270. The defense of the former judge Galeano appealed the procedure before the Federal Criminal Cassation Chamber. On October 31, 2007, the appeal for cassation was upheld and the parties were notified of the filing of the case. After a series of recusations by the magistrates of that court, on March 21, 2013 the intervening chamber was integrated. On August 14, 2013, Chamber II of the Federal Criminal Cassation Chamber rejected the cassation appeal.256 271. On the other hand, and with respect to the section of the investigation related to the cover-up of the socalled “Syrian/Kanoore Edul lead”, on March 30, 2012, the Federal Criminal and Correctional Court No. 4 concluded the investigatory phase and raised the case to oral trial, linking former judge Galeano, former president Carlos Menem, and various officials of the SIDE and the Federal Police to the proceedings 257. 272. Both segments were unified in the oral trial stage, which was held before the Federal Oral Court No. 2. The trial hearings began on August 6, 2015. On February 28, 2019 the Court rendered its verdict, imposing various prison sentences on eight of the accused and acquitting five others. On May 3, 2019, the grounds of the conviction were released. The TOF 2 decision was appealed by all parties and, at the time of the approval of this report, the case is before the Federal Criminal Cassation Chamber. 273. There is also another segment of the case due to acts of concealment that were committed in the framework of the Galeano investigation that has not yet been the subject of a merits decision. In this regard, the Commission has been informed of the fact that the national courts have not yet ruled on the criminal responsibility of a series of judicial officials, lawyers involved in the investigation into the attack, and ministers of the Executive Power during the 1990s258. ii) Investigation initiated by the complaint of the Prosecution Unit for the Investigation of the Attack at the AMIA dated January 13, 2015 274. On January 13, 2015, the then head of the UFI AMIA, Alberto Nisman, filed a criminal complaint with the Federal Criminal and Correctional Court No. 4 of the Federal Capital. In said document, Mr. Nisman assured that he was aware of the “existence of a criminal plan designed to provide impunity to the Iranian national defendants” accused in the AMIA case. These actions would have been carried out "by high authorities of the Argentine national government, with the collaboration of third parties." 275. According to the public information available to the Commission, at the date of approval of this report, the process initiated by Mr. Nisman's complaint is in the oral trial stage before the Federal Oral Criminal Court No. 8259. - Commission’s Considerations 276. As indicated above, seeing that the investigation was hampered as a result of the State's own actions, there is an accentuated obligation for the Argentine State to investigate and, where appropriate, punish all the delays, deviations, and irregularities that were committed by state agents who participated in the investigation and which have become factors of impunity in the case at hand. Said investigation must be undertaken in a serious and diligent manner, in such a way that it is possible to clarify what happened and determine the guilt or innocence of the people who are linked to such processes, within a reasonable period of time. 277. Next, the Commission will refer to the ongoing proceedings. When conducting said analysis, the Commission will take into account that, as the Court has stated, “in the face of acts that account for the Annex 15. Resolution of Chamber II of the Federal Criminal Cassation Chamber dated August 14, 2013. Annex 20 to the petitioner's communication dated November 11, 2019. 257 Annex 16. Order of elevation to oral trial issued by the Federal Criminal Investigative Court No. 4 dated March 30, 2012. Annex 19b to the petitioner's communication dated October 31, 2014. 258 Petitioner's communication dated November 11, 2019, pages 63 a 66. 259 See: https://www.cij.gov.ar/nota-30647-Se-realiz--una-audiencia-oral-y-p-blica-ante-la-C-mara-Federal-de-Casaci-n-Penal-en-lacausa-por-la-denuncia-de-Nisman-por-el-memor-ndum-con-Ir-n.html. 256 53