[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 102 (Monday, July 19, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1591]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


          STATEMENT ON THE 5TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMIA BOMBING

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                           HON. NITA M. LOWEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 19, 1999

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, over the past decade, we have seen a 
horrifying increase in terrorist attacks around the world. Extremists 
in every corner of the globe have carried out violent, deadly attacks 
on innocent civilians in the Middle East, Latin America, the United 
States, and elsewhere.
  One of the worst terrorist attacks in the 1990s was the bombing of 
the AMIA Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina. July 18, 
1999 marks the fifth anniversary of this cowardly attack on the Jewish 
community of Argentina, which tragically took the lives of 86 people, 
and injured over 200 more.
  I rise today to honor the memory of the victims of the AMIA bombing; 
to pay tribute to the families of those victims, who have carried on 
with tremendous strength and courage; and to join them in their call 
for justice.
  Mr. Speaker, although it has been five years since the AMIA bombing--
and seven years since the bombing of the Israel Embassy in Buenos 
Aires, which killed 29 people--the perpetrators of these terrorist 
attacks have not yet been brought to justice.
  Last year, I had the privilege of visiting Buenos Aires and meeting 
with representatives of the Jewish community there. I stood with 
members of Memoria Activa, AMIA, DAIA, and others affected by these 
bombings, and I joined them in their demand that the Argentine 
government do more to arrest and prosecute those responsible for these 
terrible attacks. But our calls have gone unanswered.
  The absence of swift and sure justice for the terrorists who carried 
out these attacks is a tragic mockery of the memory of those who lost 
their lives. A terrorist attack anywhere in the world is a threat to 
all of us. And a terrorist attack that goes unpunished, is an 
invitation for these cowards to strike again.
  Mr. Speaker, today we honor the memory of the victims of the AMIA 
bombing. The greatest gift we can give to their friends and family is 
to bring their killers to justice. I can upon our own government and 
the Argentine government to do everyting in their power to close this 
horrible chapter in our fight against terror.

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