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Arsonists will face murder charges when caught | The Daily Telegraph.

YESTERDAY arsonsits re-lit blazes barely fought into submission by over-stretched fire crews.

As Victorian Premier John Brumby yesterday broke down in tears over the horrifying events, South Australian Premier Mike Rann described the arsonists as “terrorists”.

Premier Nathan Rees agreed, saying anyone caught lighting fires in NSW would be severely dealt with.

“This is not fun, this is not something clever,” he said.

“This is something that can kill people.”

One suspected arsonist was stopped by a witness who made a citizen’s arrest after noticing the man acting suspiciously at Mount Penang Parklands, on the Central Coast.

The Killarney Vale man, 31, was charged with lighting a blaze near Gosford that burned 175ha of bush.

In the Blue Mountains, a teenager was also charged for setting a fire that burnt a small area of bushland behind a community hall in Francis Rd, Faulconbridge.

The 15-year-old boy was charged with setting fire to property and possessing explosive devices.

He will face Parramatta Children’s Court at a later date.

The Victorian Country Fire Authority had confirmed many of the fires ton the weekend were deliberately lit.

“These people are terrorists within our nation, they are the enemy within and we have to be increasingly vigilant about them,” Mr Rann said.

Police warned anyone caught setting the fires could be charged with murder, as the death toll yesterday grew at a sickening rate.

CFA deputy chief Steve Warrington said firefighters battling a blaze at Churchill were being hampered by at least one firebug, re-igniting areas after fire crews had been through to extinguish the fire.

“We know we do have someone who is lighting fires in this community. While we often think it’s spotting, we also know there are people lighting fires deliberately,” he said.

Victoria Police Deputy Chief Commissioner Kieran Walshe would not say which fires police thought were the result of arson.

The “Forest Jihad”
Jonathan Fighel

The “Forest Jihad”


Col (ret.) Jonathan Fighel – ICT Senior Researcher

From the beginning of September 2008, a renewed concern emanated from Western intelligence agencies to the effect that Al Qaeda terrorists were planning a “global fireball”, in a departure from its war on the West.[1] Deliberately lighting forest fires in Europe, the US and Australia, would not only stretch emergency services, but would also leave insurance companies facing multi-billion dollar claims, as the credit crunch bites.[2] The fires would also create a pollution disaster, with billions of tons of climate-change gases escaping into the atmosphere. The so-called “forest jihad” is being championed by Islamic scholars and Osama Bin Laden’s terror strategists who believe setting fire to dry woodlands will produce maximum damage at minimum risk.

Already back in November 2007, radical Islamic forums spelled out the terrorists’ mindset in graphic terms. One of the Arabic web sites affiliated with Al Qaeda’s ideas, called “Al-Ikhlas Islamic Network”, posted a long and detailed message, in which it was argued that lighting fires is an effective form of action, justified in Islamic law under the \"eye for an eye\" doctrine. The posting instructs remembering the \"Forest Jihad\" during the summer months, noting that \"fires cause economic damage and pollution, tie up security agencies and can take months to extinguish.” Imagine, if after all the losses caused by such an event, a jihadist organization were to claim responsibility for the forest fires,\" the website says, \"you can hardly begin to imagine the level of fear that would take hold of people in the United States, Europe, Russia and Australia.\"… [3]

Interestingly enough, the call explains the reasons for not setting fire to the Amazon forests in Brazil”. The targeted forests are those belonging to the countries, which are at war with the Muslims, (the United States, Europe, Russia, and Australia). Other nations, for example Brazil, are off limits to anyone seeking to burn the Amazon forests, based on the consideration that the rule and the exception to the rule do not apply. Brazil has not joined the armies of the crusade and it has not yet given us cause to respond in any way”.[4]

Another Al Qaeda affiliated website,”Al-Jazeeratalk.net” posted a similar message on 27 December 2007, where supporters were reminded, “not to forget the summer forest jihad”. It added: “This is an invitation to the Muslims of Europe and America, Australia and Russia to burn forests.” [5] The message claims that the burning of trees, as a warfare method, is permitted in Islam and it quotes from the Qur’an to back it up. The “benefits” of the fires, are to cause casualties, hit tourist income, create timber shortages for domestic, industrial use and pharmaceuticals, and stretch emergency services.[6]

ThunderBunny wrote:My question is- why won't they release the NAMES of these arsonists?