The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced charges against an alleged member of Hezbollah who helped plan and orchestrate a 1994 bombing in Argentina.
A federal court in Manhattan unsealed an indictment regarding terrorism charges against Samuel Salman El Reda, 58, a senior member of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed terrorist organization, according to a press release from the DOJ. The charges announced link El Reda to a 1994 bombing at a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
El Reda, a dual citizen of Colombia and Lebanon, was charged with conspiring to provide support to Hezbollah, and for helping Hezbollah, which has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States since Oct. 8, 1997.
“Nearly three decades ago, long-time Hezbollah terrorist operative Samuel Salman El Reda allegedly helped plan and execute the heinous attack on a Buenos Aires Jewish community center that murdered 85 innocent people and injured countless others,” Matthew Olsen, the assistant attorney general for the DOJ’s National Security Division.
Justice Department Announces Terrorism Charges Against High-Ranking Hezbollah Member Who Helped Plan 1994 Bombing in Buenos Aires, Argentinahttps://t.co/HrvSO2oUvn pic.twitter.com/Xjtl3iJtOz
— National Security Division, U.S. Dept of Justice (@DOJNatSec) December 20, 2023
“This indictment serves as a message to those who engage in acts of terror: that the Justice Department’s memory is long, and we will not relent in our efforts to bring them to justice,” Olsen added.
The unsealed indictment claims El Reda, who went by other names such as “Samuel Salman El Reda El Reda,” “Salman Raouf Salman,” “Sulayman Rammal,” “Salman Ramal,” and “Salman Raouf Salman,” had been working for Hezbollah and participated in terrorist activities as early as 1993 for both Hezbollah and the IJO.
IJO is an external security organization within the terrorist group that plans and coordinates the intelligence and counterintelligence and carries out terrorist activities on behalf of the group, according to the DOJ.
El Reda also allegedly worked for and took part in terrorist activities for the group as recently as 2015, according to the indictment. Around 2007, he reportedly “helped recruit, train, and manage IJO operatives,” from Lebanon.
Altogether, El Reda faces a maximum of up to 55 years in prison, according to the DOJ.
He is charged with providing material support to a terrorist organization, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years; conspiring to provide material support to a terrorist organization, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years; aiding and abetting the receipt of military-type training from a terrorist organization, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison or a fine; and conspiring to receive military-type training from a terrorist organization, which carries a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison, according to the DOJ.