Montonero, member of an Argentine left-wing Peronist group known for violent urban terrorist actions such as political kidnappings and assassinations. Primarily composed of young men and women of the middle class, the Montoneros were dedicated to the overthrow of the government in Argentina. They funded themselves through bank robberies and with the large ransoms paid to them for the release of their kidnap victims. In the early 1970s they also received funds from Cuba.
Founded as a militant fighting division by Gen. Juan Perón before his exile to Paraguay in 1955, the Montoneros remained active during his 18-year absence. After Perón returned to Argentina in 1973, however, he formed close links with right-wing groups and condemned the Montoneros. In response, they formed a revolutionary left wing and resorted to political violence on a large scale. The deep dissension between right-wing and left-wing Peronists continued after Perón’s death in 1974, and, until his widow’s overthrow in 1976, the Montoneros and other terrorist groups—such as the unaligned “People’s Revolutionary Army”—staged an unprecedented series of kidnappings and assassinations in Argentina.
The military government and right-wing terrorists brutally suppressed the Montoneros in the late 1970s. Many Montoneros “disappeared.” Several high-ranking members, including Montonero leader Mario Firmenich, were arrested and imprisoned but were later pardoned under Pres. Carlos Menem. Several former Montoneros and Montonero sympathizers served in government positions under Peronist Pres. Néstor Kirchner (served 2003–07).