A Bulgarian court has handed two men life sentences for their roles in the bombing of a bus in July 2012 that killed five Israeli citizens and a bus driver.
Meliad Farah, a dual Lebanese-Australian national, and Hassan El Hajj Hassan, a dual Lebanese-Canadian national, were both sentenced by Judge Adelina Ivanova in absentia on September 21 as their whereabouts are unknown. They are the subject of an Interpol red notice.
The verdict can be appealed within 15 days.
In the attack, a man of dual Lebanese-French citizenship blew up a bomb in a backpack he was carrying outside the airport in the Black Sea resort city of Burgas after a planeload of Israeli tourists from Tel Aviv had boarded a double-decker bus.
The attacker, identified as Mohamad Hassan El Husseini, was killed in the attack.
Dozens were injured along with the five Israelis and Bulgarian bus driver in the blast.
The bomber, who was reported to be holding what appeared to be a falsified driver's license from the U.S. state of Michigan, also died in the attack.
Bulgarian authorities blamed Shi'ite Muslim group Hezbollah for the attack. The Iranian-backed Hezbollah has denied involvement.
