Bulgaria has been hit by a new wave of bomb threats targeting public institutions, courts, hospitals and even commercial aircraft. A passenger plane arriving from Bergamo, Italy, was forced to land at Sofia’s Vasil Levski Airport after receiving an emailed bomb threat.
The incident was confirmed in Pernik by Lyubomir Nikolov, Bulgaria’s acting Chief Secretary of the Ministry of Interior.
Following the aircraft’s landing in Sofia, members of the Specialized Counterterrorism Unit immediately began a detailed inspection to determine whether an explosive device was on board.
“It is concerning that they have now started targeting some airlines as well, making it necessary to change aircraft routes and take appropriate measures,” Nikolov said.
He added that the Interior Ministry was checking all reported threats and that authorities were following established security protocols.
Nikolov stressed that there was currently no information indicating concrete terrorist intentions or planned attacks. However, security measures at airports have been strengthened, with authorities maintaining a heightened state of readiness.
Another flight diverted just one day earlier
The latest incident comes just one day after a flight from London to Sofia was diverted to Budapest following a similar threat. Authorities are still working to identify the sender of that message.
In previous cases, investigators found that the IP addresses associated with threatening emails had been registered in other European countries.
Earlier, on October 18, another aircraft traveling from Tel Aviv to Vienna was forced to land in Sofia following a bomb threat. No explosives were discovered in any of these incidents.
Courts, hospitals and municipal buildings targeted
The threats were not limited to aviation. Several judicial and healthcare institutions across Bulgaria also received threatening emails on Tuesday.
Among the targets were the District Prosecutor’s Office in Stara Zagora and a hospital in Kazanlak. All institutions located in the Stara Zagora Palace of Justice suspended operations until 1 p.m., and scheduled court hearings were postponed.
False bomb threats were also sent to court buildings in Burgas and Yambol, as well as Yambol Municipality. According to Bulgarian television station bTV, employees in those locations were not evacuated and continued working while police carried out security inspections.
A growing pattern of threats across Bulgaria and Europe
Similar incidents have been reported across Bulgaria in recent days.
In Burgas, a bomb threat was received during a court hearing involving a case related to an ATV accident in Sunny Beach. In Haskovo, threats targeted the Palace of Justice, while a school and two kindergartens in Dimitrovgrad also received threatening messages.
Police inspections found no actual explosives or evidence of a real threat.
Another wave of malicious emails reached Yambol just one day after municipal and judicial buildings in the city had been evacuated as a precaution.
The incidents in Bulgaria are part of a broader wave of false bomb threats affecting several European countries.
In mid-October, Bulgaria, Italy and the United Kingdom were among the countries targeted by threats against schools and public institutions, triggering evacuations involving thousands of people.
Bulgaria also experienced widespread threats earlier in October, targeting schools, kindergartens, universities, ports and municipal buildings.
A similar wave occurred in March and April 2023, shortly before parliamentary elections. In response, the Bulgarian government introduced a unified security protocol under which evacuations are no longer automatic but depend on an individual risk assessment conducted by police and the management of the affected institution.
So far, none of the latest reported incidents has resulted in the discovery of an explosive device.
