Overview

Salman Raouf Salman is a U.S.-designated senior member of Hezbollah accused of masterminding Hezbollah’s July 18, 1994, bombing of the Argentine Jewish Mutual Association (AMIA) community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The U.S. government accuses Salman of directing and supporting Hezbollah’s terrorist activities in the Western Hemisphere through Hezbollah’s External Security Organization (ESO), which is responsible for the group’s international terrorist attacks.“Treasury Targets Senior Hizballah Operative for Perpetrating and Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Western Hemisphere,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, July 19, 2019, https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm737.

Salman was born in Colombia to Lebanese parents. Prior to the AMIA attack, he lived in Argentina.“Iran faces new pressure over bombing plot,” United Press International, October 5, 2009, https://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2009/10/05/Iran-faces-new-pressure-over-bombing-plot/48631254777769/. On July 18, 1994, a suicide bomber exploded at the AMIA community center in Buenos Aires, killing 85 people and wounding 300.“Argentina Passes Iran Amia Deal,” BBC News, February 28, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-21612517; “Treasury Targets Senior Hizballah Operative for Perpetrating and Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Western Hemisphere,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, July 19, 2019, https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm737. Israeli investigators reportedly identified Salman as the coordinator of the attack.Matthew Levitt, “How Trump Is Going After Hezbollah in America’s Backyard,” Politico, November 30, 2017, https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/11/30/donald-trump-hezbollah-latin-america-215987/. Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman identified Salman as the link between Tehran and Hezbollah in the attack’s preparation.“Iran faces new pressure over bombing plot,” United Press International, October 5, 2009, https://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2009/10/05/Iran-faces-new-pressure-over-bombing-plot/48631254777769/. Argentine security officials accused Salman of overseeing Hezbollah “sleeper cells in Buenos Aires and the Tri-Border Area of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay.”“Treasury Targets Senior Hizballah Operative for Perpetrating and Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Western Hemisphere,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, July 19, 2019, https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm737. Argentine security officials further accused Salman of coordination with U.S.-designated Hezbollah financier Assad Barakat prior to the AMIA attack.“Treasury Targets Senior Hizballah Operative for Perpetrating and Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Western Hemisphere,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, July 19, 2019, https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm737. Barakat was an organizer and key financier of the AMIA attack.“The many criminal heads of the Golden Hydra,” Counter Extremism Project, accessed May 25, 2016, https://www.counterextremism.com/sites/default/files/The%20Many%20Criminal%20Heads%20of%20the%20Golden%20Hydra%20%28May%202018%29.pdf. Interpol subsequently issued a Red Notice to international police organizations to arrest Salman.“Red Notice: El Reda, Samuel Salman,” Interpol, accessed February 10, 2021, https://www.interpol.int/en/How-we-work/Notices/View-Red-Notices#2009-19958.

According to then-U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Salman was the on-the-ground coordinator of the AMIA attack. The United States designated Salman under Executive Order 13224 on July 19, 2019, one day after the 25th anniversary of the AMIA attack.Courtney McBride, “U.S. Sanctions Hezbollah Operative for Role in 1994 Bombing in Argentina,” Wall Street Journal, July 19, 2019, https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-sanctions-hezbollah-operative-for-role-in-1994-bombing-in-argentina-11563552225. According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Salman “provided all necessary support to perpetrate the terrorist attack against the AMIA building, coordinating the activities of the Hezbollah attack squad in Buenos Aires, and maintaining communication with Hezbollah leaders in Lebanon and the operations logistics command center in the Tri-Border Area [of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay].”“Treasury Targets Senior Hizballah Operative for Perpetrating and Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Western Hemisphere,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, July 19, 2019, https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm737. The State Department’s Rewards for Justice program also offered a reward of up to $7 million for information leading to Salman’s capture.“Reward Offer for Information on Hizballah Key Leader Salman Raouf Salman,” U.S. Department of State, July 19, 2019, https://2017-2021.state.gov/reward-offer-for-information-on-hizballah-key-leader-salman-raouf-salman//index.html.

Following the July 1994 attack, Salman fled the region but continued to direct the ESO’s activities in South America as well as Southeast Asia. Salman was Hezbollah’s handler for the U.S.-designated Mohammed Hamdar, whom Peruvian authorities arrested in October 2014 for planning terror attacks against Israeli targets in Peru. Hamdar identified Salman as his point of contact after his arrest.“Treasury Targets Senior Hizballah Operative for Perpetrating and Plotting Terrorist Attacks in the Western Hemisphere,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, July 19, 2019, https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm737. Salman also allegedly supervised Hezbollah financier and Venezuelan-Lebanese dual national Abdala Rada Ramel, suspected of running a drug-trafficking and contraband-smuggling ring in Colombia. Ramel identified Salman as his supervisor during interrogation.Joseph M. Humire, “The Maduro-Hezbollah Nexus: How Iran-backed Networks Prop up the Venezuelan Regime,” Atlantic Council, October 7, 2020, https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/issue-brief/the-maduro-hezbollah-nexus-how-iran-backed-networks-prop-up-the-venezuelan-regime. Salman reportedly continued his activities with Hezbollah from Lebanon, but authorities are uncertain of his specific location in the Middle East.John Fritze and David Jackson, “Trump takes aim at Iran with new sanctions on Hezbollah member Salman Raouf Salman,” USA Today, July 19, 2019, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/07/19/trump-takes-aim-iran-sanctions-hezbollah-member-salman/1775998001/.