"With the death of Muammar Gaddafi, a new era in the history of Libya has begun. I hope that the end of the former Libyan leader will herald the end of the suffering of the Libyan people and the beginning of a new era in which Libyan citizens are able to live without fear and humiliation in a united and prosperous country.

I urge the National Transitional Council and all Libyans to redouble their efforts to achieve national reconciliation, to heal all the wounds and cope with trauma of Gaddafi’s violent repression against his own people.

Bulgaria is ready, together with the international democratic community, to assist the Libyan people in their difficult path to freedom and democracy.

Over the years, hundreds of Bulgarians - doctors, engineers, nurses - have shared their lives with the Libyan people. Even in the worst moments of the final months of the regime, our fellow citizens worked in Tripoli, Benghazi, and elsewhere in Libya, fulfilling their humanitarian duty.

Twelve years ago, the dictator initiated a political trial against the Bulgarian nurses, subjecting them to torture and humiliation. In recent months, he was preparing a new trial against a Bulgarian doctor, but this time his brutal attempt was thwarted.

Today Libya is free and its future is in the hands of the Libyan people."