Cover-up case against Kirchner dismissed

ARGENTINIAN PROSECUTORS SOUGHT TO RELAUNCH PROBE

An Argentine judge on Thursday dismissed the case against President Cristina Kirchner for allegedly shielding Iranian officials from prosecution over the 1994 bombing of a Buenos Aires Jewish centre.

Prosecutors had sought to relaunch the case against Kirchner that was being brought by their late colleague Alberto Nisman, who died mysteriously last month after accusing Kirchner of protecting Iranians suspected of ordering the attack, which killed 85 people.

Judge Daniel Rafecas said the prosecution team that took over the file from Nisman had failed to provide sufficient evidence that Kirchner committed a crime, assailing their case in a 63-page ruling. Responding to the prosecution’s allegations that Kirchner sought to have an Interpol wanted notice for the Iranian suspects annulled, Rafecas wrote: “The evidence gathered, far from supporting the prosecution’s version, roundly refutes it.” Interpol’s former director has denied that such a request was made.

Nisman was appointed a decade ago to reopen the investigation into the long-unsolved bombing at the Argentine Jewish Mutual Association, which also left 300 people wounded.

He accused Iran of ordering the attack via Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, a claim the government in Tehran denies.

Since Nisman’s death, suspicion has fallen on Kirchner’s government of orchestrating his murder. The president has suggested Many questions remain around the 1994 bombing at the centre of the story and the mysterious death of the prosecutor investigating it. Here’s a look at the key facts and background:

Deadly bombings

The scandal is rooted in the July 1994 bombing of the Argentine Jewish Mutual Association, or AMIA which killed 85 people and wounded 300. Two Argentine presidents, Carlos Menem and Kirchner, have been accused of obstructing the investigation.

Failed probe

Several suspects were arrested, including police officers and a man suspected of supplying materials used in the bombing, Carlos Telleldin. After a three-year trial, the investigation ended with the 2004 acquittal of all those charged.

The Iran connection

In 2006, Alberto Nisman — appointed to lead a fresh investigation into the bombing — accused Iran of ordering the attack. In 2007, officials issued arrest warrants for five Iranian officials. In 2013, Tehran and Buenos Aires set up of a joint commission to probe the attacks.

Kirchner accused

On January 14, Nisman filed a dossier accusing Kirchner and other figures of attempting to shield Iranians suspected of involvement in the bombing.

Nisman found dead: Suicide?

The mystery over Nisman’s death has intensified since he was found January 18 with a .22-calibre revolver beside his body. Suspicions about the death are aroused by the fact that it came four days after he accused the president of a cover-up. The case is still under investigation. the prosecutor was manipulated by disgruntled former intelligence agents who then killed him to smear her.

Kirchner has also clashed with the intelligence establishment, sacking the top officials at Argentina’s Intelligence Secretariat (SI) and introducing a bill to disband it. The bill passed the Chamber of Deputies early Thursday by a vote of 131 to 71.

The legislation dissolves the SI and replaces it with a body called the Federal Intelligence Agency. One of the law’s controversial changes is to put the country’s solicitor general, who answers to Kirchner, in charge of the office responsible for carrying out telephone wiretaps.

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