Haaretz Article - Argentina’s Jews are serving the far right’s silent revolution | Argentina Undergoing Attempted Revolution

ALBERTO NISMAN / ARGENTINA Haaretz Article Argentina’s Jews are serving the far right’s silent revolution I ask myself how these wise and good-hearted people could have fallen into a trap and wound up on the same side as the country’s fascists. By Meir Margalit    Jan. 26, 2015 | 3:04 PM It has been proved once again that in Argentina truth is stranger than fiction. What appeared to be a conspiracy theory has taken on real form; who knows what monster is lurking. Dark forces from the past are returning, keen to reap vengeance on the Kirchner family because late Argentine President Néstor Kirchner, the husband of his successor Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, put them on trial for crimes against humanity. About a week ago I wrote in Haaretz’s Hebrew edition that the murder of prosecutor Alberto Nisman reeked of a well-timed right-wing conspiracy, in cahoots with former police and army officials, to overthrow the government and destroy Argentina’s democracy, still weak after 30 years. Indeed, as information leaks out, the conclusion that Argentina is undergoing an attempted revolution strengthens. This is an elegant, sophisticated and refined revolution. It’s being carried out not by tanks or attacks on the Casa Rosada, Argentina’s White House, but by stoking the kind of social and economic chaos that overthrew Chilean President Salvador Allende in 1973, which Naomi Klein described so well in her book “The Shock Doctrine.” And here, amid all the commotion, smoke and disinformation, surfaces the Jewish connection — mainly because the affair revolves around the 1994 terror attack on the AMIA Jewish community center in Buenos Aires — and the 85 victims who were buried underneath. Second, the journalist Damián Pachter who broke the news of Nisman’s death received death threats and fled to Israel, leaving behind a trail of speculation on his motives. Worse still is the role the Jewish community is unwittingly playing in this despicable affair as it protests the deal Argentina signed with Iran in the attempt to absolve Tehran of responsibility for the terror attack. This deal is controversial and problematic no doubt, but it does not measure up to Israel’s arms deals with Argentina’s junta during the dictatorship launched in 1976. In the 1970s, the number of Jews murdered by the junta by Israeli-made arms was several times greater than the number of Jews later murdered by Tehran’s minions in Buenos Aires. And the community doesn’t notice that the far right is latching onto the legitimate protest and building the revolution's foundations based on its criticism. Not only does this attempt not serve the Jews, but you don’t have to be a historian to know that it will target them sooner or later. Nisman, who was murdered a week ago, is an example of the Jewish drama in Argentina. He was infected by the obsession with Iran that infected the entire community. He was nourished by materials that Israel gave him (according to the local media), and was used by the right wing to promote a revolution he probably never wanted. In the end, he paid with his life. This is the story of Argentina’s Jews on a small scale. I ask myself how these wise and good-hearted people could have fallen into a trap and wound up on the same side as the country’s fascists. If that weren’t enough, there’s the Israeli connection. Israel has become an player in the Argentine drama, and not for the right production company. Argentines believe that it gave intelligence to Nisman, and now the reporter who broke the story has found refuge there. [ie in ISRAEL] Israel probably isn’t directly involved in the affair, but Argentines see it as an extremely powerful player making things complicated for two major reasons: first, because this is a chance to strike at Iran; second, because Israel has a score to settle with Latin America’s “left-wing” governments that embrace the Palestinians and vote against Israel at the United Nations. Even if this theory is far-fetched, the two reasons sound logical. As far as Israel is concerned, the Argentine right wing is more Zionist than the current government, and that’s enough reason to speed up regime change. So Argentina’s Jews, whose pain is real, have become pawns in the hands of foreign interests who have nothing to do with them. Worse, they are serving a historical process that has been timed by forces that not only care nothing about the Jews, but will settle accounts with them the first chance they get. Ironically, it seems that when Argentine Jews hit the streets last week to protest, holding signs reading “We are Nisman,” they knew what they were talking about. Dr. Meir Margalit, the coordinator of the Latin America desk at the Forum of Peace Organizations, heads the Center for Advancement in Peace Initiatives. http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.639110 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- COMMENT Great article.  Lots of interesting things to think about. Dr Meir Margalit is an Israeli civil rights activist; a founder of the Israeli Committee Against Housing Demolitions, among other things; PhD Haifa Uni; born Argentina, moved to Israel 1972 & did national service / injured Yom Kippur War 1973; Left-Wing Meretz Party 1998-2002; defender of Palestinian Jerusalem residents. Think he was also Jerusalem mayor, but not sure if that detail's significant. Anyway, thought I'd share this article because it offers another perspective when it comes to viewing and examining the recent (and distant) events in Argentina. [This is #2468A0 background]

