[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 84 (Wednesday, June 28, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6028-S6029]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              SENATE RESOLUTION SUBMITTED ON JUNE 28, 2000

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SENATE RESOLUTION 329--URGING THE GOVERNMENT OF ARGENTINA TO PURSUE AND 
    PUNISH THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE 1994 ATTACK ON THE AMIA JEWISH 
               COMMUNITY CENTER IN BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTIA

  Mr. L. CHAFEE (for himself and Mr. Helms) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 329

       Whereas on July 18, 1994, 86 innocent persons 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 the investigation indicates that this bombing could 
     not have been carried out without assistance from former 
     elements of local security forces;
       Whereas additional evidence indicates that the tri-border 
     area where Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil meet was used to 
     channel resources for the purpose of carrying out the bombing 
     attack;
       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 on March 17, 1992, terrorists bombed the Embassy of 
     Israel in Buenos Aires, killing 29 persons and injuring more 
     than 200 others, and the Government of Argentina has not yet 
     brought anyone to justice for that act of terrorism;
       Whereas failure to duly punish the culprits of these acts 
     serves to reward these terrorists and help spread 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 condemned terrorism in all its forms and that committed 
     governments to combat terrorist acts anywhere in the Americas 
     with unity and vigor; 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 Senate--

[[Page S6029]]

       (1) reiterates its condemnation of the attack on the AMIA 
     Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in July 
     1994, and remembers the victims of this heinous act;
       (2) strongly urges the Government of Argentina to fulfill 
     its international obligations and commitments 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) urges the Government of Argentina to pursue and 
     prosecute any person with ties to Hezbollah or any other 
     terrorist organization;
       (4) 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;
       (5) recommends that the United States Permanent 
     Representative to the Organization of American States should 
     seek support from the countries comprising the Inter-American 
     Committee Against Terrorism to assist, if requested by the 
     Government of Argentina, in the investigation of this 
     terrorist attack;
       (6) 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 and other terrorist activities in 
     the tri-border area; and
       (7) desires a lasting and positive relationship between the 
     United States and Argentina based on a mutual commitment to 
     the rule of law and democracy in the Western Hemisphere and 
     mutual abhorrence of terrorism.
       Sec. 2. The Secretary of the Senate shall transmit a copy 
     of this resolution to the President and the United States 
     Permanent Representative to the Organization of American 
     States.

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