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Czech authorities are currently probing what appears to be an arson attack on an arms manufacturing facility in Pardubice, considering the possibility of it being a terror-related incident. The investigation was prompted after a group claimed responsibility, citing the company’s alleged connections with Israel.
The fire broke out on Friday at a warehouse belonging to Elbit Systems, a company in Pardubice, Czech Republic, known for developing drones and other aerospace and military technologies. Despite the attack, the company clarified that it had ceased its cooperation with Israel and had not produced drones for the Israel Defense Forces.
Nonetheless, a group identified as the ‘Earthquake Faction’ took responsibility for the blaze. The group, which appears to have either pro-Palestinian or pro-Iranian inclinations, cited the company’s alleged links with Israel as the reason for their actions, according to the Czech publication Blesk.
“We are an internationalist underground network that targets key locations vital to the Zionist entity,” the group declared in their statement.
The purported arsonists further accused Elbit Systems of being integral to the Israeli military, alleging that the company supplies most of the ground and air weapons used in operations against Iran and in Palestine.
Meanwhile, there are alternative theories suggesting the incident might have been a false flag operation, with some speculating that the factory was possibly targeted due to its involvement in supplying drones to Ukraine.
Extremism expert Jan Charvát of Prague’s Charles University said that it is possible that the perpetrators could be genuine pro-Palestine radicals, Iranian-tied terrorists, or pro-Russian partisans.
“For an attack of this kind, it would make sense to attack a company that manufactures drones that are shipped to Ukraine, which this Czech company is,” Charvát said.
Terrorism expert Oldřich Bureš noted that everything is still speculation at this point, saying: “We have experience with arson attacks from the past in the Czech Republic, where they were more likely hired hybrid threats from the Russian Federation. We have arson attacks from other European countries where left-wing groups were involved.”
Commenting on the attack, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said, “Security authorities are working, the incident is being investigated. We have taken a number of measures. It happened at a private company, so the main thing is to send a message to all manufacturers who produce defense material to secure their premises. The premises of the company that was attacked were not secured.”
