Police investigate motive behind blaze at Hadash faction headquarters

Police are investigating whether a fire that broke out Wednesday evening at the left-wing Hadash faction’s headquarters in Tel Aviv was the result of an arson attempt.

A group of youth activists for the socialist, Jewish-Arab party, which is one faction in the opposition Joint (Arab) List, had been working inside the building when they noticed the flames on the second floor. They were able to evacuate the premises without any injuries, a party spokesperson said.

Three teams of firefighters were called to the scene on Ahad Ha’am street in central Tel Aviv. The building incurred significant damage.

“The fire broke out in a hardware shed on the second-floor balcony,” Hadash Tel Aviv branch secretary-general Noa Levy told the Ynet news site. “People in nearby cafes came running in and told everyone to evacuate.”

“We are waiting for the police. We have not heard anything specific,” she added.

In January 2016, a fire broke out in the headquarters of the left-wing B’Tselem rights group’s Jerusalem headquarters. While initial assessments attributed the flames to a politically motivated arson attack, authorities eventually concluded that it was likely caused by an electrical fault.