MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Bomb trial in Buenos Aires

Fifteen former policemen and five civilians accused of involvement in a bomb attack against a Jewish Association centre in Buenos Aires in 1994, killing 86 people and wounding hundreds, began this Monday in the Argentine capital. Over 350 journalists, most of them foreigners, have registered to follow the trial in a specially fortified court room that is expected to last nine to ten months and hear evidence from 1,460 witnesses. Although none of those on trial have been charged with carrying out the attack, Argentina, Israel and other countries believe Middle East guerrillas backed by Iran were responsible for the bombing. Particularly four policemen and a civilian are accused of supplying the van used in the attack. One of the former policemen involved had two million dollars in a bank account, which apparently were deposited some time before the bombing. If found guilty of supplying the vehicle, that was later loaded with explosives, the accused could face life imprisonment. However, the defendants, Iran and the Teheran linked Hezbollah reject the claims. The blast in July 1994 completely destroyed the seven-story building of the Argentine Israel Mutual Aid Association. In 1992, a similar attack occurred in the Israel Embassy in Buenos Aires