What the Taiana Foreign Ministry had said in 2009 when they appointed the accused of the AMIA attack as minister

08/11/2021 13:05

• Clarín.com

• Politics

Updated 08/11/2021 1:24 PM

The appointment of Ahmad Vahidi, one of those responsible for the AMIA attack, as Iran's Interior Minister, generated a stir in the country.

But although for the moment the Foreign Ministry of Felipe Solá did not pronounce on the matter, there was a statement of repudiation 12 years ago, when Vahidi had been nominated for the post of Defense Minister.

"The Argentine Foreign Ministry declares that the nomination of Mr. Ahmad Vahidi to the post of Minister of Defense of Iran constitutes

an affront to the Argentine justice and to the victims of the brutal terrorist attack

against the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA)," he wrote at the time the Foreign Ministry, in the days of the Cristina Kirchner government, with Jorge Taina as chancellor.

At that time, Argentina's position was to

reject that nomination

because Vahidi was "claimed by the Argentine Justice for having played a key role in the decision-making and planning of the attack committed 15 years ago."

An international arrest warrant from Interpol weighed on him and the statement made it known.

"His nomination to occupy a ministerial post in Iran has been received with grave concern and

deserves the strongest condemnation of the Government of our country,

" said the overwhelming submission.

And he concluded: "The Argentine Government demands once again the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to cooperate fully with the Argentine justice system, allowing the people who have been accused of participating in the attack against the AMIA to be tried by the competent courts. ".

Coincidentally, the one who was at the head of Argentina's foreign relations on that August 21, 2009, the date of the statement, was Taiana, who this Tuesday was made official as the new Defense Minister, replacing Agustín Rossi.

General Ahmad Vahidi was appointed on Wednesday by the new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, as Minister of the Interior, at the presentation of the new cabinet.

The military man is 

one of those identified by the Argentine Justice as responsible

for participating in the attack that claimed the lives of 85 people and an extradition request is weighing on him so that he may appear before the local courts.

That request was ratified by Interpol, which in 2007 issued a red alert, calling its search a top priority.

Then, with the arrival of the Memorandum of Understanding, Interpol added a warning to those alerts that the countries were negotiating bilaterally to search for the accused.

This, in practice, appeased the search for Vahidi.

Last month, the Buenos Aires Federal Chamber signed a tough resolution in the judicial file ordering Judge Rodolfo Canicoba Corral to put aside the clues and detours regarding the cover-up of the attack on the AMIA and to focus on persecuting its authors, citizens and officials Iranian members of the Hezbollah organization.

AFG

Look also

AMIA: more evidence could link former Interpol head to maneuver to help Iranians with red alerts

AMIA: The Federal Chamber ordered Judge Canicoba to advance the indictment of the Iranians and reinforce the red alerts