Who is Reynaldo Bignone & What is Operation Condor? One Minute To Midnight Episode 13

On the 27th of May Judges at a court in Buenos Aires sentenced Reynaldo Bignone for his role in Operation Condor, an international military operation set up to torture and assassinate leftist and anti-government dissidents in nine South American countries in the 1970s and 80s. The ruling is important because it is the first time Condor has been proved in court. Bignone was the president of Argentina from July the 1st 1982 until December 10th 1983, serving as the last head of a military junta that had ruled Argentina since a coup d’état overthrew democratically elected Isabel Perón on 24th March 1976. Towards the end of his rule Bignone helped facilitate transition back to democracy, but his role in the previous regime saw him responsible for thousands or deaths. Sources: Archivo histórico: Galtieri - Cadena nacional - Respuesta a Gran Bretaña - 01-05-1982 - TV Pública Argentina Argentina - State Of Siege - THIS WEEK – Thames TV Discurso de Bignone a horas de las elecciones, 1983 - Prisma Former Argentinian dictator arrested for human rights abuses - AP 31 3 76 Jorge Videla installed as president of Argentina in Buenas Aires - Synd 78 - La presidencia de Alfonsín (1983 - 1989) Política (1/2) (Canal Encuentro) - ProfeLBB Argentine Surrender Falklands War 1982 – Cold War Warrios Correction: Argentina-Operation Condor-Glance story - AP Latin America in the 1970s: “Operation Condor“, an International Organization for Kidnapping Opponents – L’Humanite Operation Condor: Reynaldo Bignone found guilty – Al Jazeera Operation Condor: Former Argentine junta leader jailed - BBC Argentina’s last military dictator jailed for role in international death squad – The Guardian Exposing the Legacy of Operation Condor - NYT Argentina sentences former military dictator Bignone to 23 years in prison – The Globe & Mail Operation Condor Trial Tackles Coordinated Campaign By Latin American Dictatorships To Kill Leftists – Democracy Now Asunción de Bignone, 1982 - Prisma Argentina Dirty War crimes Reynaldo Bignone sentenced to life – BBC Life sentence for ex-Argentina leader - Al Jazeera English Operation Condor: Argentina’s ex-junta leader jailed - Euronews Operation Condor Argentine former junta leader jailed BBC News Families of the disappeared await Plan Condor trial ruling - Reuters 15 convicted in ’Operation Condor’ trial in Argentina - CCTV America