The controversial case against Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been again dismissed by an appeals court.
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was accused of shielding Iran from prosecution over the 1994 bomb attack against a Jewish centre in Buenos Aires.
Two out of three judges voted to reject an appeal by prosecutors, saying that no crime had been committed.
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has always denied the allegations.
The original decision to throw out the case against Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was made by Federal Judge Daniel Rafecas in late February.
He made his conclusions after examining a 350-page report that had been prepared by special prosecutor Alberto Nisman before his unexplained death in January.
On March 26, the justice ministry said in a statement: “The federal appeals chamber ratifies the decision by Judge Daniel Rafecas to reject prosecutor Nisman’s accusation.”
The court of appeals agreed with Judge Daniel Rafecas’ conclusion that there was no evidence pointing to President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.
The sudden death of Alberto Nisman and the case against Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has dominated Argentine headlines for much of this year.
The prosecutor was found dead in his apartment on January 18 with a bullet wound to the head and a pistol lying by his side.
Alberto Nisman had been only hours away from testifying in Congress against Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and Foreign Minister Hector Timerman.
The circumstances of the prosecutor’s death are still unclear.
Earlier in March, Alberto Nisman’s family claimed independent tests showed that he was murdered.
The government has rejected any role in his death.
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said Alberto Nisman had been fed misleading information by a rogue intelligence agent who was trying to discredit her government.
Eighty-five people died in the car bomb attack on July 18, 1994 which completely destroyed the seven-storey Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (Amia) cultural centre in Buenos Aires.
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Argentine prosecutor Gerardo Pollicita has asked a federal judge to investigate President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner over allegations she helped cover up Iranian links to a deadly 1994 bombing.
Gerardo Pollicita inherited the case from Alberto Nisman, who was found dead in mysterious circumstances.
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner denies the allegations, with the government calling the probe an “anti-democratic attack”.
The attack on a Jewish centre killed 85 people. Iran also denies involvement.
Gerardo Pollicita’s move mean the judge will have to decide whether to authorize new investigations to prove the president’s alleged involvement.
If the prosecutor and the judge agree that there are enough elements to prove Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner committed a crime, she could face prosecution and be charged.
Before his death, Alberto Nisman had published a report on the attack on the Amia Jewish centre.
He alleged that the president and others had conspired to protect Iranian suspects in the bombing case in exchange for favorable deals on oil and other goods.
Alberto Nisman was found shot in the head in January, hours before he was due to give evidence to Congress.
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s cabinet chief, Jorge Capitanich, accused the courts of trying to stage a “judicial coup” by pursuing the investigation, the AFP reported.
Argentine federal prosecutor Alberto Nisman, who accused President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner last week of a cover-up has been found dead at his home in the capital, Buenos Aires.
Alberto Nisman was investigating the 1994 bombing of a Jewish centre in Buenos Aires in which 85 people died.
On January 14, he accused Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner of involvement in a plot to cover up Iran’s alleged role in the bombing.
The president’s spokesman dismissed the allegations as “ridiculous”.
Alberto Nisman, 51, was found dead by his mother in the bathroom of his home.
The Security Ministry released a statement saying that Alberto Nisman’s bodyguards had raised the alarm after he failed to answer their phone calls on January 18.
Concerned about his welfare, they fetched Alberto Nisman’s mother and tried to enter his apartment, the statement said.
They found the door locked from the inside with a key still stuck inside.
After a locksmith gained access, they found Alberto Nisman’s body in the bathroom.
According to the statement, a gun and a cartridge shell were found next to his body.
Alberto Nisman was due to give evidence at a congressional committee hearing on January 19 to outline his accusations against President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and other officials.
He had published a 300-page report on January 14 alleging that the president and Foreign Minister Hector Timerman had opened a secret back channel to Iranians suspected of involvement in the bombing of the community centre.
Alberto Nisman alleged that the scheme was intended to clear the Iranian suspects in order to facilitate a trade deal between Iran and Argentina.
He said that he had issued a request that a judge question the president and the foreign minister “for being authors and accomplices of an aggravated cover-up and obstruction of justice regarding the Iranians accused of the AMIA [Israeli-Argentine Mutual Association] terrorist attack”.
The car bombing of the seven-storey building was the worst terrorist attack in Argentina’s history.
In 2007, Argentine prosecutors accused Iran of planning and financing the attack, and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah of carrying it out.
Iran dismissed the allegations as “baseless”.
So far, no-one has been convicted in connection with the AMIA attack.
Last July, at events marking the 20th anniversary of the bombing, Pope Francis demanded justice for the victims.
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