DHAKA: Former Argentine junta leader Reynaldo Bignone has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for crimes committed under Operation Condor a plot between South America's dictators.

Bignone and 14 other military officers were found guilty by a court in Argentina after a three-year trial, BBC reports on Saturday (May 28).

Many left-wing activists were kidnapped and killed in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Bolivia.

Earlier, Operation Condor was secretly launched in the 1970s.

South American states colluded to crack down on left-wing opponents
Judges at the court in Buenos Aires announced the sentencing of Bignone, Argentina's last dictator, on Friday.

Former Uruguayan Col Manuel Cordero the only non-Argentine defendant - was jailed for 25 years.

The judges are continuing to deliberate the sentencing of the rest of the former military officers.

Since the trial started in 2013, five defendants, including Jorge Rafael Videla, the head of Argentina's junta during its first three years, have died.

BDST: 0908 HRS, May 28, 2016
SAS/AKA