Residents of the Bulgarian village of Bezmer have launched a petition against the deployment of US tanker aircraft at the nearby air base, with locals saying they are prepared to organize protests over concerns about the possible consequences for the community.
Bezmer Mayor Rosen Rusev said the initiative was started by residents who wanted the position of the local population to be officially expressed after new information emerged about the purpose of the aircraft deployment.
“There is no specific initiator, this is at the request of a large part of the residents. They said: ‘Shouldn’t we make some kind of reaction to the situation we are in at the moment?’” Rusev said.
According to the mayor, many people in the village were initially not fully informed about the purpose of stationing the aircraft. After learning that the planes could support US operations related to the conflict with Iran, residents expressed strong opposition and requested a way to make their concerns public.
“After it became clear that they would most likely serve the conflict with Iran, they expressed their strong disagreement and asked us to make it possible for them to state their position,” Rusev said.
