranian AMIA bombing suspects accused of having planned the attack, Mohsen Rezai
Mohsen Rezaee ( fa, محسن رضایی, born Sabzevar Rezaee Mirgha'ed ( fa, سبزوار رضایی میرقائد) on 1 September 1954) is an Iranian conservative politician affiliated with the Resistance Front of Islamic Iran and senior milit ...
and Ali Akbar Velayati
Ali Akbar Velayati ( fa, علیاکبر ولایتی ; born 24 June 1945, Tehran) is an Iranian conservative politician and physician. He is currently member of the Expediency Discernment Council. Velayati is a distinguished professor at Shah ...
, were candidates for the Iranian presidential elections. In May 2013, Prosecutor Alberto Nisman
Natalio Alberto Nisman (5 December 1963 – 18 January 2015) was an Argentine lawyer who worked as a federal prosecutor, noted for being the chief investigator of the 1994 car bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires, which killed 85 people, t ...
published a 502-page indictment accusing Iran of establishing terrorist networks throughout Latin America – including in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname – dating back to the 1980s. Nisman also said new evidence underscored the responsibility of Mohsen Rabbani, the former Iranian cultural attache in Argentina, as mastermind of the AMIA bombing and "coordinator of the Iranian infiltration of South America, especially in Guyana", and said US court documents showed Islamist militant Abdul Kadir
Abd al-Qadir or Abdulkadir ( ar, عبد القادر) is a male Muslim given name. It is formed from the Arabic words '' Abd'', ''al-'' and '' Qadir''. The name means "servant of the powerful", ''Al-Qādir'' being one of the names of God in the ...
– who was sentenced to life in prison in 2010 for participating in a foiled plan to attack John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York – was Rabbani's disciple.
The JTA reports that ex-interior minister of Argentina, Carlos Vladimir Corach, is to be investigated for his ties to the AMIA Jewish center bombing. He is alleged to have provided an illegal payment of $400,000 to Carlos Telleldin.
In an interview with Buenos Aires-based Jewish news agency (Agencia Judía de Noticias) on 2 January 2013, Itzhak Aviran, who was the Israeli ambassador to Argentina from 1993 to 2000, said most of the people behind the AMIA attack were eliminated by Israeli security agents operating abroad. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor called Aviran's declarations "complete nonsense".
In January 2015, the prosecutor in charge of the AMIA bombing investigation, Alberto Nisman, filed a 300-page complaint accusing President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and politician who has served as the Vice President of Argentina since 2019. She also served as the President ...
and Foreign Minister Héctor Timerman
Héctor Marcos Timerman (16 December 1953 – 30 December 2018) was an Argentine journalist, politician, human rights activist and diplomat. He served as his country's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2010 to 2015, during the presidency of Cristi ...
among other pro-government political figures of "covering up" Iranian citizens allegedly involved in the 1994 attack. Nisman said his accusations were based on phone taps on close political allies of Fernández, who he said conspired in a "sophisticated criminal plan" to negotiate with Rabbani himself, one of the main suspects of perpetrating the deadly bombing. According to the accusation, Iranian oil would be exchanged for Argentinian grain, while Argentina would cancel an international Interpol arrest warrant against Rabbani and other senior Iranian officials. Nisman demanded a preventive embargo of 200 million pesos on Fernández de Kirchner and requested to question her, as well as Timerman, lawmaker of the pro-government organization "La Cámpora
La Cámpora is an Argentine left-wing political youth organization supporting the governments of Néstor Kirchner, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, and Alberto Fernández. It is named after former Peronist president Héctor José Cámpora. It ...
" Andrés Larroque, political leader Luis D'Elía
Luis D'Elía is an Argentine activist and politician who served in the government of Néstor Kirchner. He is the founder and head of the Federation of Land, Housing and Habitat, which has been described as a "violent wing" of the Confederation of ...
, the leader of Quebracho Fernando Esteche, members of Secretariat of Intelligence
Secretariat of Intelligence ( es, Secretaría de Inteligencia, SIDE) was the premier intelligence agency of the Argentina, Argentine Republic and head of its Sistema de Inteligencia Nacional, National Intelligence System.
Chaired by the ''Secre ...
, the leader of the Iranian community in Argentina Jorge "Yussuf" Khali, and ex attorney and judge Héctor Yrimia. On 18 January 2015, Nisman was found dead at his home in Buenos Aires, hours before he was due to explain his allegations at the Argentine parliament. A gun and spent shell casing were found next to the body, and a government official said the death was likely a suicide although others considered the death suspicious. The judge Ariel Lijo
Ariel may refer to:
Film and television
*Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award
* ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki
* ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...
returned immediately from his vacations to work in the case, and to order the protection of Nisman's proofs. Nisman was replaced by prosecutor Alberto Gentili.
