Czech authorities are investigating a fire at an industrial site in Pardubice as a possible terrorist attack after reports that an anti-Israel group claimed responsibility, reports The Jerusalem Post.
The blaze broke out overnight at a storage hall within an industrial complex about 75 miles east of Prague. Firefighters confirmed that no one was injured, although the fire spread to an adjacent building.
According to local media reports, a protest group claimed it had deliberately set the fire, describing the site as a “key manufacturing hub” for Israeli weapons and stating that the attack was intended to oppose what it alleged to be “genocide in Gaza.”
However, Czech defence company LPP Holding, which operates at the site, rejected those claims. The company stated that although it had previously announced plans to cooperate with Israeli firm Elbit Systems on drone production, the project was never implemented.
“No Israeli drones have ever been manufactured at our facility,” the company said.
Police initially stated that they were examining whether the fire had been deliberately set and were reviewing public claims made by an unnamed group. Investigators have since escalated the case, with security services now examining the incident under terrorism-related provisions of the criminal code.
Czech Interior Minister Lubomir Metnar said that based on current information, the fire may be linked to a terrorist act.
Prime Minister Andrej Babis announced that a meeting of the state security council would be convened in response to the incident.
The case highlights growing concerns in Europe about politically motivated violence linked to the Israel-Gaza conflict. Authorities are continuing to investigate the origin of the fire and the credibility of the claims made by the group.
photo credit: REUTERS/DAVID W CERNY
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