Netanyahu on Iran

NETANYAHU ON IRAN Israel PM Netanyahu's stated position on Iran nuclear: The red highlights are mine. Looks like he sees Iran nukes deal as a threat to Israel. Don't know about Iran having 'taken over' Syria and Lebanon.  Think they are friendly, co-operate and share the same beliefs (ie, I think they're Shia Muslims). An 'active front' in Golan Heights and in Southern Lebanon could maybe be a possibility.  The other day there was an Israeli bombing around Golan Heights. Source:  BBC Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 'Israel strike' kills Hezbollah men in Syria's Golan Heights An Israeli air strike has killed six members of Hezbollah in the Syrian sector of the Golan Heights, the Lebanese militant movement says. Among those reported dead were the son of a late military leader, a current commander, and at least one Iranian. Hezbollah's al-Manar TV said they were killed in Quneitra province "during a field reconnaissance mission". Israel said it would not comment, though unnamed sources confirmed an Israeli helicopter strike. They claimed those targeted were conducting reconnaissance for a Hezbollah attack. Those who died include Jihad Mughniyeh, the son of a top military commander killed in 2008, and Mohammed Issa, a Hezbollah field commander, Hezbollah officials said. EXTRACT ONLY - FULL @ SOURCE - BBC.  --------------------------------------------------------------------- Hezbollah in message to Israelis after Syria strike: Prepare your bomb shelters Thousands of mourners cried 'Death to Israel!' at funeral for Jihad Mughniyeh Hezbollah activists launched a propaganda campaign on social media Monday directed toward Israelis under the slogan: "In two words - prepare your bomb shelters."   EXTRACT ONLY - FULL @ SOURCE - i24News ............... The news source, i24News, is Israeli:  headquarters in Tel Aviv, broadcasts in English, French and Arabic and has a $50-million annual budget, according to this French Wikipedia entry. The retaliation referred to in social media probably doesn't mean much; it's social media, people say crap, and anyone can be behind the online posts. Of more concern would be the Hezbollah official response: Initial Hezbollah reaction was muted, with only one warning that it could prove costly for Israel, which is widely believed to have carried out the attack. But a retired senior Israeli general, who is running for the Knesset, suggested the missile attack was linked to the upcoming March 17 elections. The reference to the March 17 election surprised me.  The Israel election came to mind.  Not so much in relation to this incident, but just in terms of the strong Iran position PM may be taking.  But I dismissed thought of elections, only to have the elections pop up again. If I'm reading that right, the Israeli news source is saying that a retired Israeli general is suggesting the Golan missile attack by Israel is linked to the March elections? That's quite some statement to make.    The article goes on to say: Jihad Mughniyeh, 25, commanded a Hezbollah group fighting rebels trying to unseat President Bashar al-Assad. Unnamed Western intelligence officials cited by Israeli media said that Mughniyeh "plotted large-scale terrorist attacks against Israeli targets, including soldiers, citizens and whole residential areas, in the Golan Heights.” That's surprising.  Thought that Hezbollah was friendly with the Assad government.  But I'm new to looking at this stuff, so I probably had it wrong. Don't know about the merits of information from 'unnamed Western intelligence officials'.  Haaretz reported: The son of slain Hezbollah military leader Imad Mughniyeh ... Jihad Mughniyeh and the four others were killed when their convoy was hit. His father, who was on the United States’ most wanted list for attacks on Israeli and Western targets, was assassinated in Damascus in 2008. It is widely assumed that Israel planted the car bomb that killed him; Jerusalem has neither confirmed nor denied this.  What is interesting (given the current news on the Alberto Nisman investigation, sensational allegations against members of the Argentine government and Nisman's sudden death) is that there is an Argentina association here, in that the father of Jihad Mughniyeh, Imad Mughniyeh, is said to have been responsible for the Israel embassy bombing in Argentina 1992, as well as the AMIA bombing 1994.   Wikipedia on Imad Mughniyeh: Senior member of Hezbollah & Islamic Jihad Organisation ... indicted in Argentina for his alleged role in the 1992 Israeli embassy attack in Buenos Aires. ... was included in the European Union's list of wanted terrorists and had a US$5 million bounty on the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list. Mughniyeh was formally charged by Argentina for his alleged involvement in the 17 March 1992 bombings of the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, which killed 29 and the AMIA cultural building in July 1994, killing 85 people.  In March 2007, the Interpol issued "red notices" for his and others' alleged roles in the attack. [Most Wanted] Later the reward was increased to $25 million. Mugniyeh had been informed that he was at the top of a US military and CIA assassination list. For this reason, he was said to avoid certain areas of Beirut for fear of being killed by CIA operators. ... killed on 12 February 2008 by a car bomb that detonated as he passed by on foot, around 11:00 pm local time in the Kafr Sousa neighborhood of Damascus, Syria. According to The Sunday Times, Mughniyeh was at a reception marking the 29th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution hosted by the Iranian ambassador to Syria, Hojatoleslam Ahmad Musavi. Mughniyeh left the party shortly after 10:30 pm and walked to his Mitsubishi Pajero. The driver seat headrest had been replaced by one with a high-explosive, which detonated when Mughniyah entered the vehicle. The blast completely destroyed the car, left minimum damage on nearby buildings, and killed only Mughniyeh. A Syrian government investigation found that he was killed by a car bomb parked nearby and detonated by remote. Imad's younger son, Jihad Mughniyeh, was killed in an alleged Israeli air strike in the Syrian Golan sector, on January 18, 2015. Five other Hezbollah members and an Iranian Quds Force general were also killed in the attack. Mughniyeh senior was also accused of so many other things that it made him sound like a super villain, which makes you wonder about the accusations. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Looks like Rafah border may be closed for another 3 months:  #BreakingNews: Egyptian sources say curfew extended in northern #Sinai for three months [al Arabiya] Not entirely sure, as I still don't have my bearings in this region.  Know Rafah has been closed and they were looking at reopening (but only for student crossings, I think it was). The following article probably explains why the extension of closure: Egypt: 6 Shot Bodies Found in Arish - Sources North Sinai — North Sinai's al-Arish residents found on Saturday morning six unidentified bodies shot dead, security sources said. The deceased were shot in the head and body, the sources said, adding that they were taken to the Arish General Hospital. The number of security personnel and civilians killed in armed attacks by militants in North Sinai significantly surged during the past few months. Residents of the Sheikh Zuweid region found on August 20, 2014 the decapitated bodies of four civilians. In a video allegedly released in August by the Sinai-based Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, Egypt's deadliest militant group, the group claimed responsibility for the beheading of the four civilians, accusing them of providing intelligence to Israel. EXTRACT ONLY - FULL @ SOURCE - allafrica. Online check of maps indicates Rafah in the Northern Sinai area, so I'd wager Rafah's closed: Map attributed to:  Mike King (on this site: http://www.sciy.org/?p=8669) Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 In Sinai: The Uprising of the Bedouin Gaza and Sinai had had the same overlords. Even in recent times—from 1917 until 1982—the British, Egypt, and finally Israel ... Source:  http://www.sciy.org/?p=8669 Really good article I've stumbled across.  Worth reading.  Very interesting. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, that's just a bit of info on the Middle East that I found interesting. This is probably about as much as I want to know about for this moment. Not sure what to make of it all.

