Court strips Pinochet of immunity in human rights case
The decision by the Santiago Court of Appeals, and announced by its president Juan Escobar, can be appealed before the Supreme Court.
But Pinochet's lawyer, Pablo Rodriguez, did not immediately announce his plans.
The court's 11-10 decision yesterday is linked to charges stemming from the 1975 killing of 119 dissidents, whose bodies were found in neighbouring Argentina.
It was the fourth time Pinochet, who faces numerous lawsuits on human rights grounds, has been stripped of his immunity.
Two of the cases were blocked by courts citing the 89-year-old dictator's failing health while two more, including the current case, are pending.
Pinochet's regime claimed the dissidents were killed in clashes in Argentina involving rival groups opposed to his regime.
To support its claim, the regime cited a report in an Argentine magazine named Lea which published details of the alleged clashes and the names of the victims.
But the only issue of the magazine to have ever been published was the one listing the Chilean victims in what came to be known as "Operation Colombo."
A report prepared by an independent commission for the civilian government that succeeded Pinochet who ruled from 1973 to 1990 said 3,197 people died or disappeared during his 17-year regime.
The decision was the latest legal blow for the ailing former dictator.
Last month, the same court also stripped him of his immunity in a tax evasion case stemming from multi-million-dollar bank accounts he held in the United States, as disclosed by a US Senate investigative committee.
The courts here have cited Pinochet's health twice in blocking his trial on charges of human rights abuses.
According to his doctors, Pinochet has suffered several mild strokes, the latest last month, and has been diagnosed with a mild case of dementia.
He also suffers from diabetes, arthritis and has a pacemaker.
His opponents claim he exaggerates his health problems to escape trial.
