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Another Bulgarian Soldier Killed in Afghanistan

Svilen Simeonov told his family he would join the Foreign Legion three months after he signed his first contract

Photo: private archive

Bulgarian Svilen Simeonov was one of the four Foreign Legion soldiers who were killed in Afghanistan Friday when an Afghan National Army serviceman opened fire in the eastern province of Kapisa. The 34-year-old sergeant of the French Foreign Legion and his three colleagues died and 15 were wounded in the incident. The fatal event unfolded while the soldiers were finishing their fitness training and were not wearing bullet-proof vests. The assailant was later caught. Yesterday, the Taliban said they recruited the soldier who killed the Foreign Legion rangers. “The Islamic emirate in Afghanistan has recruited force for all crucial positions,” said Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mudjahid. Later Taliban issued a threat for other attacks.
Svilen Simeonov, whose Muslim name is Taner Mehmedov Uzunov, served in the French Foreign Legion for over 10 years. He is married and has a 3-year-old boy. His wife is also from Rakovski, but lives in Razgrad. Svilen's father is retired while his mother lives in Turkey. Relatives say he was killed just days before the end of his service in Afghanistan. The Mayor said Simeonov changed his name before joining the Legion in 2000.His wife has last spoken with him on the Internet Thursday and he told her he was returning in days to his army unit in Marseille and planned to travel to Bulgaria in February, according to his brother-in-law. This was also Svilen's last foreign mission and he had three years left before being able to retire from service. He had dreamed of buying a house in Marseille and settle there with his family. France is to bury the perished soldiers with military honors Monday and has provided airline tickets to the Bulgarian family. "Our soldiers were murdered. It was impossible for them, first of all, to know what was going to happen and secondly to react to this aggression," French foreign ministry spokesman Bernard Valero told the BBC.
The attack brings to 82 the total number of French personnel killed in Afghanistan since 2001.

Stanka Hristova
Krasimira Temelkova