Argentina - Nisman - Secret Passage

ARGENTINA - ALBERTO NISMAN Google Translation The secret passage Judicial investigators have found a private passageway floor Nisman. The front door and Service: Until the discovery, only two entrances to the house were known. It is a passageway that connects the home of a neighbor of foreign origin. The corridor is a narrow gorge, where they are located air-conditioning equipment, and has a protective barral. At either end of the corridor there are small metal doors. On the hallway floor researchers found a footprint of recent appearance and in the rod protection, a fingerprint. A specialist locksmith explained that the service door was not locked inside. So that anyone could hang out. "It took me a second to open".  Source:  http://www.elmundo.es/internacional/2015/01/21/54beb189e2704ed6628b457a.html COMMENT Looked at a couple more random articles and this information came up. Not the best of translations, but it should do. Anyway, that's one very strange 13th floor apartment:  with a back door and a secret passage. Something worth noting, I guess.

Pagina 12 - Alberto Nisman

Página / 12 Google Translation "He told me that Stiuso told him to be careful" Through a judge, sent his version to Página / 12. Ensures Nisman said that "the day before had called Stiuso" whose name first appears so designated by a direct protagonist. By Raul Kollmann The last man alive who saw Alberto Nisman, Diego Lagomarsino, was connected through another-a person magistrada- with Página / 12. "I'm not an agent Intelligence, I have nothing to do ever met Jaime Stiuso" sent word. The computer technician said that on Saturday called Nisman and asked the borrowed gun, "I said it was for security. The day before had called Stiuso and told him to take care of custody and also had precautionary safety of their daughters. " Lagomarsino reached the tower Le Parc de Puerto Madero, a place which normally would; guard consulted the prosecutor, it did happen and no checkup of any kind. Today, recapping what happened, says he feels guilt because then you will not occur to him that he should not pay a gun at someone in that pressure situation. Lagomarsino's version was transmitted to this newspaper through a friend Judge years Family computer technician. "It's a young, married daughters girls kid. It has a lot of work: you say 'Egghead' because fixes all problems on computers. I believe him, "said the judge. Obviously, this newspaper has no elements to believe or disbelieve the version of the computer technician. If it were true that transmits Lagomarsino version Pagina / 12, first appears directly appointed Antonio Stiuso in relation to the events of the last week. Former Director of Counterintelligence Intelligence Secretariat, fired last December when the President decided to change the leadership of the agency in recent years maintained a close relationship with the prosecutor Nisman, Judge Rodolfo Canicoba Corral last week defined as subordination of the judicial officer as of the intelligence services. Since the filing of the complaint unusual prosecutor in the Justice everyone saw the hand of the spy in the initiative, as a form of revenge for his dismissal, and drew Stiuso as possibly responsible for the abrupt return of Nisman your vacation to present to next day his writing. But the version of Lagomarsino places it in close relationship with the prosecutor until the last moment. Página / 12 was based on objective facts that make Lagomarsino in a strange character but essential protagonist in the story of the death of the prosecutor: - It is the last to see him alive. - He facilitated the gun that came the shot that led to his death. That no doubt: the lead found in the skull of fiscal corresponds to the sheath found in the bathroom and that thing came out of the Bersa, 22 caliber pistol. - I had a very high contract prosecutors, 40 thousand pesos per month. Prosecutors consulted by this newspaper were surprised with such a figure: "For that money, that contract is not what it seems" they said. - I was seldom the prosecution. - In most occasions, looked to the prosecutor in the home, while at the Le Parc building. The version of Lagomarsino, as the judge said he spoke to this reporter, is that in the SHU AMIA other senior contracts had the same value. Lagomarsino says he copied and unlock files and performing backups of files that asked Nisman. Is not it a disproportionate number for that job? -Diego Says that sometimes the prosecutor cited the one o'clock on a Saturday. He must be ready all the time. It is true that the prosecution was little. He claims that most of the work was done remotely: files sent him and he unlocked or copied or made backups. Diego says he never knew the contents of those files. And how he got that job as well paid? -A Judge in San Isidro had problems in your home computer and turned to Diego. As always it happens, Diego fix the problems. I assure you that is a great guy. Nisman also had computer problems and this judge is recommended. Thus began the relationship. After Nisman asked him if he wanted a contract in the prosecution. He was not only responsible monotributistas enrolled. Diego said that the unit had AMIA other contracts that level. Consulted by Página / 12, in the administration insist that such a contract is by far the highest in the AMIA Unit, who handled the fiscal Nisman, and all prosecutors in general. They note that, at the time of its inception, Lagomarsino had only completed high school. How was he borrowed the gun? -Diego That Nisman telephoned