Overview
- The provincial court in Chubut concluded the blaze that devastated parts of Patagonia was not accidental and may have been deliberately set.
- Prosecutors reported signs of human activity at the origin of the fire but said no suspects or motives have been established as firefighting continues.
- Argentine authorities rejected claims circulating online that Israelis or Mapuche groups started the fires, saying there is no supporting evidence.
- A widely shared video of tourists with a campfire was traced by local reporters to a location far from the wildfire zone and did not show arson linked to the blaze.
- Opposition figures and some foreign outlets amplified the unverified allegations, while Jewish and Mapuche leaders condemned the narratives as discriminatory.