Argentina Removes Federal Judge Over Posts Calling Jews “Rats”

A federal judge in Argentina, Alfredo López of the court in the city of Mar del Plata, was removed from his position after a jury from the Judicial Council determined that he had posted a series of antisemitic statements on social media. Argentina’s newspaper La Nación reported the news today (Wednesday).

López tried to prevent criminal prosecution, as announced by Argentina’s prosecutors, and submitted a resignation letter in an effort to end the disciplinary proceedings against him. Argentine President Javier Milei ordered that the letter not be accepted and instructed federal prosecutors to continue the criminal proceedings against the removed judge.

The disciplinary case was based on 15 posts published by López, in which he referred to Jews, among other things, as “rats.” He spread messages that the jury viewed as incitement to violence and discrimination. In one post, alongside a photo of Argentina’s Chief Rabbi, Eliyahu Hamra, López wrote: “Will they use the Torah or the national constitution?” In doing so, he implied that Jews were not loyal to Argentina’s constitution.

The jury was headed by Judge Marcelo Gastón Bartolomé Romero and included another judge, four senators, and a representative of the Bar Association. The complaint against López was filed by the Delegation of Argentine Jewish Associations (DAIA), the organization’s vice president Sabrina Ajmechet, who also serves as president of the Argentine Forum Against Antisemitism, as well as attorneys Yamil Santoro and José Magioncalda.

In its decision, the Judicial Council stated that López’s remarks “failed to recognize the equal rights of the Jewish community in Argentina” and constituted an attempt to cause discrimination against an entire public.