[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 531 Introduced in House (IH)]
106th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 531
Condemning the 1994 attack on the AMIA Jewish Community Center in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, urging the Argentine Government to punish
those responsible, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 23, 2000
Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mr. Lantos, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr.
Wexler, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Rothman, and Mr. Menendez)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on International Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Condemning the 1994 attack on the AMIA Jewish Community Center in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, urging the Argentine Government to punish
those responsible, and for other purposes.
Whereas on July 18, 1994, 86 innocent human beings were killed and 300 were
wounded when the AMIA Jewish Community Center was bombed in Buenos
Aires, Argentina;
Whereas the United States welcomes Argentine President Fernando de la Rua's
political will to pursue the investigation of the bombing of the AMIA
Jewish Community Center to its ultimate conclusion;
Whereas circumstantial evidence attributes the attack to the terrorist group
Hezbollah, based in Lebanon and sponsored by Iran;
Whereas evidence indicates that this bombing could not have been carried out
without local assistance from elements of the Argentine security forces
some of which are reported to be sympathetic to anti-Semitic positions
and to have participated in the desecration of Jewish cemeteries in
recent years;
Whereas additional evidence indicates that the tri-border area where Argentina,
Paraguay, and Brazil meet and which is known to be rife with terrorist
activity as well as drug and arms smuggling was used to channel
resources for the purpose of carrying out the bombing attack;
Whereas the 6 years since the bombing have been marked by efforts to minimize
the involvement of these Argentine security elements;
Whereas Argentine officials have acknowledged that there was negligence in the
initial phases of the investigation and that the institutional and
political conditions must be created to advance the investigation of
this terrorist attack;
Whereas failure to duly punish the culprits of this act serves merely to reward
these terrorists and help spread the scourge of terrorism throughout the
Western Hemisphere;
Whereas the democratic leaders of the Western Hemisphere issued mandates at the
1994 and 1998 Summits of the Americas that they condemn terrorism in all
its forms and that they will, using all legal means, combat terrorist
acts anywhere in the Americas with unity and vigor;
Whereas the Government of Argentina supports the 1996 Declaration of Lima To
Prevent, Combat and Eliminate Terrorism, which refers to terrorism as a
serious form of organized and systematic violence that is intended to
generate chaos and fear among the population, results in death and
destruction, and is a reprehensible criminal activity, as well as the
1998 Commitment of Mar del Plata which calls terrorist acts serious
common crimes that erode peaceful and civilized coexistence, affect the
rule of law and the exercise of democracy, and endanger the stability of
democratically elected constitutional governments and the socio-economic
development of our countries; and
Whereas it is the long-standing policy of the United States to stand firm
against terrorist attacks wherever and whenever they occur and to work
with its allies to ensure that justice is done; Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) reiterates its condemnation of the attack on the AMIA
Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina in July,
1994, and honors the victims of this heinous act;
(2) strongly urges the Government of Argentina to fulfill
its international obligations and its promise to the Argentine
people by pursuing the local and international connections to
this act of terrorism, wherever they may lead, and to duly
punish all those who were involved;
(3) calls on the President to raise this issue in bilateral
discussions with Argentine officials and to underscore the
United States concern regarding the 6-year delay in the
resolution of this case;
(4) recommends that the United States Representative to the
Organization of American States seek support from the countries
comprising the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism to
assist, if required by the Government of Argentina, in the
investigation of this terrorist attack;
(5) encourages the President to direct United States law
enforcement agencies to provide support and cooperation to the
Government of Argentina, if requested, for purposes of the
investigation into this bombing and terrorist activities in the
tri-border area; and
(6) desires a lasting, warm relationship between the United
States and Argentina built on mutual abhorrence of terrorism
and commitments to peace, stability, and democracy in the
Western Hemisphere.
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