Argentine Jewish Leader Praises Milei as Buenos Aires Ramps Up Pressure on Iran Over 1994 Bombing

Ailin Vilches Arguello

---

Argentina’s President Javier Milei attends a commemoration event ahead of the anniversary of the 1994 bombing attack on the Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA) community center, marking the 30th anniversary of the attack, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, July 17, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Martin Cassarini

The head of Argentina’s largest Jewish community center commended President Javier Milei for standing on “the right side of history” and for his clear and forceful condemnation of terrorism following Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.

“We are very pleased with Milei’s open support for Israel,” Amos Linetzky, president of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA), told The Algemeiner in an exclusive interview. “This stance places Argentina on the right side of history by openly defending the only democracy in the Middle East.”

Since taking office over a year ago, Milei has been one of Israel’s most vocal supporters, strengthening bilateral relations to unprecedented levels and in the process breaking with decades of Argentine foreign policy tradition to firmly align with Jerusalem and Washington.

“Since Oct. 7, there can be no ambiguity: terrorism must be confronted without concern for political correctness,” Linetzky said. “Terrorism must be condemned where, whether directly or indirectly, it is being supported.”

He continued, “In Argentina, there is a clear stance against terrorism at both the national and provincial levels, which is key to taking a firm approach.”

Amos Linetzky, president of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) Jewish community center in Buenos Aires. Photo: AMIA

Milei, who won Argentina’s November 2023 presidential election, has been proactive in confronting terrorist groups and seeking justice for past atrocities.

Less than a year after Hamas’s onslaught in Israel, Milei’s administration designated the Palestinian Islamist group as a terrorist organization — making Argentina the first Latin American country to do so — with Paraguay joining the effort just last month.

The Argentine president has also activated Interpol red notices in connection with the 1994 AMIA bombing in Buenos Aires. Last month, the lead prosecutor in the case petitioned Argentina’s federal court to issue national and international arrest warrants for Iran’s so-called “supreme leader,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, over his alleged involvement in the deadly terrorist attack.

This latest legal move represents a significant shift from the country’s past approach in the case, in which the Iranian leader was treated as enjoying diplomatic immunity.

However, Sebastián Basso — who succeeded former prosecutor Alberto Nisman after his murder in 2015 — claimed that “this approach does not align with international law,” especially regarding crimes against humanity and acts of terrorism.

The lead prosecutor argued that Khamenei was directly involved in planning the 1994 AMIA bombing — the deadliest terrorist attack in Argentina’s history, in which 85 people were killed and more than 300 wounded.

“Thirty-one years after the attack, there are still no sanctions or convictions — no one has been held accountable,” Linetzky told The Algemeiner. “An appalling level of impunity continues to prevail.”

According to the Jewish leader, true justice remains out of reach without critical reforms — including judicial independence, genuine political will, and effective legislative tools to combat terrorism.

“Beyond the lasting pain and continued impunity, the systemic failures of the Argentine state that allowed the attack to happen still remain — and that’s deeply alarming,” Linetzky said.

“Impunity hasn’t just persisted, but there has been no meaningful progress or reflection on the past,” he continued.

However, Linetzky also noted that the current government appears to have demonstrated a renewed commitment to pursuing justice — but whether that leads to real change remains to be seen.

“There is no true democracy without justice,” the Jewish leader told The Algemeiner. “There can be no justice as long as one of the most significant cases in Argentine history remains unpunished.”

In 2006, former prosecutor Nisman formally charged Iran for orchestrating the 1994 terrorist attack and Iran’s chief proxy, the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah, for carrying it out. Nine years later, he accused former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of attempting to cover up the crime and block efforts to extradite the suspects behind the AMIA atrocity in return for Iranian oil.

The 1994 AMIA bombing in Buenos Aires was the deadliest terrorist attack in Argentina’s history, in which 85 people were killed and more than 300 wounded. Photo: AMIA

The alleged cover-up was reportedly formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2013 between Kirchner’s government and Iranian authorities, with the stated goal of cooperating to investigate the AMIA bombing.

In April 2024, Argentina’s second-highest court ruled that the 1994 attack in Buenos Aires was “organized, planned, financed, and executed under the direction of the authorities of the Islamic State of Iran, within the framework of Islamic Jihad.” The court also said that the bombing was carried out by Hezbollah terrorists responding to “a political and strategic design” by Tehran.

The court additionally ruled that Iran had been responsible for the 1992 truck bombing of the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, which killed 29 people.

Since the terrorist attacks in 1992 and 1994, diplomatic relations between Buenos Aires and Tehran have remained strained, with the latest moves by Basso and Argentina’s growing support for Israel further intensifying tensions.

Milei will visit Israel in June, where he is expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Jewish state against terrorism and antisemitism. He is also scheduled to address the Israeli parliament and meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In February 2024, on his first international trip as president, Milei visited Israel in a show of wartime solidarity and reiterated his pledge to move Argentina’s embassy to Jerusalem.

Earlier this year, more than 30 members of the Argentine Congress signed a Declaration of Solidarity and Friendship with the State of Israel in the Buenos Aires parliament. The declaration emphasized their unwavering support for Israel’s right to exist in peace and security, while also expressing strong backing for the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

---

---