Federal Judge Ariel Lijo has indicted ex-president Carlos Menem and former Judge Juan José Galeano for having obstructed the investigation into the AMIA terrorist bombing. Lijo also slapped a 300,000-peso freeze on the assets of the accused.

The magistrate also prosecuted former police officer Jorge ‘Fino' Palacios and the former head of the SIDE intelligence office Hugo Anzorregui. The former officials of the Menem administration are suspected of having obstructed the probe into the actions Syrians and Iranian links to the 1994 bombing in which 85 people died. Palacios was the candidate of the Mauricio Macri administration to become the head of the City Metropolitan police.

Menem and his brother Munir Menem are charged with covering up and destroying evidence in the probe, as well as abusing their authority to obstruct the actions of the judiciary.

In the writ signed by Lijo substantiating the indictments, the magistrate said the Menem brothers had "a determining influence" in the judicial process formerly led by Galeano, forcing the judiciary to backpedal raids at apartments of the Kanoore Edul family, which are believed to have organized the operation. The courts suspect Kanoore Edul followed orders from Iranian officials, who allegedly masterminded the operation.

Galeano is meanwhile charged with covering up, abusing the authority and destroying evidence.Alberto Nisman, the prosecutor currently leading the investigation, celebrated the decision of Judge Lijo and said "justice is coming in spite of time, and (the investigation) is providing answers to the families of the victims."

"This explains why the investigation took so long," Nisman added.