A suspect was arrested by Jackson, Mississippi, authorities after a fire broke out at the state's largest synagogue, damaging parts of the Jewish worship space and several sacred items.
The fire occurred around 3 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 10, at the Beth Israel synagogue. The Jackson Fire Department responded and was able to contain and extinguish the blaze.
The suspect was detained by the department's arson division, but their identity has not been released. The Jackson Fire Department could not be reached for further details Sunday morning, Jan. 11.
Beth Israel is Jackson's oldest synagogue, dating to before the Civil War. Nearly 60 years ago, in November 1967, the Ku Klux Klan bombed both the temple’s office and former Rabbi Perry Nussbaum's home. No one was killed during that attack.
It was not immediately clear whether the fire has been formally classified as arson or a hate crime, though Jackson Fire Department Chief RaSean Thomas called the fire a "violent crime of Arson against our community" in a Jan. 11 statement posted to Facebook.
