Connected: Nisman was known for his close ties Argentina’s intelligence services. Image by Reuters

By Aiden Pink November 7, 2017

Two years ago, Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman was set to testify before Congress that President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner had been covering up Iran’s role in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires.

But before he could testify, Nisman was found dead in his bathroom with a gunshot to the head. The autopsy was inconclusive as whether Nisman took his own life.

Now, a new investigation by Argentina’s border police have concluded that Nisman was murdered, and did not commit suicide as Kirchner’s defenders claimed.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

According to the report, which was shared with the Associated Press, Nisman was beaten by two people before being drugged. One of his attackers held him while the other shot him in the head.

This report is the first to reveal that Nisman had a broken nasal septum, that his hip had received beatings, and that he had the drug ketamine in his system.

The bombing of the AMIA center, which killed 85 people, was long believed to have been conducted by Iranian agents, though no one has ever been brought to trial and Iran has refused to extradite suspects. In 2013, Fernandez de Kirchner struck a deal with Iran to jointly investigate the bombing. Nisman, who was in charge of the AMIA case, believed that the president struck the deal so she could cover up Iran’s complicity in exchange for oil.

The border police report is also investigating how Nisman’s alleged killers were able to evade the security assigned to protect him.

Contact Aiden Pink at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount