You're reading: Bulgaria releases image of suicide bomber

SOFIA, Bulgaria — Bulgarian police on Wednesday released a computer-generated image of the suicide attacker involved in the bombing in Bulgaria that killed five Israeli tourists and a Bulgarian bus driver two weeks ago.

A
police statement said the image of the dark-haired man was produced
after reconstructing the badly damaged face of the bomber, who was
decapitated in the explosion at a popular vacation resort on July 18.

The
photo was sent to partner services for possible identification after
fingerprints and DNA samples taken from the bomber did not match
anything in international databases, said Interior Minister Tsvetan
Tsvetanov.

He told reporters the explosives were attached to the
bomber’s back. Earlier reports had said the bag of explosive was placed
in the luggage compartment of a bus the tourists were traveling in at
Burgas airport.

Investigators, who had found only the bomber’s head and limbs, also were suggesting the bomb had been attached to his torso.

Tsvetanov said the attacker had spent “at least 20 days in Bulgaria ahead of the bombing.”

Last
week, Prime Minister Boiko Borisov said a sophisticated group of
conspirators was involved in the bombing at the Black Sea resort town.

Israel
has blamed the attack on Iran and its proxy groups, including the
Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Iran has denied responsibility, and
Bulgarian authorities have not blamed any particular group.