Hezbollah Responsible For Burgas Attack

After an extensive investigation, the Bulgarian government has announced that Hezbollah was responsible for the terrorist attack that took place in the Black Sea resort of Burgas on July 18, 2012. Five Israeli tourists and their Bulgarian bus driver were killed in a bomb explosion that ripped through their bus. Over thirty Israelis were wounded.

Hezbollah Responsible For Burgas Attack

Hezbollah is a radical, Lebanon-based Shiite group supported by the Iranian government; it has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States and some other nations for its involvement in multiple acts of terror since it was founded in 1982.

Secretary of State John Kerry commended the government of Bulgaria for its “thorough and professional investigation,” and noted in a statement that its findings about the Burgas bombing are “clear and unequivocal: Lebanese Hezbollah was responsible for this deadly assault on European soil. We condemn Hezbollah for an attack which bears striking similarities to other disrupted plots of the last year,” said Secretary Kerry. “The United States is acting decisively and comprehensively to curtail Hezbollah’s destabilizing actions in Europe, Southeast Asia, South America, and the Middle East, and we are prepared to do all within our power to assist the Government of Bulgaria in bringing those responsible for the Burgas attack to justice.”

Secretary Kerry urged other governments -- “particularly our partners in Europe – to take immediate action to crack down on Hezbollah.”

John Brennan, President Barack Obama’s top counterterrorism advisor and nominee for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, said in a written statement that “Hezbollah’s dangerous and destabilizing activities –- from attacking tourists in foreign countries to leader Hassan Nasrallah’s active support of Bashar al Assad’s violent campaign against the Syrian people – threaten the safety and security of nations around the world.” Mr. Brennan called on “our European partners as well as other members of the international community to take proactive action to uncover Hezbollah’s infrastructure and disrupt the group’s financing and schemes and operational networks in order to prevent future attacks.”