him and as stated before the prosecutor, he borrowed the gun. He said in that conversation that Stiuso had called on Friday and told him he should be careful. They distrusted their custody and put them safely to their daughters. That's what I told Nisman Diego to justify asking him the gun. Today, Diego cries all day. It is destroyed and feels guilty. -why? Basically because he did not think at that time. You wonder how he did not realize that Nisman should be easy to get a gun and did not evaluate why it is called on it. Now also thought it was odd that he ask something up when had such custody. But, of course, Stiuso allegedly advised him to distrust the trustees. Still, spends the day crying. Today, believes Nisman had taken the decision (to kill) on Saturday night when Diego took the gun. Are you afraid? I'd say, most of all distress. Day crying is passed. When he learned in the early morning of Monday, he sought advice from another judge, because it found me. That judge advised him to appear immediately. It was only to testify Monday at 9am. Fein were the prosecutor and the judge Manuel Campos. Diego cried during the entire statement. 'You know what the relationship Lagomarsino with the prosecutor? Not in detail. Diego always said he had a relationship of trust, but always the prosecutor made him feel that he was the boss. Maybe give a pattern that, in recent months, said he had left Nisman therapy and who had chosen to be supported in the Art of Living (name of group self-awareness, yoga and meditation founded by guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, born in India ). How was the last meeting when he handed the gun? -Diego Said he was not very long. As usual, did enter through the back door. Nisman was alone in the apartment and invited him for coffee. He noticed that it had to prepare himself. They sat at the table and Diego says he saw him quiet. After a while he left, but this time through the front door, which was unusual. Also remember that the dismissal was without shaking hands because just the elevator, where there were women, and did not have time opened. It -¿Relató a previous meeting? I think you said earlier was just the day that the prosecutor was going to make the complaint, the 13. And that day I noticed a Nisman phrase: "Yo what I do, I have no alternative." Researchers believe that Lagomarsino had no direct connection with the death of Nisman in the sense that it was not in the building when the autopsy fixed schedule of death between 14 and 15 on Sunday. The computer technician was to give the gun at 20 on Saturday and left the building a while later. Your ingress and egress they were registered with the guard. Their participation, at least in so far there is in the case, was to render the gun. That is the reason the Fein tax not charged with a crime. After his statement on Monday, Lagomarsino promised tax would not talk to the media, why was not possible to engage him directly. However, he resorted to a judge known of his family, to leave the crossing Version Tuesday he adjudicated a possible link with some intelligence. In the administration yesterday was handed to tax the details of successive contracts signed, but beyond that, no data because Lagomarsino depended directly on Nisman. raulkollmann@hotmail.com Source - Pagina 12 {Spanish} - here. ^^^ COMMENT This is a poor Google translation.  Left it as is.  In a warped sort of way, it already makes sense -- sketchy, jumbled sense. As I read this: ^^ Computer technician Diego Lagomarsino is the last person to have seen Nisman alive. ^^ Lagomarsino delivered a .22 Bersa handgun to Nisman, on Nisman's request. ^^ Nisman had told Lagomarsino that the fired intelligence guy (Jaime Stiuso) had told him to be careful and, as I read above, had warned Nisman to be wary of protection retinue. ^^ Lagomarsino met Nisman through the recommendation of a judge Lagomarsino was providing computer tech services to. ^^ Lagomarsino's wages were unusually high. ^^ Lagomarsino's work was done on a remote basis & he was expected to be ready on-call, I think. ^^ On another site, it was noted that the two had met in 2007. ^^ Lagomarsino entered the apartment through the back door & (unusually) left via the front door. ^^ Lagomarsino and Nisman did not shake hands on parting, as the elevator opened unexpectedly and the departure was rushed (I think). ^^ Lagomarsino arrival & departure logged by guard ... but it looks like the retinue of guards were not there, which was unusual? ++ Some error:  Jaime Stiuso or Antonia Stiuso discrepancy in text above. If I understand correctly, this is a statement given by Lagomarsino to the reporter via a judge. Further: Initial test of Nisman’s hand showed no gunpowder residue [timesofisrael] Gunshot residue = GSR / depends on: >type weapon >number times fired >calibre of weapon [Ciolino & Castle] Revolver produces more GSR than automatic. 38 will produce more than a .22  gun fired more times produces more GSR GSR exceptions exist, depending on: >quality of gun >brand of ammo >amount wear & tear on gun Due to exceptions: .22 Rossi revolver may leave HEAPS more GSR than .44 Magnum Ruger Redhawk!!! [Ciolino & Castle] Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 SOURCE:  BERSA, Argentine arms manufacturer, located in the city of Ramos Mejia in Argentina The absence of gunshot residue would be unusual, seeing that even automatic weapons give off some residue. Intelligence service name discrepancy mystery solved.  Looks like guy goes by two names: Antonio Horacio Stiles (Jaime Stiuso) - here.

