Bulgaria has identified a dual Lebanese-French citizen as the alleged culprit in the suicide bombing of a bus containing Israeli tourists two years ago.
A new report tying Hezbollah to the airport terror attack in Bulgaria is giving the US and Jewish groups leverage to force Europe to act.
A correspondent for the Financial Times apologized for suggesting that Israel may have bribed Bulgaria to frame Hezbollah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed on Tuesday a Bulgarian report linking Hezbollah to a fatal bus bombing, saying the Lebanese militant group and its ally Iran were waging a “global terror campaign”.
Gareth Porter on the bombing of an Israeli tourist bus in Bulgaria and the political response in which Netanyahu accuses Iran, and Iran accuses Israel, of being behind terrorist attack.
Israel has evidence of many telephone calls between Lebanon and Burgas in the two months before the bombing that killed six people, the New York Times reported.
The Belgian Jewish community was shocked after the Burgas bombing and there is a feeling this never ending story will not stop from getting worse. Since Toulouse and Mohamed Merah, 2012 has seen a rise in anti-Semitism not only all over Europe but also across the world. But in Belgium, this worsening situation has not really changed the condition of the Jewish community regarding security precautions. Belgian Jews would like strong anti-terrorist legislations not only to be introduced but also to be applied by the authorities. Although the contact with the authorities has been strengthened, the Belgian Jewish community believes the State can do more regarding protection measures. Nevertheless, Jews are doing everything they can to improve their own security like they have always done in the past. Apart from fear and security demands, the Burgas bombing has also reminded everyone of all the terrible events suffered by the Jewish community all over the world since the beginning of the year and throughout history. A minute of silence in memory of the Burgas victims took place in Brussels last week before the official start of the Olympic Games. This highly symbolic act was also to pay tribute to all the Jewish victims of terrorism such as the 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team who were killed in 1972 in Munich by Palestinian terrorists. The Belgian authorities have worked over the last few months on better security for the country’s citizens. All the European authorities …
Seven people including 5 Israeli tourists were killed last Wednesday in the bombing of an Israeli tourist bus at the airport of Burgas in Eastern Bulgaria. This attack is said to have been carried out by a male suicide bomber who also injured more than 30 people. The bodies of the Israeli victims, four men and a pregnant woman, were flown to Tel Aviv on Thursday night and the funerals have already been held. The Belgian Jewish community is stunned by this attack which, to a certain extent, a few days before the 2012 London Olympics, reminds people of Munich 1972 when 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team were murdered by Palestinian terrorists. Bulgaria is a popular tourist destination for Israelis. But it is said that last January Israel asked Bulgaria to strengthen security measures for Israeli tourists travelling by bus after a suspicious package was discovered in a bus with Israelis, going from Turkey to Bulgaria. The bombing last Wednesday demonstrates safety precautions are not always sufficient to fight against terrorism. In Belgium, the Jewish community fears other attacks of this kind will be carried out in the future. Several attempted attacks on Israeli targets recently ocurred in India, Thailand, Azerbaijan, Kenya and Cyprus. According to Israeli officials, last Wednesday’s bombing beared a resemblance to these attempts. Iran and Hezbollah are fingered for the bombing in Bulgaria by a part of the Jewish community in Brussels and across Europe. Israel blames …
Thousands of Israelis are mourning for the victims of a suicide bombing attack on a bus carrying Israeli tourists, in the Bulgarian seaside resort of Burgas. The funerals of Itzik Idan Kolengi and Amir Menashe were laid to rest at Petah Tikva’s Segula Cemetery. At the Nahalat Asher Cemetery Maor Harush, 24 and his friend Elior Priess were laid to rest by their distraught next of kin. Kochava Shriki, 42, was buried in the Rishon Lezion Cemetery by scores of family, friends and neighbours. In heart-breaking scenes inconsolable relatives paid their last respects to their brethren. David Kolengi, Itzik Kolengi’s brother vowed “I will never forget you. I promise you that the family and I will take care of your wife, Gilat, and your daughter” Kochava Shriki had only told her sister just moments before her death that she was pregnant. Shriki’s husband, Yitzhak, searched for her for hours after the explosion at Burgas Airport separated them. The couple had been sitting together on the bus, but while Yitzhak had miraculously escaped serious injury his wife had taken the full force of the bomb. Meanwhile Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hinted at Iran’s involvement in the terror act describing the attack as “a response” to Israeli “blows against Iran.” Israel has vowed an appropriate response.
In the wake of Wednesday’s terrorist attack in Bulgaria that killed five Israeli’s INTERPOL officers have arrived to the Burgas airport to assist local authorities in finding answers to unanswered questions, including the identity of the suicide bomber. While the Burgas airport has reopened and normal activities have slowly stated to resume, vacationing Israelis in Bulgaria say are moving on from their grief and that the terror attack will not deter them from returning to their favourite holiday spot. Israeli tourist Josef: “We were staying in the hotel all of the two days. Now it’s time to go out. We have another two days. We want to go out and clear our heads. And believe me, it will be one week that Israeli tourists won’t come here but after one week, they will come here, everything will be good. And we’re having fun.” Israeli tourist Audi: “After one week, we have to go to work, so we have to enjoy until the end. No matter what happens. I told them (friends) OK, so let’s try to bring some new smile, so we go and have fun. But it’s still here, we’re sad.” A local Chabad Lubavitcher rabbi believes the attack, which Israel has blamed on Iran’s proxy Hezbollah, won’t deter future Jewish holidaymakers. Rabbi Chaim Tvardovich: “Israelis are going to keep on coming here. The Bulgarians are very friendly, plus when I meet people, they say how sorry they are about the incident. And we also met with the Bulgarian president who also gave his condolences to the Israeli people …