Setting Fires in California

UPDATED: DECLARED ARSON! SCROLL!

FBI: al-Qaeda detainee spoke of fire plot [article dated 2003 but so what?]

UPDATED 10/25: WHOEVER DID THIS KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING- Fire Chief (scroll) 

Firefighters watch a back fire on a hillside in Jamul, Ca., Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2007. Deadly, wind-whipped wildfires have triggered the largest evacuation in state history, prompting some 500,000 people to flee ahead of flames that have destroyed more than 1,600 homes and continued Wednesday to threaten tens of thousands more. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Shirley Buxton writes, While firefighters are risking their lives trying to save homes, there have been dozens of reports of looters across the mountains. Deputies have not been able to confirm many of the reports, but there have been some arrests. Even worse, authorities made an arrest of a motorcyclist who was allegedly witnessed trying to start an arson fire near Camp Seely on Tuesday evening."

 

PHOENIX (AP) — The FBI alerted law enforcement agencies last month that an al-Qaeda terrorist now in detention had talked of masterminding a plot to set a series of devastating forest fires around the western United States.

Rose Davis, a spokeswoman for the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, told The Associated Press that officials there took note of the warning but didn't see a need to act further on it.

The contents of the June 25 memo from the FBI's Denver office were reported Friday by The Arizona Republic. Davis declined to share a copy of the memo and an FBI spokeswoman in Denver didn't immediately return a telephone call.

The Republic reported that the detainee, who was not identified, said the plan involved three or four people setting wildfires using timed devices in Colorado, Montana, Utah and Wyoming that would detonate in forests and grasslands after the operatives had left the country.

Always protecting the guilty. Yasgotta love America!

The memo noted that investigators couldn't determine whether the detainee was telling the truth.

The newspaper said many forest law enforcement officers it contacted had no idea the warning had been issued.

More here.

UPDATE: Larwyn reports:

Late on first day of coverage of the fires in CA, a law enforcement officer at one of the pressers said, "we must strongly consider that these fires were the result of arson.  There were no power lines down or any natural cause for them." paraphasing.

..... Weren't TERRORISTS setting fires in Greece and Italy earlier this year?  So they already have considered usefulness of this type of attack

UPDATE: The California Fire and Allah’s wrath"

The California Fire and Allah’s wrath October 24, 2007

Posted by inshallahshaheed 

Most Muslims in America shy from discussing the natural disasters that occur to America especially in light of Allah’s anger. They get this strange idea somehow that Allah’s wrath and anger has nothing to do with the great natural disasters. It is like trying to disconnect the destruction of the previous nations which the Qur’aan and Sunnah tell of - such as the nations of ‘Aad, Loot and Thamood - from Allah’s anger of their evil. In addition, they refuse to even connect some of the dots of such large increases in natural disasters over the past few years that have occurred within America to the awesome corruption America is exporting to different parts of the world. If we go deeper than this, we see that they will refuse to even think that Allah is implementing His wrath on America - with both minor and major disasters - because of what America is doing to the Muslims in ‘Iraaq, Afghanistan etc.

The Shaykh, ‘Abdullah al-Faisal (hafidhullah) discusses the issue of Allah’s wrath and the natural disasters in a lecture entitled, “Natural Disasters.” It is a rarity as well as a gem since it is a subject that needs to be revitalized in the Ummah again so that it further formulates our Walaa’ (allegiance) and Baraa’ah (disavowal) to those whom the Islaamic ‘Aqeedah has clarified towards. It answers many questions such as how we are supposed to look at natural disasters when it happens to the Muslims and when it happens to the Kuffaar. You can listen to or download the lecture from here.

UPDATE: Red Alerts reports :

(CBS/AP) CBS News has learned a task force of agencies, including the FBI, ATF, the Orange County Fire Authority and the California Department of Forestry will announce shortly that the massive Santiago Canyon Fire - which has caused an estimated $10 million in damage - is being officially declared an arson, and a $50,000 reward is being offered to find the arsonist.

Investigators have identified two separate “points of origin” where they believe the fire was set, CBS News has learned. FBI agents secured the scene to “maintain its integrity.”

The Santiago Fire has burned about 19,200 acres east of Irvine, officials said, and it is around 30 percent contained. Six homes and eight outbuildings have been destroyed, with another eight homes and 12 outbuildings damaged. Four firefighters have been injured fighting the blaze and about 3,000 people evacuated.

Irvine?

Red Alert has it all. Go.

Sister Toldjah on RETARD REID

UPDATE: Arson suspect killed, another arrested

UPDATE: California not Iraq ht tip daryl

WHOEVER DID THIS KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING- Fire Chief

Fire officials are now stating that the Orange County Santiago fire was purposely set and there is speculation that other fires may have also been deliberate. See Interactive Map

Fire officials found three separate “points of origin,” all near the intersection of Silverado Canyon Road and Santiago Canyon Road. Two were on one side of the road, and the third was on the other. “Whoever did this knew what they were doing,” said Kris Concepcion, a fire authority battalion chief. Also, the fire traveled 3 miles in its first 20 minutes when it was ignited about 6 p.m. Sunday, he said.

Read Article

UPDATE: Jane sent this:

Law enforcement officials also suspected several of the California wildfires in 2002 that killed 18, scorched more than 718,000 acres and destroyed more than 2,400 homes in 10 days were deliberately set – increasing speculation there is a terror connection to the blazes.

