Accomplice sought in Bulgarian bombing: Jewish organizations react

By Alina Dain Sharon and Jacob Kamaras/JNS.org

The bodies of five Israelis slain in Bulgaria July 18 are carried by Israeli soldiers at a ceremony after the bodies arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport early Friday morning, July 20.

Credit: Amos Ben Gershom/GPO/FLASH90.

The identity of a suicide bomber with a fake U.S. passport who exploded a bus full of Israeli tourists in the Bulgarian

city of Burgas July 18 — killing five Israelis and injuring more than 30 — has yet to be confirmed.

The Israeli victims — Itzik Colangi, 28, Amir Menashe, 28, Maor Harosh, 25, Elior Price, 26, and Kochava Shriki, 44 — were buried in Israel July 20.

U.S. officials say the suicide bomber was a member of the Iran-funded Hezbollah terrorist organization, the New York Times reported, corresponding with initial statements about the perpetrator by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Bulgarian security forces, Israeli intelligence officers and CIA agents are also on the hunt for an accomplice suspected of helping the bomber. On Saturday, Bulgarian police distributed a police composite sketch of the suspect to hotels in Burgas and in the surrounding area, Israel Hayom reported. The authorities suspect that the accomplice has ties to Hezbollah.

Bulgarian media reported over the weekend that the suspected accomplice was an American citizen going by the name of David Jepson. One possible scenario is that the explosive device carried by the terrorist, which weighed about 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds), was activated remotely by the accomplice and that the terrorist himself did not know he was going to explode.

According to reports, the accomplice was still in Bulgaria, but this has not been confirmed by the authorities. Other reports indicated that a Hezbollah cell involved in the attack had subsequently fled Bulgaria across the Turkish border.

Immediately after the attack, rescue organizations flocked to Bulgaria in order to bring the injured Israelis back home.

“Our goal was to bring the injured back home as quickly as possible. And we did everything we could from the moment we were notified of the event to achieve this,” Eli Bin, the director-general of Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel’s affiliate to the International Red Cross, said in a phone interview with JNS.org.

The bomber’s explosives were placed in the back of the bus, said Burgas Mayor Dimitar Nikolov, and witness Gal Malka said that she saw someone board the bus right before the explosion, according to the Jerusalem Post.

In addition to the six Israelis who were killed, the Bulgarian bus driver and the suicide bomber died in the attack. The Jewish Agency for Israel’s (JAFI) Fund for the Victims of Terror will provide financial assistance to the wounded Israelis and the families of those killed, the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)—which contributes to that fund—announced Thursday.

Kathy Manning, chair of the JFNA board of trustees, said in a statement that the umbrella organization stands “shoulder to shoulder with all of the Jewish people in condemning this horrific act of violence.”

Barry Spielman, JAFI’s director of communications for North America, told JNS.org that the organization’s fund for terror victims provides assistance “beyond what [victims are] going to get from the [Israeli] government].” This includes funding for needs such as medical equipment, furniture and rent, as well as “mental support” entailing visits by fund representatives to the homes of mourners and the hospitals where injured victims are staying. Since its establishment in 2002, the fund has

disbursed more than 100 million shekels to victims of terror and their families.

The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) said its Bulgaria staff “is working closely with the Bulgarian Jewish community, assessing the steps to be taken in the wake of this tragic event.”

“As the Bulgarian and Israeli government’s emergency response quickly took care of the Israeli casualties of the attack and evacuated them to safety, JDC is focusing on the future well-being of the local Bulgarian Jewish community, in concert with the local leadership,” JDC said in a statement.

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