Russian saboteurs ‘behind fire’ at Berlin arms factory written off as accident

A large fire at an arms factory in Berlin was likely caused by Russian saboteurs trying to disrupt weapons deliveries to Ukraine, Western intelligence officials believe.

German investigators initially declared that the blaze, which sent huge clouds of smoke rising over the factory in the German capital on May 3, was just an accident.

But intelligence officials now suspect that the fire was deliberately started by Russian operatives and have shared supporting evidence with the German government, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The factory in Berlin’s Lichterfelde neighbourhood belongs to Diehl Metal Applications, part of the Diehl group, a German defence firm supporting the Ukrainian war effort.

Russia has stepped up efforts to sabotage Nato infrastructure as part of a so-called Hybrid War strategy against the alliance, which is giving military support to Ukraine.

There have already been similar sabotage incidents in Britain and Poland, such as a suspected arson attack in east London targeting a Ukraine-linked property and a large fire near Warsaw.

Security officials told the Wall Street Journal that they believed the sabotage was the work of seasoned professionals, but not necessarily Russian state agents.

They pointed out that Russia has previously relied on civilians and particularly criminal networks who are often paid in cryptocurrency.

Officials close to the investigation told the newspaper that the fire started in an area where only a few people would have had access. All cctv footage of that location has been lost to the fire, they added.

“This is like the gig economy for sabotage and terror, perpetrators get recruited like Uber drivers, but the effect is often the same as with using professionals,” a senior Western security official told the newspaper.

A spokesman for Diehl told the Wall Street Journal that a report by its insurers found a technical fault to be the cause of the fire, adding that “in theory” sabotage could have been the root cause.

German police have launched a fresh investigation into the fire and authorities are not ruling out any possibilities, including sabotage by a foreign power.