Damage estimates exceeded $2 billion then.

In blazes across Europe that year, there was evidence terrorists may have contributed. Authorities said after fires swept through the Moures mountains near the French Riviera, investigators found Molotov cocktails – gasoline bombs – at the ignition point for fires that killed at least four and destroyed 50 homes.

Australian also at that time investigated whether al-Qaida planned to spark brushfires in a new wave of terrorism.

"Australian security authorities are aware of reports that al-Qaida has considered starting brushfires in the U.S. as a form of terrorist attack," said a spokeswoman for Australian Attorney General Daryl Williams during the investigation about the same time as the warning for western U.S. states. "Arson attacks are just one of a wide range of scenarios which have been considered as part of our investigations into al-Qaida's ability to conduct attacks in Australia."

In fact, Arab terrorists in Israel have started dozens of major forest fires over the years.

As far back as 1988, Israeli police caught more than a dozen Palestinian adults in the act of setting fires, while other Arabs confessed to arson after arrest. Some fires followed specific calls by underground Arab terrorists. A leaflet issued by the Palestinian uprising's underground leadership called for "the destruction and burning of the enemy's properties, industry and agriculture."

 

 

Comments

[Always On Watch]

Unless the story is announced on Al Jazeera by OBL, Americans will cringe at believing even the possibility of terrorism.

[Robert]

Mrs Shrugs, I live in Cali, the "gossip" around here is about the Illegal aliens, speculations are in the illegal direction at this time.

You bring up some interesting points though.

I can't imagine this being a terrorist strategy. Other than property, and turning beautiful terrain into black ugliness the body count is not high enough for Islamic radicals. A week of fire will result in relatively few "Infidels" dying.

After the fires, when the rain falls, not to long from now, the areas that were burned will be as beautiful as ever and the natural clearing will allow for fuller trees in the years to come.... Islamic nutjobs usually believe in the scorched earth policy as in NEVER be nice again.

[Timur]

More anti-islamic paranoia. This has absolutely nothing to do with the fires set in Greece recently and even less to do with radical islamo-fascist terrorists. Nothing to see here people, it's just business as usual, so move along, move along... like good little sheep just keep moving along...

[Isabellathecrusader]

Robert,

It's not about killing infidels at this time. The goal of the Pro-Ummah, Pro-Sharia Muslims is to instill fear and terror so as to motivate people to accept Islam without a fight when the invitation comes along. If you can devastate an entire area of our country that is considered a form of paradise, if you can displace people from their homes for several days, if you can disrupt the power grid so that people lose electricity in huge sections, you might consider yourself very powerful. Since the Muslims who are committing these crimes against humanity think that they can do anything and that Allah has their back, then setting fire to half of Southern California will only embolden them to continue. Just think of how tickled the people who cheered in the streets on 9/11 must be this evening. They think they can do anything and that we can do nothing about it.

[Dan]

Recall people, Saddam made war against the earth itself, when he blew up the wells in Kuwait, and set them all ablaze.

And we saw too where whacked out muslims blew up the Buddhas, which wasn't the first time they took to iconic destruction.

I think they've been much more busy than we've been informed.

Check out the blog The Aviation Nation, which chronicles dry runs all over the place. Yet we never hear of it.

[BillBowen]

Pamela, besides being run by a bunch of total wackjobs (examples - our 2 Senators, the Lt. Gov. and, 85% of the time, Arnold Schwartzenkennedy) out here in Kalifornia we have the "perfect storm" of 3 factors.

First are the illegal aliens. There have been numerous instances in the past where illegals have accidently set fires. One of the major fires in 2003 was started in just this way.

Second is the enviro nutjobs. The San Diego area is a real hotbed (no pun intended) of ELF/ALF arson against development projects.

The third leg is the Islamofacists. This is more an issue in LA & Orange County than in San Diego County but something that has to be considered. Isabella makes some good arguements for looking at this angle VERY closely.

I just hope that the FBI, BATF (that is one really scummy operation), the CDF, etc. doesn't let P.C. get in the way of getting to the bottom of this AND telling us the real truth.

[Danjr0802]

I heard that the information that they got from this person was that they were planning to do this in 2003 and that he talked about Colorado, not California.

Now, I'd be interested to hear if this is true or not and I trust that everyone here would understand why people didn't put much stock in it if it were 4 years old and California wasn't mentioned.

But if not, will we then agree that there has been a terrorist attack on American soil since 9/11 (besides the Anthrax terrorist attacks that is)?

[mikeyfil]

Yes, Danjr0802, the memo was from 2003 and mentioned Colorado, NOT California. It was mis-reported on - where else? - Fox News. Yet another exmaple of the fear-mongering that plagues our country.

[john Ryan]

"who ever did this knew what they were doing"?????
Well that makes it pretty much a certainty that al Qaeda was not involved doesn't it ? Since they haven't been able to do anything since 9/11 and everyone who has been arrested in "al Qaeda" plots has been seen to be an idiot.

[john Ryan]

In New York Yeaterday somebody did something wrong. I think he was an islamofacist.

[Philadelphia Steve]

Has even one member of al Qaeda been documented as being caught setting fires in California?

Or is this another "yellowcake from Niger" story?