Iranians sought in ‘94 bomb attack in Argentina
MARRAKECH, Morocco - Interpol put an ex-Iranian intelligence chief, a former leader of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, three other Iranians and a Lebanese militant on its most-wanted list Wednesday for a 1994 bombing that killed 85 people at a Jewish center in Argentina.
The international coordinating agency announced the move after delegates at its general assembly sided with Argentine prosecutors and turned back a lobbying blitz by Iranian envoys trying to avoid having their country linked to Argentina’s worst terrorist attack.
The dispute was steeped in geopolitical drama at a time of high tension between Iran and the West over Tehran’s suspect nuclear program and American claims that Iran is supplying weapons to insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan - claims the Islamic Republic denies.
While Iranian envoys accused Israel and the United States of trying to use Interpol to taint Iran’s image, most delegates agreed the case was purely a police matter.
Interpol Secretary-general Ronald K. Noble said the decision “means that the basis for it is police and crime issues, and not any broader geopolitical issues.”
The decision to issue Interpol “red notices” is the equivalent of putting the six men on its most-wanted list. The notices cannot force countries to arrest or extradite suspects, but can put government leaders on the spot.
“A red notice chills travel - limits travel - and places the government in power at risk of explaining why a person for whom a red notice is issued is able to move freely,” Noble said.