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Argentine 'Dirty War' Officer to Face Trial in Spain


Spain's Supreme Court has ruled that a former Argentine naval officer accused of human rights abuses during his country's so-called "Dirty War" will stay in Spain to be tried.

The Spanish Supreme Court decision Wednesday annuls a lower court ruling that Ricardo Cavallo should face justice in Argentina.

Cavallo has been imprisoned in Spain since 2003, when he was extradited from Mexico and charged by Spanish authorities with genocide and terrorism.

Separately, the court earlier this month increased the prison sentence of Adolfo Scilingo, another former Argentine navy officer convicted of crimes against humanity and torture during the seven-year "Dirty War" against political opponents.

The court extended Scilingo's prison term from 640 years to 1,084. Scilingo, however, is expected to serve only a maximum of 25 years in prison.

Official estimates say some 13,000 people died or disappeared during the "Dirty War" era, which lasted from 1976 to 1983. Rights groups put the toll at 30,000.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.

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