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US Authorities Press Terrorism Charges Against Alleged Hezbollah Operative Involved in Deadly 1994 Bombing of Argentine Jewish Center
A display in Buenos Aires of pictures and names of victims of the 1994 AMIA bombing, in which 85 people died and hundreds more were wounded. Photo: Reuters/Marcos Brindicci.
The US authorities have pressed terrorism charges against a dual citizen of Colombia and Lebanon alleged to have played a central role in the July 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires orchestrated by the Iranian regime and its Lebanese Shi’a proxy, Hezbollah.
A statement from the US Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York on Wednesday announced that terrorism charges had been unsealed against Samuel Salman El Reda, 58, described as “a dual Colombian-Lebanese citizen and member of Hezbollah’s Islamic Jihad Organization (‘IJO’).”
“As alleged, for decades, Samuel Salman El Reda has led terrorist operations on behalf of the Islamic Jihad Organization of Hezbollah, including a 1994 bombing in Buenos Aires that massacred 85 innocent victims,” US Attorney Damian Williams said in an accompanying statement. “The career prosecutors of this Office have not forgotten the pain and suffering that El Reda has allegedly caused, and we thank the dedication of our law enforcement partners for pursuing this important case.”
Edward Caban, the commissioner of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), alleged that “El Reda was an on-the-ground coordinator of the fatal attack against South America’s largest Jewish center nearly 30 years ago. In the decades after that attack, he allegedly continued to direct and support terrorism activities in the Western Hemisphere on behalf of Hezbollah and has been involved in plots all across the world. We want this alleged killer brought to justice.”
El Reda is understood to be based in Lebanon and remains at large. In the case of the attack on AMIA, the charges allege that he conducted “activities for Hezbollah in connection with the AMIA bombing included relaying information to IJO operatives that was used for planning and executing the attack.”
Toby Dershowitz — managing director of FDD Action, a project of the Washington, DC-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) — said that the charges against el Reda amounted to a “chilling reminder that Hezbollah’s terrorism plots — those that succeeded and many that were thankfully foiled — were focused not only in the Middle East but around the world including in Thailand, Peru, Argentina, Cyprus, and yes, even in the United States.”
She told The Algemeiner that El Reda’s role “in planning the deadly AMIA bombing may be his most well-known attack but it’s by no means his only one.” She added as well that the charges highlighted Iran’s role in bankrolling and assisting terrorism.
“The AMIA bombing was planned on Aug. 14, 1993, in Mashhad, Iran,” Dershowitz said. “Iran’s diplomats and diplomatic services in its embassy in Buenos Aires were used to plan and fund the attack. The world often tries to escape this fact but only by squeezing the paymaster’s sources of funding can one begin to lessen the threat.”
Prior to the Oct. 7 Hamas pogrom in southern Israel, the AMIA bombing constituted the worst single act of terrorism or violence against a Jewish target since the Holocaust. No one has ever been brought to trial for the atrocity, despite the fact that in 2007, “red notices” — effectively international arrest warrants — were issued for six Iranian officials wanted in connection with the bombing by Interpol, the international law enforcement agency.
The post US Authorities Press Terrorism Charges Against Alleged Hezbollah Operative Involved in Deadly 1994 Bombing of Argentine Jewish Center first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.