Political War on Social Media Fuels Deliberately Set Fires in the Amazon, Brazilian Environmental Agency Says - Folha de S.Paulo
Ibama (Brazilian Institute of the Environment) President Jair Schmitt says accusations traded on social media over responsibility for fighting fires in the Amazon are inciting people to set fire to the forest for ideological reasons.
"What we’re seeing is a political war. People are taking advantage of the fire situation to attack the government, when this government is the one that has invested the most in fighting fires," the official says in an interview with Folha in Manaus.
According to him, the government is investigating whether there is planned action involving fires deliberately set along roadsides. "Even if it isn’t orchestrated, individually this is already a fact; it has already been established. People are doing this intentionally," he says.
Schmitt says Brazilian government agencies are fighting the fires with 330 firefighters and 41 inspectors. "We have 11 aircraft, including one from the Brazilian Air Force: a KC-390, six water-dropping aircraft, three helicopters and one aircraft for logistical support," he says.
