Rep. Bennie Thompson said that politics could have played a role in the fire set at a synagogue in his district.
“With this kind of vitriol that’s going on in the country, some people take that to heart and try to weaponize it to the point of threatening people, threatening churches, burning synagogues and other things,” Thompson told NOTUS in an interview Monday. “And so we have to be careful. And so that’s why, any situation like this is unfortunate.”
Local authorities said that a fire ripped through Beth Israel Congregation, located in Jackson, Mississippi, and was reported at 3 a.m. Saturday. The synagogue’s library and administrative offices were left completely charred, with several Torahs also burned. No one was hurt during the incident.