ARGENTINA: Judge orders arrest of former president for covering up bomb incident

Judge Carlos Bonadio of the High Court in Argentina has ordered the arrest of former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner after she allegedly covered up Iranian involvement in a 1994 bombing that killed 85 people at a Jewish community centre.

The High Court judge ruled that Kirchner be placed in pre-trial detention and stripped of her judicial immunity and also ordered the arrest of Hector Timerman, former foreign minister, and a number of other officials from Kirchner’s two administrations which lasted from 2007-2015.

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Al Jazeera’s Teresa Bo, reporting from Buenos Aires, said Kirchner has been accused of “treason” and interfering with the investigation into the bombing based on a memorandum of understanding between the governments of Argentina and Iran.

“This accusation is based on an agreement … that would allegedly allow Argentine judges to interrogate Iranian officials that Argentina claims were involved in that investigation,” she said.

Argentine prosecutors say the attack was ordered by the government of Iran even as the arrest order is also linked to accusations made by the murdered special prosecutor, Alberto Nisman.




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