An unidentified group has set fire to Starlink satellite antennas near Sofia, Bulgaria.
The arson was confirmed in a social media post by Bulgarian politician Ivaylo Mirchev on social media, who said that 11 of the 17 antennas were set alight at the “secret site” near the country’s capital.
These antennas have been serving the Ukrainian military in its ongoing war with Russia, said Mirchev.
Mirchev, who is the current co-leader of the party Yes, Bulgaria!, said that two masked men were behind the attack.
“Eleven antennas for communication with Starlink (SpaceX’s communication system) were deliberately set on fire at a secret site near Sofia. The lit antennas serve as the main connection to Musk’s satellites in space, which are also actively used in the war in Ukraine,” said Mirchev.
He didn’t specify when the attack took place, but shared a number of videos in response to his post showing the fire.
He appeared to take a dig at the National Security Council’s preparedness for sabotage attempts.
“Just a few days ago at the National Security Council, the head of the National Security Agency assured me that counterintelligence is working very actively to counter Russian-style sabotage. It is obviously not doing a good job,” he added.
This attack follows that of a suspected Russian-linked arson attack against a Starlink ground station in Poland last month. Earlier this week, Poland’s Internal Security Agency confirmed it has arrested two Turkish citizens in relation to the attack who were detained by German services based on the European Arrest Warrant on October 12.
Starlink has been a key part of Ukraine’s communications infrastructure since the country’s war with Russia began in 2022. In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, thousands of Starlink terminals were given to Ukraine.
However, this infrastructure, along with other communications infrastructure, has been targeted by Russia during the war.
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