Bulgaria urges caution on travel to Israel as military operation continues
In a statement on August 6, Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry called on the country’s citizens to limit or postpone their trips to Israel if possible, given the situation after the beginning of the Israeli military’s anti-terrorist Operation Breaking Dawn.
The operation is expected to continue into next week, Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry said.
It said that those who are already in Israel should refrain from going to its southern part or near the Gaza Strip.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that Operation Breaking Dawn is a response to a real and imminent terrorist threat on Israeli civilians, a terrorist threat backed by Iran.
“The IDF (Israel Defence Forces) continues to target Islamic Jihad terrorists as necessary to stop the indiscriminate rocket fire on civilians and end this threat,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said.
The IDF said on Twitter on August 5 that it had launched the operation because of the “imminent threat of attack against Israeli civilians posed by the Islamic Jihad terrorist organisation in Gaza”.
The EU’s foreign policy arm, the European External Action Service (EEAS), said on August 6: “The European Union follows with great concern the latest developments in and around Gaza, where the ongoing escalation has already led to a number of casualties, with number of people killed, including civilians and a five year old Palestinian girl, and over 80 injured.”
The EU calls for maximum restraint on all sides in order to avoid a further escalation and further casualties, the EEAS said.
“While Israel has the right to protect its civilian population, everything must be done to prevent a broader conflict, which would, first and foremost, affect the civilian populations on both sides and result in further casualties and more suffering,” the EEAS said.
“These latest events highlight yet again the need to restore a political horizon and to ensure a sustainable situation in Gaza,” it said.
(Photo: Bulgarian Foreign Ministry)
