The key facts
- Bulgaria's national security agency confirmed an arson attack on Starlink antennas near Sofia; the site is listed as strategically important.
- Opposition politician Ivaylo Mirchev claims two masked men burned 11 of 17 antennas and suggests Russia may be behind it.
- A similar arson occurred in Poland in late September, which Warsaw blamed on Russian intelligence services.
This was reported by agency head Plamen Tonchev at a session of the country's parliament. According to him, the perpetrators managed to enter the facility through a hole in the fence. The Starlink facility is included in the list of strategic sites important for national security, Tonchev noted.
According to the newspaper Dnevnik, the Starlink antennas are located at a site in the village of Plana, about 40 km from Sofia.
Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev, at the same session, denied reports that the intelligence services had prior information about the planned attack on Starlink, as opposition politician Ivaylo Mirchev had claimed.
It was Mirchev who first reported the incident on the evening of October 12. He claims that two masked men set fire to 11 of the 17 Starlink antennas at the site. During his speech in parliament on Wednesday, he suggested that Russia might be behind the incident.
This is not the first arson attack on Starlink facilities in Europe in recent weeks.
The previous one occurred in late September in Poland; Warsaw later stated that "Russian intelligence services are undoubtedly behind this act of sabotage." On October 12, two Turkish citizens allegedly involved in the incident in Poland were detained in Germany.
Bulgarian authorities have not yet stated whom they consider responsible for the arson.
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