IV 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 325

Commemorating the 9th anniversary of the attack on the Argentine Jewish 

Mutual Aid Association (AMIA) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and highlighting the attack as characteristic of the threat to the United States 

from radical Islamic organizations operating from Latin America. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 18, 2003

Mr. HASTINGS of Florida (for himself, Mr. BALLENGER, Mr. MENENDEZ, Ms. 

ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. ACKERMAN, and Mr. CROWLEY) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International 

Relations 

RESOLUTION

Commemorating the 9th anniversary of the attack on the 

Argentine Jewish Mutual Aid Association (AMIA) in 

Buenos Aires, Argentina, and highlighting the attack 

as characteristic of the threat to the United States from 

radical Islamic organizations operating from Latin America.

Whereas on July 18, 1994, 85 innocent people were killed 

and 300 were wounded when the AMIA Jewish Community Center was bombed in Buenos Aires, Argentina; 

Whereas the attacks against the Jewish community in Argentina show the same cowardice that the United States saw 

on September 11, 2001; 
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Whereas failure to duly punish the culprits of these acts 

serves to reward terrorists and help spread terrorism 

throughout the Western Hemisphere; 

Whereas under President Nestor Kirchner’s order, 14 current 

and former members of the intelligence agency will be relieved of their responsibility to retain ‘‘State secrecy’’ in 

the case, and will be free to testify on the ongoing criminal trial for the first time; 

Whereas substantial evidence attributes the attack on July 

18, 1994, to the terrorist group Hizballah, based in Lebanon and sponsored by Iran; 

Whereas the Argentine judge hearing the AMIA case has 

issued international arrest warrants for four Iranian government officials believed to have been involved in planning or carrying out the attack against the AMIA; 

Whereas those indicted include Imad Mugniyeh, who reportedly works for Iran’s Ministry of Information and Security (MOIS) and lives in Iran; Mohsen Rabbani, a cultural attache at the Iranian Embassy in Argentina; Barat 

Ali Balesh-Abadi, an Iranian Diplomat; Ali Akbar 

Parvaresh, a former education minister; and Ali 

Fallahian, the former MOIS minister; 

Whereas evidence indicates that the tri-border region where 

Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil meet was used to channel resources for the purpose of carrying out the AMIA 

attack by terrorists linked with Iran; 

Whereas on March 17, 1992, terrorists bombed the Embassy 

of Israel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, killing 29 persons 

and injuring more than 200 others, and the Government 

of Argentina has not yet brought anyone to justice for 

that act of terrorism; 
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Whereas according to the 2003 Patterns of Global Terrorism, 

the tri-border region has long been depicted as a regional 

nucleus for fundraising activities, arms and drug trafficking, contraband smuggling, document and currency 

fraud, money laundering, and the manufacture and movement of pirated goods by terrorists linked with Iran; 

Whereas the State Department’s report Patterns of Global 

Terrorism 2001 identifies Lebanese-based terrorist organization Hizballah, as well as other terrorist groups, in 

the tri-border area of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, 

‘‘where terrorists raise millions of dollars annually via 

criminal enterprises.’’; 

Whereas such report states that ‘‘[t]here is evidence of the 

presence of Hizballah members or sympathizers in other 

areas of Latin America as well: In northern Chile, especially around Iquique; in Maicao, Colombia, near the border with Venezuela; on Margarita Island in Venezuela; 

and in Panama’s Colon Free Trade Zone’’; 

Whereas agents from Argentina’s intelligence agency have reported to the United States that operatives from al-Qaida 

were based in the Tri-Border region, and the agents 

noted that suspected terrorists had passed through the 

area, among them was a member of Gammaa al-Islamiya, 

a terrorist cell tied to al-Qaida; 

Whereas United States Deputy Secretary of State Richard 

Armitage testified on September 19, 2002, before a joint 

hearing on Iraq of the Permanent Select Committee on 

Intelligence of the House of Representatives and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate that 

Hizballah now has a capacity similar to al-Qaida to attack the United States and that Hizballah is present in 

South America; 
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Whereas the State Department’s annual report, Patterns of 

Global Terrorism 2003, notes that while Latin America 

has not been the focal point in the war on terrorism, 

countries in the region have struggled with domestic terrorism for decades and international terrorist groups 

have at times used the region as a battleground to advance their causes; 

Whereas police in Asuncion, Paraguay, have arrested a relative of Assad Barakat, the Chief of Hizballah in South 

America, with almost five pounds of cocaine hidden in an 

electric piano that he allegedly intended to smuggle into 

Syria; 

Whereas the Caribbean is a strategic paradise for terrorist 

organizations, given its established web for drugs, arms 

contraband, and money laundering; 

