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SOFIA, Bulgaria — Police in Bulgaria detained a man after he pointed a gun at an ethnic Turkish party leader as he was delivering a speech in the capital. No shots were fired.
The leader of Bulgaria's opposition Movement for Rights and Freedoms, Ahmet Dogan, escaped an apparent assassination attempt Saturday while addressing a party congress in Sofia, local media reported.
The attacker pointed a gun at Dogan, but was prevented from firing, according to the reports. While security wrestled with the attacker, Dogan was tackled to the ground by his bodyguards.
The party, which mainly represents the Turkish minority in Bulgaria, had called the convention to elect a new leadership. Dogan, 58, has led the party since founding it in 1990.
After taking part in the governing coalition, the party switched to the opposition following the 2009 elections, which were won by the conservative Gerb party of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov.
Following reports of the attack, Borisov ordered Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov to attend the Movement for Rights and Freedoms congress.
The video from the Saturday event in Sofia shows the man climbing the podium where Ahmed Dogan, the leader of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, was speaking on Saturday, and pointing the gun to his face.
Dogan struck the man before other delegates wrestled the assailant to the ground, and police took him away.
The video of the assassination attempt : http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=n1VMXZpZ1jU
The leader of Bulgaria's opposition Movement for Rights and Freedoms, Ahmet Dogan, escaped an apparent assassination attempt Saturday while addressing a party congress in Sofia, local media reported.
The attacker pointed a gun at Dogan, but was prevented from firing, according to the reports. While security wrestled with the attacker, Dogan was tackled to the ground by his bodyguards.
The party, which mainly represents the Turkish minority in Bulgaria, had called the convention to elect a new leadership. Dogan, 58, has led the party since founding it in 1990.
After taking part in the governing coalition, the party switched to the opposition following the 2009 elections, which were won by the conservative Gerb party of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov.
Following reports of the attack, Borisov ordered Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov to attend the Movement for Rights and Freedoms congress.
The video from the Saturday event in Sofia shows the man climbing the podium where Ahmed Dogan, the leader of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, was speaking on Saturday, and pointing the gun to his face.
Dogan struck the man before other delegates wrestled the assailant to the ground, and police took him away.
The video of the assassination attempt : http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=n1VMXZpZ1jU