A Mar del Plata court sentenced 28 former military personnel to life in prison for crimes against humanity committed during Argentina's last dictatorship (1976-1983) after a trial that lasted two years.

Prosecuting attorney Gloria Leon said: "The sentences were decided unanimously. This is the first trial in which the complete situation was analyzed, that is, the repression committed by the Navy, the Army, the Argentine Naval Prefecture, and the Buenos Aires Police."

The judges' ruling was read without public due to the social isolation measures imposed to counter the coronavirus pandemic.

The mandatory quarantine prevented the relatives of the victims of the military repression from attending the final hearing in a trial against 40 former military personnel who were accused of 272 crimes, including enforced disappearance, torture, and rape.