Mississippi arsonist arrested for setting blaze at synagogue once bombed by KKK: report

A suspect is in custody after torching the largest synagogue in Mississippi, which was targeted decades ago by members of the Ku Klux Klan, authorities said.Saturday’s pre-dawn inferno, which was set around 3 a.m.during Shabbat, the weekly Jewish day of rest, gutted the Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson, destroying two Torahs and damaging five others.No congregants were hurt in the fire at the city’s only synagogue, according to Mississippi Today.“We have already had outreach from other houses of worship in the Jackson area and greatly appreciate their support in this very difficult time,” congregation president Zach Shemper said in a statement.A suspect was apprehended following a joint investigation with the Jackson Fire Department, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and explosives, though they have not yet released his or her name.Authorities have not disclosed a possible motive, and did not immediately know whether the arson was a hate crime.Jackson Mayor John Horhn denounced the attack as an “act of terror.”“Acts of antisemitism, racism, and religious hatred are attacks on Jackson as a whole and will be treated as acts of terror against residents’ safety and freedom to worship,” he said in a statement.“Jackson stands with Beth Israel and the Jewish community, and we’ll do everything we can to support them and hold accountable anyone who tries to spread fear and hate here.”It wasn’t the first time the Jewish house of worship was targeted for destruction.In 1967, a bombing attack badly damaged the synagogue’s administrative offices and library, the very same areas that bore the brunt of Saturday’s blaze.Then-Rabbi Perry E.

Nussbaum told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency at the time that the fire was the work of “bigots” following a “flare-up” of antisemitic sentiment spreading among residents of Jackson.Three men were later arrested in that blaze, including a 49-year-old painting contractor and his 23-year-o...