In brief
On Saturday morning, a fire believed to be set intentionally damaged the Beth Israel Congregation, Mississippi's largest synagogue. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. An individual was taken into custody as investigations by local authorities and the FBI continue.
A person was taken into custody late Saturday after a fire ripped through a synagogue in Mississippi, heavily damaging the historic house of worship in what authorities say was an act of arson.
No congregants were injured in the blaze, which broke out at the Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson, Mississippi shortly after 3 a.m. on Saturday. Photos showed the charred remains of an administrative office and synagogue library, where several Torahs were destroyed or damaged.
Jackson Mayor John Horhn confirmed that a person was taken into custody following an investigation that also included the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.
“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,” Horhn said in a statement.
He did not provide the name of the suspect or the charges that the person is facing.
The synagogue, the largest in Mississippi, was the site of a Ku Klux Klan bombing in 1967 — a response to the congregation’s role in civil rights activities, according to the Institute for Southern Jewish Life, which also houses its office in the building.
“As Jackson’s only synagogue, Beth Israel is a beloved institution, and it is the fellowship of our neighbors and extended community that will see us through,” the institute said in a separate statement.
The synagogue’s president, Zach Shemper, mentioned that the congregation was still assessing the damage and had received outreach from other houses of worship, according to Mississippi Today.
Importantly, one Torah that survived the Holocaust was reported to have remained undamaged in the fire.