Whereas the Department of State includes Cuba in its list of 

seven states sponsoring terrorism and Cuba maintains 

close relations with countries that sponsor terrorism and 

has given safe haven to members of European terrorist 

groups; 

Whereas terrorist organizations may be involved in money 

laundering as a means of hiding their financial assets 

and in light of that information, as of June 2003, several 

nations in the region—Guatemala, St. Vincent, and the 

Grenadines—were identified by the Financial Action 

Task Force (FATF) as non-cooperative countries in the 

fight against money laundering;

Whereas much of the Western Hemisphere, from Canada to 

Tierra del Fuego, is ideal for international terrorist 

groups to establish bases due to the ill equipped and 

poorly trained security agencies across the region; 
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Whereas according to the Department of State’s March 2003 

International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, 14 nations in South America and the Caribbean are jurisdictions of primary concern to the United States because of 

their vulnerability to money laundering, while many nations in the region are characterized as jurisdictions of 

concern; 

Whereas the fight against terrorism must remain a top priority. Nowhere is this more true than in America’s back 

yard; 

Whereas according to Mr. Miguel Toma, who directs the Argentine equivalent to the Central Intelligence Agency 

(CIA), ‘‘there is a direct correlation between terrorism 

here [in South America] and the United States’’; 

Whereas Mr. Toma has met with United States intelligence 

officials to discuss the possibility of a new terrorist offensive launched from Latin America; 

Whereas al-Qaida’s desire to bring the battle to the United 

States would make the proximity of Latin America all the 

more appealing; 

Whereas cooperation is indispensable for success in the war 

on terrorism; 

Whereas it is in the best interest of the region to live up to 

the Declaration by the Organization of American States 

on September 21, 2001, ‘‘Individually and collectively, we 

will deny terrorist groups the capacity to operate in this 

Hemisphere. This American family stands United;’’; and 

Whereas it is the long standing policy of the United States 

to stand firm against terrorist attacks wherever and 

whenever they occur and to work with its allies to ensure 

that justice is done: Now, therefore, be it
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1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

2 (1) reiterates its condemnation of the attack on 

3 the AMIA Jewish Community Center in Buenos 

4 Aires, Argentina on July 18, 1994, and honors the 

5 victims of this heinous act; 

6 (2) strongly urges the Government of Argentina 

7 to further fulfill its international obligations and its 

8 promise to the Argentine people by pursuing the 

9 local and international connections to this act of ter10 rorism, wherever it may lead, and to properly punish 

11 all those who are involved; 

12 (3) welcomes Argentine President Nestor 

13 Kirchner’s political will to pursue the investigation 

14 of the bombing of the AMIA Jewish Community 

15 Center to its ultimate conclusions; 

16 (4) calls on the President of the United States 

17 to raise this issue in bilateral discussions with Ar18 gentine officials and to underscore the United States 

19 concern regarding the past delay in the resolution of 

20 this case; 

21 (5) recommends that the President of the 

22 United States create more mechanisms for intra-re23 gional information sharing and, where needed, joint 

24 counter-terrorism operations; 
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1 (6) strongly encourages the President of the 

2 United States to provide democratic governments in 

3 South America and Central America with the nec4 essary financial resources as well as equipment and 

5 training for intelligence and security forces; 

6 (7) encourages the President of the United 

7 States to execute his commitment vis-a-vis the West8 ern Hemisphere to ‘‘direct every resource at our 

9 command—every means of diplomacy, every tool of 

10 intelligence, every instrument of law enforcement; 

11 every financial influence, and every necessary weap12 on of war—to the disruption and to the defeat of the 

13 global terror network’’; 

14 (8) recommends that the United States Rep15 resentative to the Organization of American States 

16 seek support from the countries comprising the 

17 Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism to as18 sist, if needed, in the investigation of this terrorist 

19 attack; 

20 (9) desires a lasting, warm relationship between 

21 the United States and Argentina built on mutual ab22 horrence of terrorism and commitments to peace, 

23 stability, and democracy in the Western Hemisphere; 

24 (10) calls on all governments in the Western 

25 Hemisphere to pursue an anti-terrorism campaign 
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1 based on unity of purpose, dedication of resources, 

2 constant vigilance, and cooperation; 

3 (11) calls on the Islamic Republic of Iran to fa4 vorably respond to the Argentine arrest warrant for 

5 five Iranian citizens believed to be responsible for 

6 the 1994 attack on the AMIA; and 

7 (12) calls on the Islamic Republic of Iran to 

8 cease any and all assistance to terrorist organiza9 tions, and to renounce to any and all involvement 

10 with terrorism. 

11 SEC. 2. The Secretary of the House of Representa12 tives shall transmit a copy of this resolution to the Presi13 dent, the United States Senate, the United States Perma14 nent Representative to the United Nations, and the 

15 United States Permanent Representative to the Organiza16 tion of American States.

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