A Mysterious Death in Argentina Captivates the Region

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Alberto Nisman was the prosecutor whom former President Néstor Kirchner’s administration tasked with investigating the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA).  The attack, which killed 85 people, is generally believed to have been carried out by Hezbollah operatives with connections to Iranian intelligence.  Nisman recently asserted that he had uncovered evidence linking current President Cristina Fernández (widow of  Néstor Kirchner) to a secret deal with Iran that would trade immunity for any Iranian officials implicated in his investigation in return for Iranian oil.  Just hours before Nisman was to present his sensational evidence he was found dead in his apartment with a shot to the temple from a handgun found nearby.  The .22 caliber had been lent to him by a computer expert on his team, Diego Lagomarsino.  Nisman, who already had bodyguards assigned to him by the government, reportedly wanted the handgun for protection.  CFK first called it a suicide, but quickly changed course and claimed that he was murdered by rogue Argentine intelligence agents who want to undermine her administration.  Nisman’s death and its evolving aftermath have mesmerized the region, with theories and counter-theories galore.