BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (JTA) — Iran and Argentina were set to open bilateral negotiations to discuss the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community center.
The Argentinian Foreign Ministry said that a “work session” would be held Monday between legal representatives of both countries at the United Nations offices in Geneva, Switzerland.
Argentina’s Foreign Minister Hector Timerman, who is Jewish, met Sept. 27 with his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Salehi, at U.N. headquarters in New York to discuss the AMIA bombing case.
The attack on the Jewish community’s main complex in Buenos Aires killed 85 and wounded hundreds. Iran is accused of directing the bombing that allegedly was carried out by the Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah. Following their meeting, Timerman and Salehi issued a joint statement announcing that they would continue negotiations through government officials in Geneva.
Israel, the United States and the Argentinian Jewish community have spoken out against the meetings. Relatives of AMIA victims and Jewish leaders also have urged their government not to negotiate with Iran.
Iran also is believed to be behind the 1992 car bombing that destroyed the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires, killing 29 and injuring 242.
No one has been convicted in either of the attacks.
