Fire bombs planted on DHL shipments, allegedly by Russian intelligence, were strong enough to down a plane — The Guardian

According to a report by The Guardian on Tuesday, the fire in July caused by a suspected Russian incendiary device at a DHL facility in the U.K. “was strong enough to have brought down a cargo plane.” Journalists studied photographs capturing the incident and concluded that the bright flashes caught on camera suggest a magnesium-based device was used for the booby trap, creating a water-resistant fire that required special dry powder extinguishers.

Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported that Western security officials suspect a covert Russian operation planted two incendiary devices on DHL shipments that ignited at logistics hubs in Germany and England. The plot’s alleged goal was to start fires aboard cargo or passenger aircraft flying to the U.S. and Canada. Police in Lithuania and Poland later arrested multiple suspects in connection with the fires.