Argentina moves to designate Hezbollah a terror group — reports

Argentina’s government is moving closer to declaring armed Lebanese group Hezbollah a terrorist organization by announcing the creation of an official terror blacklist, a day before the 25th anniversary of a bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires.

Hezbollah has been linked to the 1992 attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, which killed 29, and the 1994 attack on the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires that killed 85. Argentina believes the Iran-backed group is responsible for both attacks.

Media reports said the registry will allow the Justice Ministry to officially blacklist organizations and people linked to attacks in Argentina.

Last week, Argentina’s President Mauricio Macri said he was “moving forward” with efforts to blacklist Hezbollah, calling it a “rejection of terrorism” and violence.

The announcement by Macri’s government comes a day before the public memorial for the AMIA bombing and a visit by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has stepped up pressure on Hezbollah during his tenure.

Yesterday, a US official said that Pompeo would bring the same message that he delivered in March in Beirut — that the United States “will bring unprecedented pressure to bear on Iran until it ceases all malign behavior including that which is carried out by Hezbollah.”

The official said Latin American nations were expected to start their own system of blacklisting and imposing sanctions on “terrorists,” following the US model.