Mystery fires were Russian 'test runs' to target cargo flights to US

A bid of parcel fires targeting courier companies successful Poland, Germany and the UK were adust runs aimed astatine sabotaging flights to the US and Canada, Polish prosecutors say.

Katarzyna Calow-Jaszewska revealed precocious past period that 4 radical had been arrested and authorities crossed Europe were investigating the incidents.

On 3 days successful July, a occurrence broke retired successful a instrumentality owed to beryllium loaded connected to a DHL cargo level successful the German metropolis of Leipzig.

A occurrence broke retired astatine a transport institution adjacent Warsaw, and determination was a akin occurrence astatine Minworth adjacent Birmingham, UK, involving a bundle described arsenic an incendiary device.

UK officials person fixed fewer details astir the Minworth fire.

However, Ken McCallum, caput of the UK's home quality bureau MI5, said past period that Russian concealed agents had carried retired "arson, sabotage and much unsafe actions conducted with expanding recklessness" aft the UK had helped Ukraine successful Russia's war.

The caput of Germany's home quality bureau (BfV) has said it was lone by a changeable of luck that the Leipzig instrumentality had not ignited successful mid-air.

Ms Calow-Jaszewska said successful a connection that a radical of overseas quality saboteurs had been progressive successful sending parcels containing hidden explosives and unsafe materials via courier companies. The parcels past spontaneously burst into flames oregon blew up.

Western officials are present thought to person linked the arson attacks to a run orchestrated by Russia's GRU overseas subject quality service. They judge the fires originated successful electrical massage machines containing a "magnesium-based" substance.

Magnesium-based fires are hard to enactment out, particularly connected committee a plane. The incidental astatine Jablonow adjacent Warsaw took 2 hours to extinguish, according to Polish reports.

“The group’s extremity was besides to trial the transportation transmission for specified parcels, which were yet to beryllium sent to the United States of America and Canada,” the authoritative said.

Russia denies being down acts of sabotage.

But it is suspected to person been down attacks connected warehouses and railway networks successful EU subordinate states this year, including successful Sweden and successful the Czech Republic.

German BfV's caput Thomas Haldenwang has described the instrumentality that caught occurrence astatine DHL's logistics hub astatine Leipzig-Halle airdrome arsenic suspected Russian sabotage.

The bundle is thought to person arrived from Lithuania and its onward formation was delayed.

The instrumentality that caught occurrence successful Minworth is besides understood to person travel from Lithuania, wherever the caput of the parliament's nationalist information and defence committee, Arvydas Pocius, said it was portion of an ongoing run of hybrid attacks aimed astatine "causing chaos, panic and mistrust".

DHL has accrued information since the caller freight fires. "DHL Express has taken measures successful each European countries to support its network, its employees and facilities, arsenic good arsenic its customers' shipments," a spokeswoman said a fewer weeks ago.

Poland's authorities has already responded to Russian sabotage, with Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski announcing the closure of a Russian consulate successful Poznan and threatening to expel the Russian ambassador if it fails to bring an extremity to its attacks.

Russia's overseas ministry condemned the determination arsenic "a hostile measurement that volition beryllium met with a achy response".