ARGENTINA - Alberto Nisman

DAILY BEAST ARTICLE Did Iran Murder Argentina’s Crusading Prosecutor Alberto Nisman? An Argentine prosecutor died from a single gunshot wound to the head Sunday, hours before giving evidence about Iran’s involvement in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish center. PARIS — Since 2005 Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman has been crusading for his vision of justice in the horrific 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires that killed 85 people and injured hundreds more. He claimed that Iran was behind it and, more recently, that the Argentine government was trying to block his efforts to prove that. On Sunday night, Nisman was found dead in his apartment, only hours before he was set to testify before an Argentine parliamentary commission about his allegations.   [Accusations involved the President, the Foreign Minister and a phone tap (legal or not legal is open), as I understand.  Also, there has been something going on within the intelligence service of the country ... a new head was appointed.] The circumstances revealed thus far by the police suggest a suicide. The history of Iran’s operations overseas inevitably suggest otherwise. And there are disturbing echoes of the world 20 or 30 years ago when Tehran, often in league with its clients in Hezbollah, waged a global war on the enemies of the Islamic Republic, deploying hit teams second only to the Israelis in their skill at assassination.  [Not up on all of this.  Didn't think Iran was known for 'hit teams' ... thought that was Mossad.] First, let’s look at the official communiqué about Nisman’s death issued by Argentina’s Ministry of National Security on Monday morning, with the facts of the case as the ministry says they are known: Nisman’s lifeless body was discovered Sunday night in his apartment on the 13th floor of Le Parc Tower, which is part of a modern high-rise complex in the Puerto Madero neighborhood of Buenos Aires. Ten members of the Argentine Federal Police force had been assigned to him as bodyguards, but it seems they were not deployed when he was at home. According to the communiqué, members of the team alerted Nisman’s secretary on Sunday afternoon that he was not responding to repeated phone calls. When they learned that he was not answering the doorbell of his house either and that the Sunday newspaper was still on the step, they decided to notify his relatives. [Straight up, I'd be looking at the slap-dash security.  Why so loose?  Why leave openings?  Why so slow to react?] In the world of intelligence, as distinct from the world of criminal justice, there has been little question that Iran was behind the AMIA bombing. The bodyguards then collected Nisman’s mother at her home and took him to Le Parc. When they tried to enter, they found the door locked with the key on the inside. They called the building’s maintenance staff who then called a locksmith.  Nisman’s mother entered the apartment with one of the bodyguards, and they found Nisman in the bathroom, where his body was blocking the door when they tried to open it. They immediately called police crime scene investigators who entered the bathroom, apparently making as much effort as possible not to disturb the evidence. [Agile 'Houdini' assassin?] Nisman was on the floor with a .22 caliber pistol and one empty shell casing nearby. The official communiqué does not say explicitly that he died from a bullet wound to the head, but that has been widely reported in Buenos Aires, as has the detail that the documents for his testimony before parliament were arrayed on his desk. How a murderer might have staged this apparent suicide will doubtless be the subject of speculation and conspiracy theories for years to come, as, indeed, is the case with the investigation into the AMIA bombing itself. That never resulted in a single conviction and was called a “national disgrace” by the late President Néstor Kirchner in 2005. The former Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, was among those who signed a petition ten years ago calling for justice, but to no avail. Nisman’s eventual focus on direct Iranian involvement, accusing Tehran of planning and financing the attack and Hezbollah operatives of carrying it out, was not universally supported, even by U.S. investigators who followed the case. “The guilt field was painted with a bit too broad a brush,” former FBI agent James Bernazzani told The New York Times in 2009. Bernazzani had led U.S. investigations of Hezbollah throughout the 1990s and said that while he was “convinced” of the group’s involvement, “we surfaced no information indicating Iranian compliance.” In the world of intelligence, however, as distinct from the world of criminal justice, there has been little question that Iran was behind the AMIA bombing in 1994 and the earlier car-bomb attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires in 1992 that killed 29 people. [Surely, even in the world of intelligence, conclusion has to be based on available facts.  But law enforcement said there were none pinning it on Iran.  So, the intelligence that Iran was behind it would just be a best guess?] At the time, the Israelis were attacking Hezbollah leaders and Iranian clients in Lebanon, Hezbollah and Iran struck back wherever they thought they could. “It’s an ongoing game, playing by the rules of the Bible,” a senior official in Israeli intelligence told me at height of the carnage, meaning the rule of eye for an eye, “and at a certain point there is a balance of terror where everyone knows what’s expected.” The Iranians also targeted with a vengeance any opposition figures they thought might be dangerous. In 1991, after a failed attempt years before, they managed to talk their way into the home of Shahpour Bakhtiar, the Shah of Iran’s last prime minister. He thought they were friends. They were searched by police at the door. They killed him with a knife from his own kitchen. The younger brother of then-President Hashemi Rafsanjani was named as a suspect in the case.  [Doesn't sound too professional, although it's certainly merciless and barbaric.] Between 1987 and 1993, according a French government memo published in a very detailed study called Le Hezbollah Global, between 1987 and 1993 some 18 opponents of the Tehran regime were murdered in Europe, and the CIA estimated that between 1989 and 1996 the Hezbollah network carried out 200 serious attacks costing hundreds of lives.  [Can the French memo & CIA estimates be trusted?  