SOFIA, Bulgaria, Sept 20, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Bulgarian authorities said on
Friday a company based in Sofia had nothing to do with the delivery of
exploding communications devices to Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies detonated across Lebanon on Tuesday and
Wednesday, killing at least 37 people, wounding nearly 3,000 and generating
panic.

Hezbollah and several international media organisations have blamed Israel
for sabotaging the electronic devices. Israel has not made any public
comment.

"Following verifications, it has been indisputably established that no
communication equipment corresponding to those that exploded on September 17
was imported, exported or manufactured in Bulgaria," the National Security
Agency (SANS) said.

The SANS said on Thursday it had launched an investigation after Hungarian
website Telex said Norta Global -- a company registered in Sofia by a
Norwegian, had imported the devices and then delivered them to Hezbollah.

On Friday, the SANS said the company and its owner had "not carried out any
transactions linked to the sale or purchase of the merchandise" or that "fall
under laws on terrorism financing".

Norta Global, which was founded in April 2022 by Rinson Jose, last year
declared revenue of 650,000 euros ($725,000) for consulting activities
outside the European Union.

On its now disactivated website, Norta Global says it is a "leading
technology company with strong focus on various technology project
management, tech allocation, promotion, and integration."

Oslo police said they have opened a "preliminary investigation into the
information that has emerged".

Rinson Jose could not be immediately reached for comment.

According to his LinkedIn page, he has worked for almost five years in
digital customer support for Norwegian press group DN Media.

The company told newspaper Verdens Gang that he has been on an overseas work
trip since Tuesday and that they have not been able to reach him.

Alerted by a US reporter, the company said it has contacted the Norwegian
internal security services, who did not respond to AFP's request for comment.

Meanwhile, top officials in Taiwan have insisted the communications devices,
which carried the brand name of local company Gold Apollo, were not from the
island.

Gold Apollo head Hsu Ching-kuang instead pointed the finger at Hungary-based
partner BAC Consulting KFT, which Gold Apollo had allowed to use its
trademark.

But a Hungarian government spokesman said BAC Consulting KFT was "a trading
intermediary, with no manufacturing or operational site in Hungary".