Iran denies role in Bulgaria bus bombing
Iranian ambassador to Bulgaria denies Israeli accusations that his country was involved in July attack that killed five.
Iran played no part in the bombing of a bus last year that killed Israeli tourists, its ambassador to Bulgaria has said, rejecting Israeli charges that it was involved in the attack.
Bulgaria has accused Lebanon-based Hezbollah of carrying out the July attack, a charge the group has dismissed as being part of a smear campaign by its arch foe Israel.
“This [the attack] has nothing to do with Iran,” Gholamreza Bageri told reporters in Sofia on Friday. “We are against any form of terrorism and strongly condemn such actions.”
Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, this week accused Hezbollah and Iran of waging a “global terror campaign” after the attack in Burgas, which killed five Israeli tourists, their Bulgarian driver and the bomber.
Bulgarian investigators have said they have found no evidence tying Iran to the July 18, 2012, attack.
Tehran denied involvement even before Bulgaria announced its findings, but Hezbollah has made no comment.
Given the link to an attack on European Union soil, Brussels is considering adding Hezbollah – which is part of the Lebanese government and waged a brief war with Israel in 2006 – to its list of “terrorist organisations”.
The United States already lists Hezbollah as a “terrorist” group and US and Israeli authorities want the European Union to take a similar position, which would mean Brussels could act to freeze the group’s assets in Europe.