File- An Iranian carries the Iranian and Hezbollah flags during the commemoration of the 41st anniversary of the Islamic revolution in Tehran, Iran February 11, 2020. Nazanin Tabatabaee/WANA (West Asia News Agency)
More than 30 years after the deadliest attack in Argentina’s history, a trial is set to begin against several fugitive suspects, including 7 Iranian officials and one Lebanese Hezbollah official.
The names of the victims of the bombing at the AMIA Jewish Community Center are displayed on the building’s facade. Photo: Cristina Sille/dpa Keystone
As Justice Minister Juan Bautista Mahiques announced, a judge ruled that eight suspected perpetrators would stand trial. On July 18, 1994, 85 people were killed in a car bomb explosion during an attack on the AMIA Jewish community center in Buenos Aires.
According to the Argentine judiciary, the Shiite militia Hezbollah carried out the attack on the orders of the Iranian government. In a 600-page ruling, the presiding federal judge, Daniel Rafecas, explained why he considers there to be sufficient grounds to suspect the defendants of the crime, as reported by the newspaper “La Nación,” citing judicial sources. The judge classified the act as a crime against humanity. The oral proceedings are to take place in the absence of the suspects.
High-ranking Iranian officials
The judge’s ruling represents a “milestone in the fight against impunity,” the Argentine Minister of Justice wrote on the platform X. President Javier Milei, a close ally of Israel, welcomed the decision. “Morality as a state doctrine” is thereby realized, he wrote in direct response to his justice minister’s post on X.
According to the Minister of Justice, seven Iranians and one Lebanese national are to stand trial. According to “La Nación,” the accused include Iranian officials such as the current head of the Revolutionary Guard, Ahmad Wahidi; the current security coordinator, Mohsen Resai; the former intelligence minister, Ali Fallahian; and the former foreign minister, Ali Akbar Velayati. According to the Ministry of Justice, the judge ordered the seizure of assets totaling the equivalent of 435 million euros from each of the individuals involved.
Samuel Salman El Reda a dual Colombian-Lebanese citizen and a member of Hezbollah is accused of coordinating the local cell and helping plan and execute the bombing.
Argentina’s Court of Cassation formally ruled that the attack was ordered by Iran and executed by Hezbollah
Last year, a new law was passed in Argentina that allows criminal proceedings to be conducted against defendants in their absence.
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