Mr. Videla, 85, is considered to have been the main force behind the violence known as the dirty war that included the forced disappearances of up to an estimated 30,000 people through 1983. In April, Argentina’s Supreme Court overturned a 1990 pardon for Mr. Videla and other military men involved in the dictatorship, paving the way for him to be tried for murder, kidnapping and torture, in the case that led to Wednesday’s sentence.
He was sentenced to life in prison in 1985 after another trial, in which he was convicted of murder, torture and other crimes. On Tuesday Mr. Videla told the court that “yesterday’s enemies are in power and from there, they are trying to establish a Marxist regime.”