As it's unlikely anyone else was knocking off opponents of Teheran, the French memo might get a pass but I don't know about the CIA estimate.] By the late 1990s, the Iranian government apparently decided to slow these operations after several of them started to bring down too much heat. The Germans conducted a relentless investigation of the murder of Kurdish leaders in Berlin in 1992, tracing them back to the then-head of Iranian intelligence, Ali Fallahian. The AMIA bombing in 1994 caused international outrage. And the bombing of the Khobar Towers apartments in Saudi Arabia in 1995, which killed 19 Americans, was eventually traced to another group of Iranian acolytes. [Kurdish targets sound more like something the Turkish would be involved in, rather than Iran.  Saudi Arabia and Americans I can't begin to decide.] Finally, Imad Mugniyeh, seen as the key Hezbollah operative in many of the group’s terrorist attacks, dating back to the bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983, was blown up with a well-placed car bomb in Damascus in 2008. The Israelis generally are credited with that hit.  [Read about this some time ago.  Sounds pretty much what I'd read elsewhere.] But by then, Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon had fought a successful war of attrition that led to Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanese territory in 2000 after decades of occupation. Building on that victory, Hezbollah became, and remains, the most powerful political party in the country. Since then it has focused its actions on a sustained but relatively controlled standoff with Israel, apart from a brutal war in 2006 when it fought the vaunted Israeli army to a standstill. And in the last two years it has deployed in Syria to fight against the Sunni-led rebellion there, including the forces of al Qaeda and ISIS, that threaten the Assad regime. Iran, for its part, has been trying to show itself a reasonable member of the community of nations by negotiating with the Americans and Europeans about the future of its nuclear program. Yet there have been signs within the last few days that the game as old as the Bible continues, and may once again grow very dangerous. Last week, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah boasted that his organization now has weapons that can strike anywhere in Israel. “We have made all necessary preparations for a future war,” he said. Then on Sunday, Israeli forces killed Jihad Mugniyeh, son of the late mastermind, and several other Hezbollah officers who were operating in the Syrian sector of the Golan Heights. The Israeli press reported they had been planning attacks on Israeli targets. Was Alberto Nisman somehow caught up in this long war of assassinations? Or did he decide for reasons we probably cannot know to end his own life? The investigation will continue, unless somebody stops it.  [LOL ... who would be game to continue to investigate?] SOURCE:  The Daily Beast - here. COMMENT Chose this article randomly.  Another piece I'd read on Saudi Arabia challenged what I think is the present pro Saudi status quo, so I figured I'd check out another article by the same publication. Wondering if publication may have a pro-Israeli bias given the headline. The first thought I had on learning of  Nisman's death was, wow, Argentina's totally corrupt ... as I first assumed that someone within Argentina's government or intelligence was responsible.  Later, I wondered who might benefit from destabilising the government & maybe doing a frame that taints the government with suspicion of the killing as well as the cover-up accusation.  Only vaguely thought about Iran at some point, but dismissed it because it didn't seem like they had anything to gain. But ... my knowledge is very limited, so I could be wrong about that.  As I read the article I wasn't that convinced it had anything to do with Iran.  It was only when it got to the nuclear negotiations bit that had me wondering ... along the lines of maybe the motive being to preserve the edge Iran may presently have in negotiations.  But there's a warrant for eight Iranians (and one Lebanese) issued, so it isn't like this is something new and damaging to Iran.  Here's where it gets really interesting: Argentine government accuses prosecutor Nisman of working hand-in-hand with Jaime Stiusso, a former agent at Intelligence Secretariat (SI, formerly known as SIDE) who was reportedly removed when Oscar Parrilli was appointed to head the country’s intelligence services last month. Stiusso was said to be working behind the scenes against the memorandum of understanding —signed by the Kirchnerite administration and Iran in January 2013 to investigate the AMIA bombing. According to a Kirchnerite source, internal rifts within the SI started when the Federal Criminal Appeals Court declared unconstitutional the Memorandum in May last year. [mercopress] I had some other guy's name for the intelligence replacement:   intel head Héctor Icazuriaga replaced by Oscar Parrilli [here]. Sounds like the intelligence agency's been stirred up and it looks like the Foreign Minister has accused those in the intelligence agency of fabricating the complaint: statement by Foreign Minister Hector Timerman against Prosecutor Alberto Nisman describing his complaint as a fabricated product of a manoeuvre by Intelligence Service agents who have been removed from their positions [here] Another article reports that Nisman's Iran & Hezbollah accusations are based almost wholly on information from intelligence services -- and that the US embassy is responsible for pushing Nisman in that direction: Nisman is a prosecutor who devoted the past 10 years to push the accusations against the Iranian regime and Lebanon’s Hezbollah for the AMIA bombing, almost completely based on information provided by intelligence services. The US Embassy was the one that pushed Nisman toward that approach, at the expense of probing any other possible foreign or local responsibilities, as was exposed in the WikiLeaks cables. That thesis is also favoured by the Israeli government and the leadership of the Argentine Jewish community. In particular, the latter tried to lobby before the Embassy in favour of former DAIA President Rubén Beraja, who was convicted and then acquitted of perjury charges to cover up the attack, among other judicial proceedings against him. [here] The last bit of that paragraph doesn't mean much to me.  Who is this Beraja guy?  