In the week following Nisman's death, and despite the fact that Nisman was going to implicate her among others had he lived, President Fernández de Kirchner declared her determination to replace the Argentinian secret security service completely because it had been run beyond the state's control for too long.
In March 2015, three former Venezuelan government
Venezuela is a federal presidential republic.
The chief executive is the President of Venezuela who is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the President. Legislative power is vested in the National Asse ...
officials interviewed by ''Veja Veja may refer to :
Places
* Veja, a town in Lazio, central Italy; now Vejano comune
* Veja, a village in Stănița Commune, Neamț County, Romania
* Veja River, Romania
* Veja State, a former princely state in present Gujarat, western India
Perso ...
'' stated that Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Republ ...
and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدینژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956), allegedly met in 2007 to discuss payments to the Argentine government of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in order for Iran to receive Argentine nuclear technology and the cessation of work between Argentina and Interpol involving Iranian individuals.
In March 2015, the Argentine government released a full-page advertisement in national newspapers accusing the late prosecutor Alberto Nisman of having attempted to destabilise the country. The advertisement also argued that the country should revive a controversial agreement with Iran, the country that is suspected of being responsible for the bombings. In addition to that, during a speech, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and politician who has served as the Vice President of Argentina since 2019. She also served as the President ...
accused Israel of being responsible for the 1992 bombing of the Israeli embassy in Argentina. This accusation was based on the allegation that Israel was only demanding justice for the AMIA bombing but not for the embassy attack. This was immediately refuted by the Israeli embassy, which reaffirmed that it does in fact demand justice for both cases.
In December 2015, Radio Mitre
LR6 Radio Mitre is a radio station in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is owned and operated by Clarín Group.
It was created on August 16, 1925 under the name of The Nation Broadcasting LOZ.
During the government of Juan Domingo Perón, ...
, an Argentinean station, released secret tapes of Héctor Timerman
Héctor Marcos Timerman (16 December 1953 – 30 December 2018) was an Argentine journalist, politician, human rights activist and diplomat. He served as his country's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2010 to 2015, during the presidency of Cristi ...
, in which he admitted Iran was responsible for the bombings concurrent to negotiating with Iran.
On 26 February 2016, the Argentine prosecutor Ricardo Sáenz stated Nisman's death "was a homicide indeed", claiming the case should be directed to the federal justice.
On 18 July 2019, at the request of Israel and the United States, Argentina officially declared Hezbollah a terrorist organization, freezing assets and expelling all members of the organization from the country, which is held responsible for the 1994 attack against AMIA.
In 2021, the Tribunal Federal Oral 8 declared the case against Cristina Fernández de Kirchner over an alleged cover-up of Iranian involvement in the bombing to be null and void
In law, void means of no legal effect. An action, document, or transaction which is void is of no legal effect whatsoever: an absolute nullity—the law treats it as if it had never existed or happened. The term void ''ab initio'', which means " ...
; the court unanimously found there to have been no wrongdoing on Kirchner's part.[
]
Alleged assassinations of perpetrators
In January 2014, Yitzhak Aviran, who had been Israel's ambassador to Argentina at the time, claimed in an interview with a Spanish-language Jewish newspaper that most of the perpetrators of the attack had been tracked down and killed by Mossad
Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national intelligence agency ...
, Israel's secret service, saying "a majority of those responsible for the act are no longer alive, and we took care of this on our own." Aviran's statements caused concern in Argentina, whose Foreign Minister, Héctor Timerman
Héctor Marcos Timerman (16 December 1953 – 30 December 2018) was an Argentine journalist, politician, human rights activist and diplomat. He served as his country's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2010 to 2015, during the presidency of Cristi ...
, accused Israel of having thus "prevented the gathering of new evidence that could shed light on the affair." Argentina also summoned the Israeli chargé d'affaires to ask for explanations about Aviran's statements. For its part, the Israeli government, through its own Foreign Ministry, dismissed Aviran's claims as "complete nonsense."
Other opinions
According to a report in ''The Nation
''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...
'', the author claims that James Cheek, United States Ambassador to Argentina at the time of the bombing, told him, "To my knowledge, there was never any real evidence f Iranian responsibility They never came up with anything." The hottest lead in the case, he recalled, was an Iranian defector named Manoucher Moatamer, who "supposedly had all this information." But Moatamer turned out to be only a dissatisfied low-ranking official without the knowledge of government decision-making that he had claimed. "We finally decided that he wasn't credible," Cheek recalled.
