‘Narco-terrorists’ make death threats against security minister, governor

Argentina's Security Minister Patricia Bullrich on Monday blamed “narco-terrorists” for the release of a video in which she and a provincial governor were threatened by masked gang-members.

In the video, which circulated widely on social media, four hooded men carrying guns threaten Bullrich and Santa Fe Province Governor Maximiliano Pullaro. 

Among the weapons seen in the video are submachine guns, Glock pistols, a FN-FAL battle rifle and 12-gauge shotgun.

“This video is for you Pullaro and Bullrich ... we are going to leave dead people all over the capital of Buenos Aires and Santa Fe,” says one voice. 

“Do something for the kids, [so] they don't become delinquents. Make jobs, schools, stop playing politics with prisoners,” continues the voice in the message, which went viral online on Sunday night.

The Santa Fe provincial government announced Monday it would raise the region’s security alert level and reinforce protection for "sensitive targets" and members of the Judiciary in response to the threats.

Bullrich later told the TN news channel that they are investigating to identify the perpetrators, adding that cybersecurity specialists were involved in the efforts. 

“The attitude, the threats to the population and the way they communicate are narco-terrorist methods,” the minister said.

“That they are covered, locked up and that they have to give a threat in a video shows us their weakness and not their strength,” said Bullrich, a hard-line security hawk.

“We are working on the hypotheses of which gangs they may be,” she added.

‘Recently, we took out a very heavy gang from Buenos Aires Province to high-risk prisons, and we are working on that. We do not rule out, even if Pullaro is named, that it could be a gang from Buenos Aires Province,” she said, casting doubt over initial speculation that the threat may have come from Rosario, which has experienced heavy drug violence for years.

She vowed to ramp up security operations against “gangs and violence” and “drug crime” by reinforcing deployments in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Rosario, Córdoba, Mendoza and Tucumán.

Bullrich also implied that the threat was related to efforts to house high-risk prisoners in prisons “without privileges.” Her team has attempted to limit the ability of prisoners to communicate with the outside world and direct illegal operations behind bars.

She bullishly predicted a “calm” end to the year.

In a statement, President Javier Milei’s office bemoaned the video, saying it “aims to instil terror in the population and in the democratically elected authorities’.”

It said the perpetrators would be met with “the full weight of the law.”

“The Office of the President informs that today the Government of the Province of Santa Fe and the Ministry of Security of the Nation have received a video from an unidentified narco-terrorist organisation, threatening to kill Governor Pullaro, the Minister of Security, Dr. Patricia Bullrich and the Argentine people,” the communiqué read.

“Since the beginning of our administration, we have assumed the responsibility of implementing a new security doctrine: he who does it, pays for it,” it continued.

“The Office of the President reaffirms its position of zero tolerance towards terrorism and organised crime. We will go to the ultimate consequences to confront terrorism and guarantee the security of all Argentines,” it continued.

“We reaffirm our commitment to the security forces, the members of the national intelligence system, and our Armed Forces, who have our full support to confront this threat. We are working … to find these terrorists and bring them to justice,” concluded the statement.

The national government has provided special assistance for Rosario and Santa Fe Province, one of the most populated and violent areas of the country, in a bid to clamp down on drug-related violence.

– TIMES/AFP/PERFIL