Argentina removes judge over antisemitic posts in historic first

An Argentine federal judge has been removed from office after repeatedly posting antisemitic and anti-Israel content on social media, marking what is reportedly the first time a judge in Argentina has been removed from office over antisemitism.

Federal Judge Alfredo Eugenio López, who headed a federal court in the city of Mar del Plata, was removed Tuesday after posting content that called Jews “a brood of vipers,” described Israel as a “fictitious state” and used the words “Zionist” and “gay” as slurs.

An Argentine judicial panel assessed that López committed acts of “discrimination and the denial of equal rights against the Argentine Jewish community. For the purposes of these proceedings, it is particularly significant that, by acting in this manner, he shattered public confidence in his continued fitness to administer justice impartially.”

Alberto Maques, a member of the panel, explained the historic decision during a live interview with local A24 news channel.

“He was removed because he simply would not stop engaging in hate speech,” Maques stated Tuesday.

“It is absolutely disgraceful for a federal judge to engage in this kind of conduct,” the jury member emphasized.

The judge had a history of antisemitic incidents and faced multiple complaints before his removal. Delegación de Asociaciones Israelitas Argentinas (DAIA), Argentina’s Jewish umbrella organization, filed the first complaint against López in February 2025.

A month later, the Argentine Forum Against Antisemitism filed a second complaint, followed by a third complaint from Yamil Santoro of the Apolo Foundation in July 2025.

López defended his social media posts by claiming they were “subjective and decontextualized interpretations of exchanges on social media, which in no way affect the administration of justice or his impartiality.”

The panel rejected his argument. Maques revealed that, in addition to the 15 social media posts López acknowledged, there were more than 50 other posts in which the judge said: “outrageous things that are not worth repeating because they truly constituted hate speech.”

Prosecutors in the impeachment proceedings said López’s posts demonstrated systematic hostility toward Jews, Zionism and the State of Israel.

DAIA welcomed the panel’s landmark ruling.

“No position of authority can shield hatred. This is not a matter of punishing an opinion. It is about sanctioning repeated conduct involving antisemitism, hostility and dehumanization, conduct incompatible with the impartiality, dignity and public trust required of the judiciary,” the Jewish umbrella organization said in an official statement.

“This case sets a precedent: for the first time in more than a century, DAIA initiated proceedings of this nature against a judge. No office is above democracy,” the organization added.

Argentina is home to South America’s largest Jewish community, with approximately 200,000 Jews, most of whom live in the capital Buenos Aires. As in many countries around the world, antisemitic incidents increased in Argentina following the Hamas Oct. 7, 2023, massacre of 1,200 Israelis.

Antisemitic incidents in Argentina increased by almost 20% in 2025 compared to 2023, according to a 2025 Annual Report on Antisemitism released last month.

At the same time, relations between Argentina and Israel have improved significantly under pro-Israel Argentine President Javier Milei.

Milei’s administration has strongly condemned the Hamas Oct. 7 atrocities and backed Israel’s right to defend itself against enemies seeking the country’s destruction.

In April, Milei and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed the “Isaac Accords” to strengthen Argentine-Israeli relations during a ceremony in Jerusalem.

The countries also agreed to expand cooperation in artificial intelligence and counterterrorism and to launch direct flights between Israel and Argentina.