"You hear the sirens, they stop, and then the crackling, the rumbling starts... You don't know if in the next three to four seconds you'll survive!" is how Bulgarian singer Vasko Vasilev - Bazilio, who ended up in the epicentre of the fighting in Tel Aviv, described the first attacks on Israel. The death toll on both sides of the conflict has already exceeded 3,000, most of them civilians. Dozens of foreigners were killed, wounded or taken prisoner during the attack by Hamas. According to the AFP, there are no Bulgarian citizens among them.

Against the backdrop of the escalating conflict between Israel and the radical Islamic group Hamas, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev convened a consultative meeting with the participation of the speaker of parliament, the prime minister, ministers and heads of state services to assess the threats to Bulgaria's national security posed by the current situation in the Middle East. It will also identify measures to reduce the risks facing the country and the need for a technological upgrade of the structures of the national security protection system.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov opined that the conflict in Israel is linked to both the war in Ukraine and the series of coups in Africa. As the latest crisis deepens and drags on over time, it will have an impact on prices and inflation in Bulgaria, which should be considered on the threshold of winter. Responding to questions from citizens and media yesterday, Denkov said the government "is ready for an additional flight to evacuate Bulgarians from Israel if there are Bulgarian citizens who wish to evacuate."

Prime Minister Denkov also said that Bulgaria could offer mediation in the conflict between Israel and Palestine, but added that there was a high risk of escalation, which made the search for balance a very complicated task.

The United States, Israel and Egypt are negotiating the withdrawal of civilians from Gaza to Egypt. This would limit the damage to civilians in the event of an Israeli ground intervention there, Bulgarian diplomat Stefan Tafrov, a former Bulgarian ambassador to the UN, told BNR. He also commented that the situation in the Middle East objectively serves the interests of Russia, which acts in the region through its ally Iran. In order to limit the expansion of the conflict in the region, both Israel and the United States do not blame Iran for now, the diplomat explained, adding that the moment Iran orders Hezbollah to open a second front, things will escalate.

"What the terrorist organization Hamas has done in Israel is unprecedented - to enter people's homes, to kill children, the elderly, women, to kidnap and rape - this has never happened before, not even in this conflict, and that is why it has caused shock throughout the world. For this reason, reactions and warnings about the expected escalation from the Israeli side have been quite restrained. More importantly, the Israeli ground invasion of the Gaza Strip, which is very likely to follow, has a practical side, because Hamas's plan is to provoke a reaction first from the Palestinians in the West Bank in order to provoke the opening of a second front in the north on which Hezbollah can attack Israel and thus end Hamas's isolation in the Gaza Strip.

"Hamas is losing popularity among the Palestinians in Gaza themselves, as the terrorist nature of their actions condemns them to isolation and poverty," says Arab Studies specialist Prof. Vladimir Chukov. Hamas's relations with the Palestinian Government are also deteriorating. In particular, Hamas fears what would happen if diplomatic relations were established between Saudi Arabia and Israel, which would end Israel's diplomatic isolation in the Arab world."

“This eventual establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, achieved with the mediation of the United States, is the main underlying reason for the attack," Prof. Chukov told BNR. According to him, without Iran's help there was no way such a large-scale campaign could have been organized by Hamas.

"Iran has no desire for these diplomatic efforts to bear fruit. Let me remind you that the Israeli Transport Minister was in Saudi Arabia two days before Hamas unleashed its aggression. We must say clearly and openly that Iran now wants to label as traitors all those who have entered into diplomatic relations with Israel and intimidate the Saudi Crown Prince not to engage in such relations because Saudi Arabia is the religious leader of the Islamic world," Professor Chukov explained, adding that this war will have a huge repercussion worldwide.

"There are world powers that have an interest in this conflict continuing," Khairi Hamdan, a poet and translator of Palestinian origin who lives in Bulgaria, told BNR. The keys, he says, are in the hands of America and Israel. The US has bases, it can intervene in seconds, he stressed, adding that the problem must be cut at its roots. "This is about freedom, about having clear borders for a Palestinian state."

"Entire neighborhoods and small towns in Gaza have been wiped off the face of the earth. This battle is a continuation of what has been going on for decades because there is no political vision or a plan for a final solution," says Khairi Hamdan, refusing to identify the Palestinian people with Hamas.

"I think equality is out of the question because there is no Palestinian state. In this context, I would like to say to you that the Palestinian people, despite all the attempts to deport them, to destroy their homes - they are a factor. You cannot have 5.5 million Palestinians living in a small territory like Palestine and Israel, and neglect them for so many decades. Israel is doing everything it can to eliminate this as a decisive factor. There are two peoples living in this country! The moment Israel abandons the policy of using force and embraces the principle that bread and goods are for two peoples, then there will be some hope for a solution to this case."

"I know Israel, its people - what has happened is so terrible that it cannot be borne," says Bulgarian journalist with Jewish roots Zelma Almaleh. I feel bad just picturing all those kids and peaceful people. 

This, unfortunately, has become almost an everyday occurrence in our global world. But since this is Israel, I would quote one of the greatest politicians of the 20th century, Golda Meir, the first woman Prime Minister of Israel: 'We can forgive the Arabs for killing our children, but we cannot forgive them for forcing us to kill theirs'. And one more thing - I will quote from memory Shimon Peres, who said in an interview: 'We will get along with the Arabs when they start respecting their women and children'. It is difficult to live when peaceful people are killed, and I can barely talk about it."