Terrorism in Argentina.

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Terrorism in Argentina has occurred since at least the 1970s during the Argentinian Dirty War where a number of terror acts occurred, with support of both the democratic government of Isabel Martínez de Perón and the following de facto government of the National Reorganization Process. In the 1990s, two major terrorist attacks occurred in Buenos Aires, which together caused 115 deaths and left at least 555 injured.
State sponsored terrorism occurred in the 1970s by radical groups backed by the Argentinian democratic government and, later, by the military government. The government also warned the press to minimise reporting of terrorism.

 1.    1992 Israeli embassy bombing.

                                                   

Former Israeli Embassy before the attack.

On March 17, 1992, at 2:42 pm (UTC−3), a pick-up truck driven by a suicide bomber and loaded with explosives smashed into the front of the Israeli Embassy located on the corner of Arroyo and Suipacha, and detonated.
The embassy, a Catholic church, and a nearby school building were destroyed. Four Israelis died, but most of the victims were Argentine civilians, many of them children. The blast killed 29 and wounded 242. It was Argentina's deadliest terror attack until the AMIA Bombing of 1994, and it remains the deadliest attack on an Israeli diplomatic mission.

Fatalities

Priest Juan Carlos Brumana was one of the people killed in the suicide bombing. He died in the Catholic Church Mater Admirabilis that is in front of the embassy. Among the dead there were two Israeli women who were the wives of the embassy's consul and first secretary.

Responsibility.

A group called Islamic Jihad Organization, which has been linked to Iran and possibly Hezbollah, claimed responsibility; their stated motive for the attack was Israel's assassination of Hezbollah Secretary General Sayed Abbas al-Musawi in February 1992. Islamic Jihad also released surveillance footage they took of the embassy before the blast.
After the bombing, Israel sent investigators to Argentina to search for clues. They learned that the bombers planned the attack in the Tri-Border area, where the borders of Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil meet and which has a large Muslim population. Messages intercepted by the American National Security Agency revealed Iranian knowledge of the impending attack, as well as the complicity of Hezbollah operative Imad Mughniyah. In fact, Mugniyeh was formally charged by Argentina with participating in the bombings of the Israeli embassy.
In May 1998, Moshen Rabbani, (the Cultural Attaché in the Iranian Embassy in Argentina until December 1997) was detained in Germany, and the Argentine government expelled seven Iranian diplomats from the country, stating that it had "convincing proof" of Iranian involvement in the bombing. However, none of the suspects was prosecuted. In fact the attack occurred when Iran and Argentina were hoping for a resumption of nuclear cooperation, although Argentina had announced the suspension of the shipments of nuclear materials to Iran a couple months before the bombing. A number of sources report on Hezbollah involvement with the assistance of Syria. Hezbollah denies these claims.
In 1999, the Argentine government issued an arrest warrant for Imad Mugniyah in connection with this attack and the 1994 AMIA Bombing in Buenos Aires, which killed 85. It is suspected that the two attacks are linked.
2.    1994 AMIA bombing.

                              

The AMIA bombing was an attack on the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA; Argentine Israelite Mutual Association) building. It occurred in Buenos Aires on 18 July 1994, killing 85 people and injuring hundreds. It was Argentina's deadliest bombing ever. Argentina is home to a Jewish community of 230,000,the largest in Latin America and sixth in the world outside Israel (see Demographics of Argentina).
Over the years, the case has been marked by incompetence and accusations of cover-ups. All suspects in the "local connection" (among them, many members of the Buenos Aires Provincial Police) were found to be "not guilty" in September 2004. In August 2005, federal judge Juan José Galeano, in charge of the case, was impeached and removed from his post on a charge of "serious" irregularities due to mishandling of the investigation. In 2005, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who would later become Pope Francis, 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 and Marcelo Martínez Burgos formally accused the government of Iran of directing the bombing, and the Hezbollah militia of carrying it out. According to the prosecution's claims in 2006, Argentina had been targeted by Iran after Buenos Aires' decision to suspend a nuclear technology transfer contract to Tehran. This has been disputed because the contract was never terminated, and Iran and Argentina were negotiating on restoration of full cooperation on all agreements from early 1992 until 1994, when the bombing occurred.
The thirteenth 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 am, the time of the bombing.

Bombing.

On 18 July 1994, a suicide bomber drove a Renault Trafic van bomb loaded with about 275 kilograms (606 lb) of ammonium nitrate 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 3 to 5 metres (9.8 to 16.4 ft) away, exhibiting a shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator 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 walls 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.

