Bulgaria to Hand Over to Lebanon Report on Bus Attack, Seeks Help in Investigation
Bulgaria will hand over to Lebanese authorities a detailed report on investigations carried out over Burgas attack during the upcoming few days, the Bulgarian Embassy charge d'affaires said on Saturday.
“Lebanon will receive the report through diplomatic channels,” Plamen Tzolov told Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5).
Bulgaria also asked Lebanon, Australia, Canada, and Israel for help investigating the bombing.
"The investigation is entering a new stage: collect direct evidence on the perpetrators of the attack," a top ministry official, Kalin Gueorguiev, said Saturday.
"Requests regarding the criminal investigation have been sent to several countries including Canada, Australia and Israel," he told private Nova television.
Five Israeli tourists and their Bulgarian driver were killed in the bus bombing at Burgas airport on the Black Sea in July, the deadliest attack on Israelis abroad since 2004.
On Tuesday, Bulgaria formally blamed the attack on Hizbullah, triggering renewed pressure on the European Union to follow Canada, the United States and others in formally designating the movement a “terrorist group.”
“Bulgaria pledged to Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour that it will hand over all the useful information to aid Lebanon in discovering the truth,” Tzolov told the radio station.
He pointed out that the Lebanese state will be informed about the identities of the suspects via the report, which also includes the possible ways the state can help Bulgaria in this case.
The Bulgarian government said two people behind the attack held Canadian and Australian passports, but lived in Lebanon and were members of Hizbullah.
Canada has confirmed one of the suspects was a dual Canadian-Lebanese national and said it takes allegations of his involvement "very seriously."
“Investigations haven't ended yet,” the diplomat said.
Tzolov described the attack as a “hideous crime,” stressing that his country is keen to reveal those who are behind the attack.
The diplomat said in comments to the radio station that the cooperation treaty between Lebanon and Bulgaria in jurisdiction fields prompted his country “to consider submitting a request to Lebanese authorities to aid it in the case.”
However, he stated that the treaty doesn't stipulate that Lebanese authorities have to hand over the suspects.
Tzolov praised the stance taken by Prime Minister Najib Miqati who stressed that his government was "ready to cooperate with Bulgaria to shed light on the circumstances" of the attack.
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