The Dirty War () is the name used by the military junta or civic-military dictatorship of Argentina () for the period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983 as a part of Operation Condor, during which military and security forces and death squads in the form of the Argentine Anticommunist Alliance (AAA, or Triple A) hunted down any political dissidents and anyone believed to be associated with socialism, left-wing Peronism, or the Montoneros movement.
It is estimated that between 9,000 and 30,000 people were killed or disappeared, many of whom were impossible to formally document due to the nature of state terrorism. The primary target, like in many other South American countries participating in Operation Condor, were communist guerrillas and sympathisers, but the target of Operation Condor also included students, militants, trade unionists, writers, journalists, artists and any citizens suspected of being left-wing activists. The disappeared included those thought to be a political or ideological threat to the junta, even vaguely, or those seen as antithetical to the neoliberal economic policies dictated by Operation Condor. All were killed in an attempt by the junta to silence social and political opposition.
By the 1980s, economic collapse, public discontent, and the disastrous handling of the Falklands War, resulted in the end of the Junta and the restoration of democracy in Argentina, effectively ending the Dirty War. Many members of the junta are currently in prison for crimes against humanity and genocide. The Dirty War left a profound impact on Argentine culture, which is still felt to this day.
Overview
In the decades before the 1976 coup, the Argentine military, supported by the Argentine establishment, opposed Juan Perón's populist government and attempted a coup in 1951 before succeeding in 1955 with the Revolución Libertadora. After taking control, the armed forces proscribed Peronism, a decision that triggered the organization of Peronist resistance in workplaces and trade unions, as the working classes sought to protect the economic and social improvements obtained under Perón's rule. Over time, as democratic rule was partially restored, but promises of legalizing the expression and political liberties for Peronism were not respected, guerrilla groups began to operate in the 1960s, namely Uturuncos and the EGP (People's Guerrilla Army). Both were small and quickly defeated.
As Perón returned from exile in 1973, the Ezeiza massacre marked the end of the alliance between left- and right-wing factions of Peronism. In 1974, Perón withdrew his support for Montoneros shortly before his death. By the time his widow Isabel was president, the Minister of Social Welfare José López Rega had already organized the far-right death squad known as Argentine Anticommunist Alliance (AAA, or Triple A). In 1975, during Operativo Independencia, Isabel Perón and later her replacement Ítalo Lúder signed four decrees empowering the military and the police to "annihilate" left-wing "subversive elements". In March 1976, the Perón government was overthrown as a part of Operation Condor by a military coup led by General Jorge Rafael Videla.