In the days following the bombing, Israel sent  agents to Argentina to investigate. The Israeli Police also sent a team of four forensic scientists to assist with the building of ante mortem files and victim identification; the IDF sent personnel to help the Argentines with body extrication. Argentina closed its borders after the attack, fearing more terrorists could enter. It was thought possible that the bombers entered Argentina through the Triple Frontier, where the borders of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay meet. Argentina's intelligence agency, the Secretaría de Inteligencia (SIDE), is said to have set up a network of surveillance called "Centauro" in Paraguay.

3.   2011 police station bombing.

On November 29, 2011, an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated at the main police station in the Buenos Aires city suburb of Avellaneda. The explosion damaged the building and nearby businesses, but caused no injuries. At the scene, police found pamphlets from an anarchist group calling itself the "Eduardo Maria Vazquez Aguirre Anti-Prison Insurgent Cell." Eduardo Maria Vazquez Aguirre was a Spanish anarchist who reportedly killed the Chief of the Argentine Police in a 1909 bombing. The pamphlet also stated that the bombing was in retaliation for the deaths of six named individuals shot by Buenos Aires police officers.

2011 Security Ministry bombing

On December 21, 2011 an IED detonated within 100 meters from the Security Ministry headquarters in downtown Buenos Aires. The explosion damaged nearby cars and buildings, but caused no injuries. A group calling itself “the Nucleus of Conspirators for the Extension of Chaos” claimed credit for the attack and indicated that it would soon conduct more attacks.

2013 attack

On 19 September 2013, a small improvised explosive device detonated in front of the headquarters of the Mutual Help Association of the Argentine National Gendarmerie. Two gendarmes were lightly wounded. Several groups claimed responsibility.

Terror groups on border.

 A number of Islamic terror groups are known to operate on the border of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay.

Responses and counterterrorism efforts.

Following the two bombings in Buenos Aires, national, regional, and local institutions responsible for emergency response in Argentina sought to improve their planning and preparedness for terrorism-related events. The Argentinian Government also introduced legislative measures to help deal with the threat of terrorism.

SIFEM (1996)

In 1996, the Argentinian Government enacted legislation, which launched the Sistema Federal de Emergencias (SIFEM) or Federal Emergency System under the direction of the president.

Argentina's Anti-Terrorism Law (2007)

The Argentinian Congress passed Argentina's Anti-Terrorism Law in 2007, focusing on preventing money laundering for financing terror attacks.

Anti-terror legislation (2011)

On the 22 December 2011, the Argentinian Congress approved a package of modifications to existing Argentine law aimed at combating terrorism and financial crime. The changes raised concerns with human rights advocates.

'See you soon!' Terror panic as Arabic threats sent to Argentina’s leader.

TWO men have been arrested in Argentina after terrorism threats were sent to the nation’s president Mauricio Macri.

 

 Two men have sent terror threats to Argentinian president Mauricio Macri.

The 21-year-olds posted a series of tweets in Arabic threatening to obliterate the South American country.
The authorities were alerted after an image of explosives was tweeted to the Argentinian president saying “See you soon”.
Messages were sent late last night as Mr Macri was due to appear at a series of high-profile events in Buenos Aires attended by thousands of people.

Police raided a house in Buenos Aires where the men were arrested. They are accused of “public intimidation”.
All the electronic devices found in the home have been seized by the cybercrime division of Policia Metropolitana.
The head of the division, Carlos Rojas, told Todo Noticias: “We’ll need to figure out the motives behind these messages. Whether it was out of boredom, political views or religious ideology.”


 
The tweets seem to show a ‘journey’ into the South American country.

The account @HassanAbuJaaf was created on Friday and tweeted pictures of the Argentinian Capital with the hash tags #PrayForArgentina and #OpenFireInArgentina.
Many images feature sights such as the government house, Casa Rosada, as well as shopping centres and tube carriages.

 Authorities were alerted when the president's twitter handle was mentioned.

  
The men have threatened to attack the Jewish community in Buenos Aires.

Some tweets mention Pope Francis as well as threatening jewish populated neighbourhoods saying ‘mercenaries Zionists’ will be the focus of their attacks.
National Security Minister Patricia Bullrich has said the men do not seem to pose a real threat, but added the government is waiting for the investigation to bring answers to light.

 
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