Prosecutors’ association seeks new probe into Nisman death

The International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) is demanding an independent investigation into the death of Alberto Nisman, the Jewish special prosecutor for the 1994 bombing of a Buenos Aires Jewish community center.

Nisman’s body was found on January 18, hours before he was to present evidence to Argentine lawmakers that President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner covered up Iran’s role in the attack on the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) center that left 85 dead and hundreds wounded. Nisman had sustained a gunshot wound to the head, and a pistol was found at his side.

The president of the IAP, Gerhard Jarosch, told prosecutors in Zurich on Monday that Nisman’s death was one of the most high profile recent examples of the threats faced by prosecutors around the world as they do their jobs, American Jewish newspaper The Forward reported.

Experts confirmed earlier this month that three laboratory analyses performed on the gun believed to have killed Nisman tested positive for traces of gunpowder residue. This new information dovetails with a test performed in February, which also detected no gunpowder on Nisman’s hands.

The result seems to negate the possibility that Nisman committed suicide, and support the theory that someone else shot him, or that someone cleaned his hand. Some experts also said that if the environmental conditions of the tests had slight changes the results could be different.

In July forensic pathologist Cyril Wech analyzed the case and said he believes that Nisman likely was murdered.

The IAP was established by the United Nations in Vienna in 1995. According to its website, it is the sole worldwide non-governmental organization of prosecutors, with some 200,000 members in more than 120 countries.

JTA contributed to this report