Quickie look:  businessman, Ruben Beraja, was president of the Delegation of Jewish Argentine Associations (DAIA). GreenLeft reported in 2011: The US pressured an Argentine prosecutor to halt investigations into former Argentine president Carlos Menem and a number of other officials suspected of being involved in a cover-up over the bombing of a Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires in 1994, Argentine daily Pagina/12 reported on February 27. [here] Article goes on to say that a 1997 report by Argentina’s National Academy of Engineers indicated that a car bomb wasn't the cause of the explosion, as the epicentre of the explosion was within the building.  Not sure which building.  Looks like they're talking about the AMIA building, but I think another article referred to the embassy. Here's where the story becomes totally twisted.  Caught on video: federal judge Juan Jose Galeano offering [car dealer] Telleldin a US$400,000 bribe in return for providing witness testimony implicating the police officers [ibid] But that's not all: The court found that federal judge Luisa Riva Aramayo also offered to pay Telleldin for testimony implicating a number of police officers allied to Menem’s political rival, Eduardo Duhalde. [ibid] How corrupt is Argentina?  That's just put me off Argentina.  Not somewhere you'd go to settle down to a quiet life, is it?  Sounds like a nest of vipers. Here's more on the nukes: In a November 2006 report for the Asia Times Online, Porter said “The indictment [by Nisman and Burgos] shows the US put strong pressure on the Menem government to terminate all nuclear cooperation with Iran.” [ibid] US seems to be highly involved in the goings on in Argentina: The WikLeaks revelations also included cables criticising the Argentine government and showing a close relationship between the US and right-wing opposition figures. [ibid] Now that I've trawled through all this stuff, I'm somewhat confused. Argentinian author Adrian Salbuchi argues that it is more plausible that Israeli intelligence services may be responsible for the attacks in Argentina [here]. Without knowledge of all the related events, it's hard to assess the merits of the timeline or the proposal that it may have been Israeli intelligence services. Initially I found that option hard to believe.  But then I remembered King David Hotel bombing.  Even though this was pre Israeli intelligence services days,  it's hard to dismiss when early Zionist paramilitary organisations that were responsible for the KDH bombing also produced a Prime Minister (Menachem Begin), then head of the organisation associated with the Deir Yassin massacre. If my understanding is correct, David Shaltiel, the guy who gave the Deir Yassin massacre the go-ahead (despite a non-aggression pact signed by the villagers) was a paramilitary commander, who went on to become an intelligence officer and an Israeli diplomat: In the years 1950-1952 Shaltiel served as military attaché of Israel in France, and later fulfilled several diplomatic charges - as Israel's plenipotentiary minister in Brazil and Venezuela (1952–1956), then in Mexico (1956–1959) and ambassador in Netherlands (1963–1966). [wikipedia] I'm now more blown away by this information than I am by the convenient death of Prosecutor Nisman. Reading further, I've discovered an early example of assassination by Zionist paramilitary:  that of Jacob Israel de Haan.  First political murder.  Killed 1924 Jerusalem.  Haan's view of a Zionist future (negotiation with Arabs) didn't fit with the paramilitary organisation's view. What blows me away is that those who participated in extremist violence in Palestine became mainstream (and presumably accepted) figures. Pope Francis (former Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio) gets a mention for having signed a petition for AMIA justice 10 years ago. Italian descent, worked as a chemical technician and a bouncer. Religion creeps me out in a big way.  Not for one moment do I believe in do-gooder 'holiness'.  Nor the we-must-revere-religion stance. In terms of the church generally, if you want influence in a place like Latin America you would probably want to play with the church.  Looks like CIA's played with the church. Checking out the church, I've found this: "under Reagan, the CIA linked up with Pope John Paul II, and they attacked together, they attacked liberation theology based communities in Latin America and have really destroyed that whole movement" [Matthew Fox, Theologian] Oh, look.  Here's another article that links CIA with Pope John Paul II: John Paul II appears to have gone even further, allowing the Catholic Church in Nicaragua to be used by the CIA and Ronald Reagan’s administration to finance and organize internal disruptions while the violent Nicaraguan Contras terrorized northern Nicaraguan towns with raids notorious for rape, torture and extrajudicial executions. School of the Americas ('Coup School') got a mention in that one, as well. Must-read article by Robert Parry, investigative reporter, who broke Iran-Contra stories: Pope Francis, CIA and ‘Death Squads’ https://consortiumnews.com/2013/03/16/pope-francis-the-cia-and-death-squads/ Pope Francis & Hollywood   Hollywood meets Vatican Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 Pope Francis and actress, film-maker meet after the screening of 'Unbroken' at the Vatican. Perfection. WWII hero Hollywood flick, Universal Studios, Hollywood & UN heroine, the head of the Catholic Church (wow, somebody powerful is pulling strings and it's not god), the oft repeated "strength of the human spirit", a keepsake rosary ... an almost perfect PR trip, were this not such an absurd concoction. Hollywood Pictures.  Movies. Money.  Money.  Money. Corporate America Wall Street.  Power.  Elite. Myth-makers.  Dreams-makers. Lies.  Propaganda. Humanitarian mantra.  Appropriation for political ends.  Trojan horse. US empire Politics Pontiff, god, & glamour Holy spirit Sport. War. Hero. "strength of the human spirit" Or  indifferent chance? Rosary Blessing Affirming American Empire 2015 For me, the beauty lies in the absurdity of the concoction presented for consumption. ---------------------------------------------------- Various links: *http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/01/19/did-iran-murder-argentina-s-crusading-prosecutor-alberto-nisman.html *http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/179804/as-illconceived-as-it-sounds *http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/179518/gov%E2%80%99t-accusations-are-%E2%80%98ridiculous-inconceivable%E2%80%99 *http://en.mercopress.com/2015/01/19/d-day-for-argentine-prosecutor-who-charged-cristina-fernandez-with-iran-cover-up *https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/46996 *http://en.mercopress.com/2015/01/19/d-day-for-argentine-prosecutor-who-charged-cristina-fernandez-with-iran-cover-up *https://consortiumnews.com/2013/03/16/pope-francis-the-cia-and-death-squads/

