Argentina’s former president, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, went on trial on Thursday over allegations of bribery linked to public works contracts awarded during her time in office.
The high-profile corruption case, widely known as the “Notebooks” scandal, accuses Fernández and 86 other former officials of taking part in a vast network that allegedly received bribes from businessmen in return for lucrative state contracts. Fernández has denied any wrongdoing.
“Today another show trial begins,” she wrote on X. “They need to keep this judicial operetta alive to maintain pressure and, above all, to distract attention.”
Fernández, a divisive left-wing figure who served two terms as president between 2007 and 2015 — and later as vice president, senator and first lady — has been under house arrest since June following a separate fraud conviction.
Prosecutors began reading the indictment on Thursday, marking the opening stage of a trial expected to run until the end of the year. A final verdict may take years due to likely appeals.
The case dates back to 2018, when notebooks kept by a former official’s driver surfaced, documenting alleged cash deliveries and meetings. Witnesses have implicated both Fernández and her late husband, former president Néstor Kirchner (2003–2007), as key figures in the scheme.
Among the defendants are former ministers and senior executives from leading firms in construction, energy, and transport. Several business leaders have cooperated as “repentants” in exchange for leniency, describing a kickback system allegedly used to fund the Peronist movement.
The trial is being held virtually via Zoom.
The proceedings come amid political turbulence for Argentina’s left. Just last week, President Javier Milei’s libertarian party scored a decisive win in midterm legislative elections, bolstering his mandate to push ahead with sweeping economic reforms.
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Chinese travellers made an estimated 362.58 million cross-regional passenger trips on Monday, the final day of the Spring Festival holiday, according to official data.
Thousands of people gathered across Europe and beyond over the weekend in solidarity with Ukraine, as the war with Russia entered its fifth year.
A powerful winter storm has brought large parts of the U.S. Northeast to a standstill, dumping more than a foot of snow across several states and severely disrupting transport and daily life.
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan said on Monday it had received “credible reports” that at least 13 civilians were killed and seven others injured in overnight Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan.
Pakistan said it carried out cross-border strikes on militant targets inside Afghanistan after blaming a series of recent suicide bombings, including attacks during the holy month of Ramadan, on fighters it said were operating from Afghan territory.
Italy said a fond farewell to the Winter Olympics on Sunday with an open-air ceremony in the ancient Verona Arena that celebrated art and sporting achievement at a Games lauded as a model for how to stage such events.
The United States and Iran will hold a new round of nuclear negotiations in Geneva on Thursday as part of renewed diplomatic efforts to reach a potential agreement, Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi announced on Sunday.
Islamic State claimed two attacks on Syrian army personnel on Saturday (22 February), saying they marked the start of a new phase of operations against the country’s leadership under President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
Further Iran-U.S. nuclear talks are scheduled in Geneva on Thursday (26 February) as diplomacy resumes over Tehran’s nuclear programme following earlier mediation efforts. But will the talks move Iran-U.S. negotiations closer to a deal, and what should be expected from the meeting?
Chinese travellers made an estimated 362.58 million cross-regional passenger trips on Monday, the final day of the Spring Festival holiday, according to official data.
Thousands of people gathered across Europe and beyond over the weekend in solidarity with Ukraine, as the war with Russia entered its fifth year.
A powerful winter storm has brought large parts of the U.S. Northeast to a standstill, dumping more than a foot of snow across several states and severely disrupting transport and daily life.
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan said on Monday it had received “credible reports” that at least 13 civilians were killed and seven others injured in overnight Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan.
The former British ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson has been arrested by police in London on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
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