Cultural depictions
Ten years after the terrorist attack, a group of 10 Argentine directors, each financed by a different production company, filmed a collection of 10 shorts in tribute to the victims of the attack. The shorts were collected in the film '' 18-j'', dubbed thus in reference to the date of the attack. The directors were Daniel Burman
Daniel Burman (born 29 August 1973, in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine film director, screenplay writer, and producer.
According to film critic Joel Poblete, who writes for ''Mabuse'', a cinema magazine, Daniel Burman is one of the members of the ...
, Israel Adrián Caetano
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, Lucía Cedrón, Alejandro Doria, Alberto Lecchi
Alberto is the Romance version of the Latinized form (''Albertus'') of Germanic ''Albert''. It is used in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. The diminutive forms are ''Albertito'' in Spain or ''Albertico'' in some parts of Latin America, Albertin ...
, Sergio Renán
Sergio Renán (30 January 1933 – 13 June 2015) was an Argentine actor, film director, and screenwriter.
Biography
Born Samuel Kohan in Buenos Aires in 1933, his parents were Jewish immigrants who had lived in one of the numerous Jewish ...
, Marcelo Schapces, Carlos Sorín, Juan Bautista Stagnaro, Adrián Suar
Adrián Kirzner Schwartz (born March 25, 1968), better known as Adrián Suar, is an Argentine actor, media producer and businessman who is the program director of Canal 13.
Early life
Adrián Suar born in Queens, New York City, on March 25 ...
and Mauricio Wainrot; a small introduction was narrated by actress Norma Aleandro
Norma Aleandro (born 2 May 1936) is an Argentine actress. She is considered one of the most celebrated and prolific Argentine actresses of all time and is recognized as a cultural icon in her home country.
Aleandro starred in the 1985 film '' T ...
. Each short showed a different scene in the lives of those who witnessed the attack first-hand. The film premiered 19 August 2004.
In 2009, Marcos Carnevale Marcos may refer to:
People with the given name ''Marcos''
*Marcos (given name)
Sports
;Surnamed
* Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century)
* Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer
* Nélson Marcos, Portugu ...
directed '' Anita'', a full-length film which portrays a young woman (Alejandra Manzo) with Down Syndrome
Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...
who is lost in Buenos Aires after her mother is killed in the AMIA bombing.
See also
* Israeli embassy attack in Buenos Aires
The attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires was a suicide bombing attack on the building of the Israeli embassy of Argentina, located in Buenos Aires, which was carried out on 17 March 1992. 29 civilians were killed in the attack and 242 ...
* History of the Jews in Argentina
The history of the Jews in Argentina goes back to the early sixteenth century, following the Jewish expulsion from Spain. Sephardi Jews fleeing persecution immigrated with explorers and colonists to settle in what is now Argentina, in spite o ...
* Argentina–Israel relations
International relations between Argentina and Israel, have existed for decades. Both countries established diplomatic relations on May 31, 1949.
History
Relations between the two were tied during the early years of Nazi hunting when Israel's M ...
* Pasteur - AMIA (Buenos Aires Underground) – station commemorating the bombing
References
External links
Investigations Unit of the Office of the Attorney General, 25 October 2006, indictment for AMIA bombing, English translation
Formula Denuncia, Ministerio Público de la Nación (Spanish) – Nisman's formal charge of impeding the investigation against the President and Foreign Minister
archive
Iran's view from IRNA
BBC: Pressure on Iran over Argentina blasts
"Argentine bomb police 'to testify'"
17 September 2003; BBC News
"Flashback: Argentina bomb"
25 August 2003; BBC News
"Iran denies Argentina blast role"
9 March 2003; BBC News
Pictures from the tenth anniversary commemoration
Memoria Activa, memorial site
(including official documents)
{{Iran–Israel proxy conflict
1994 in international relations
1990s in Buenos Aires
1994 murders in Argentina
20th-century attacks on synagogues and Jewish communal organizations
20th-century mass murder in South America
Antisemitism in Argentina
Attacks on buildings and structures in 1994
Building bombings in South America
Crime in Buenos Aires
Improvised explosive device bombings in 1994
Islamic terrorist incidents in 1994
Argentina–Iran relations
Argentina–Israel relations
Iran–Israel proxy conflict
Hezbollah–Israel conflict
Jewish Argentine history
Jews and Judaism in Buenos Aires
July 1994 crimes
July 1994 events in South America
Mass murder in 1994
Presidency of Carlos Menem
South Lebanon conflict (1985–2000)
State-sponsored terrorism
Suicide bombings in 1994
Suicide car and truck bombings in Argentina
Terrorist incidents by unknown perpetrators
Terrorist incidents in Argentina in the 1990s
Terrorist incidents in South America in 1994
Unsolved mass murders
Hezbollah attacks