Argentina - US Vulture Funds - AMIA Bombing

Sunday, September 7, 2014 Wikileaks founder Assange claims US supports 'vulture funds' in dispute with Argentina Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has alleged that the United States is supporting holdout investors in their dispute with Argentina over debt defaulted in 2001, as a way of punishing the country for the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran to advance investigations into the AMIA bombing. "It seems that Argentina is now being punished for a geopolitical decision that [the US] did not like," Assange stated, referring to the agreement with the middle-eastern country, during an interview published today with Página/12. The activist is currently seeking asylum in the Ecuadorean assembly located in London, as he claims that he is under risk of being extradited to the United States if he stays in the UK. "It is interesting to wonder why the US government supports these actions, because at the start of the trial it seemed that the State Department wanted easy relations with Argentina and it did not support the vulture funds," he explained. "Now it is supporting them, even though this is clearly causing tension with Argentina." In Assange's opinion, the dispute between the Argentine government and holdout investors presided over in New York by judge Thomas Griesa "seems to respond to the US' desire to set a precedent so that US businesses can seize the assets of foreign governments, which gives US businesses a clear advantage when it comes to negotiating with foreign governments." "I had to experience this myself. My prosecutor, the prosecutor who has the case against Wikileaks, is based in Alexandria, Virginia, which is an extension of the centre of power that is Washington DC," he underlined. http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/169132/wikileaks-founder-assange-claims-us-supports-vulture-funds-in-dispute-with-argentina

The above article is interesting because I didn't know anything about the 1994 AMIA bombing in Argentina - here.

Figured the bombing may be related to the Mustafa Dirani kidnapping by Israel - here.  Reason:  kidnapping was just before the bombing.

Reading about the bombings -- ie 1992 bombings directed at Israeli targets, this bombing and later stumbling on a news item about a new al-Shebab appointment, I am positively FREAKED out big time about these kinds of organisations.

To be honest, I feel fear.  But I don't know why.  It's an irrational fear.  Or maybe it's an instinctive fear.

It's very hard to understand a region or to build empathy for people from that part of the world, when the people scare you. 

It's like a horror movie scare that sort of creepily lingers long after the credits have rolled.

I'm like a dog that needs a really good shake to get creepy feeling off me.

Need to find a music video or something distracting.