Buenos Aires and Paris, 21 September 2018

For years, the Triple Border area between Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay was a focus for illegal activities that served to promote and finance terrorism.

This morning, the Brazil Federal Police arrested Assad Ahmad Barakat in Foz do Iguazú, a fugitive agent linked to the pro-Iranian terrorist militia Hezbollah.

“In July, Argentina had frozen Barakat’s assets. In August, Paraguay called for his arrest, now implemented by Brazil. This is the first time that the three neighbouring countries have taken such joint action” said Dr. Ariel Gelblung, Representative of the Simon Wiesenthal Center for Latin America.

Dr. Shimon Samuels, the Centre’s Director for International Relations, added: “We have monitored international terrorist activity in the lawless contiguous Triple Frontier region for some 20 years... The Centre commends this arrest and the expected extradition of Barakat to Argentina, as a sign that the three countries will begin to drive Hezbollah out of Latin America... At the same time, we urge a renewed joint enquiry into the 1992 Israeli Embassy and the 1994 AMIA Jewish Centre bombings in Buenos Aires.”

The Buenos Aires terror attacks: the Israeli Embassy bombed on 17 March 1992 and the AMIA Jewish Centre bombed on 18 July 1994.

“Together, these atrocities left 120 dead and over 400 injured. They were planned and executed out of the Triple Frontier by Iran and its Hezbollah terror arm,” the Centre’s officials concluded.