SHAFAQNA (Shia News Association) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed Iran today after a bus carrying at least 40 Israeli tourists exploded at a Bulgarian resort, killing a number of people.
Bulgarian television has said the death toll stands at seven, with more than 20 injured. Other news agencies have put the death toll at three or four.
The explosion took place in the Black Sea city of Burgas, some 400 kilometres east of the capital, Sofia.
There are conflicting reports about the cause of the blast, although officials have confirmed it was a bomb. Some witnesses said they saw a suicide bomber step on to a bus, while others said they saw someone put a bomb in the bus’s storage area.
Gal Malka told Israel’s Channel 2 TV that she saw someone board the bus just before it exploded. Malka, who was hurt, said the bus was full of Israeli teenagers. “We were at the entrance of the bus and in a few seconds we heard a huge boom,” she said.
Netanyahu said “all signs point to Iran” as behind the attack.
“Just in the last few months, we saw Iran attempting to hurt Israelis in Thailand, India, Georgia, Kenya, Cyprus and other countries. Exactly 18 years after the infernal terror attack in the Jewish community center in Argentina, the murderous terror of the Iranians continues to hurt innocent people. This is a terrorist Iranian aggression revealing itself all over the world. Israel will respond forcefully to the Iranian terror,” he said.
According to CNN, Netanyahu was holding a meeting with security advisers Wednesday night on Israel’s response.
Bulgarian news websites said as many as three buses caught on fire at Sarafovo Airport following the explosion.— www.shafaqna.com/english/
