Latino-Jewish Caucus demands answers 29 years after terrorist bombing in Buenos Aires

Nearly three decades after dozens were killed and more than 100 injured in a Jewish Center bombing, South Florida representatives remain committed to seeking justice.

On July 18, 1994, a bombing at the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association building in Buenos Aires killed 85 people. Now 29 years later, no one has been convicted of carrying out the bombing, which remains the deadliest antisemitic attack outside of Israel since the Holocaust.

The case has been cloaked in claims of conspiracy, with two past Argentenian presidents accused at one point of attempting to help cover for people implicated in the bombing. Prior to his death, a panel of judges in 2019 absolved former President Carlos Menem of interfering with the investigation. Two years later, a court dismissed charges against former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who’d been accused of covering up Iranian involvement in the bombing.

A prosecutor, Alberto Nisman, was found dead in 2015 the night before he was scheduled to present evidence against Kirchner, who is now Argentina’s vice president. Nisman, years earlier, had authored a report implicating Hezbollah and officials in Iran, where the government has denied involvement.

On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Weston, Co-Chair of the Latino-Jewish Caucus, introduced a resolution commemorating the anniversary of the attack and demanding accountability.

“There has been no progress towards accountability or closure for the victims, survivors, and family members.” Wasserman Schultz said in a statement to the Miami Herald. “It is an enduring disappointment for all of us that none of the suspects of the bombing, or of the cover-up, have been brought to account.”

The Latino-Jewish Caucus was first established in 2011 and is now led by Wasserman Schultz and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Miami. The bipartisan 25-member caucus has been vocal about combating rising antisemitism and anti-Latino hate across the world.

“We continue to put pressure on the Argentinian government to find those responsible, hold those responsible accountable and do whatever necessary to prevent future attacks,” the representatives said in a joint statement with several other colleagues.

The proposed resolution aims to condemn and hold the perpetrators of the 1994 bombing accountable. It expresses sympathy and calls for the United States’ commitment to bringing justice to the victims who have been waiting three decades.

“I’m hopeful broad bipartisan support brings this to a vote soon, especially as Jewish issues appear to be a House leadership priority. But I’ll press for its passage for as long as it takes,” said Wasserman Schultz.