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On 17 June 1995, the French Consulate in West Perth, Western Australia was firebombed and destroyed. ==Details== Around 4:40am Saturday morning, 17 June 1995, neighbours called emergency services to report hearing explosions at the French consulate. The consulate was located in West Perth, in a converted single-storey Federation-style house, about 90 years old with brick walls and a largely timber interior. Fire services responded within four minutes and the fire took one hour to completely extinguish.〔 The building was destroyed,〔 and there were no injuries. The site was investigated by detectives from the arson squad, with damage estimated at A$300,000 by fire services.〔 Some suspected the firebombing was linked to France's decision to resume nuclear testing on Mururoa Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, announced by President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday that week.〔〔 Police chief superintendent Fred Zagami said police had taken "pro-active security steps in regard to the French consulate" on Wednesday, and nearly 100 people attended a peaceful demonstration outside the consulate on Friday.〔〔 Honorary French consul Dr Robert Pearce, a plastic surgeon whose consulting rooms and patient records were housed in the consulate, told the media he believed the fire was a protest against nuclear testing.〔〔
The French embassy in Canberra described the fire as "a series of criminal explosions" and "an unjustifiable criminal act which could have had tragic consequences".〔 Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating said "if it is proved that this action is a violent protest against the resumption of French nuclear testing in the South Pacific, it must be condemned for the extreme form it has taken",〔 and intentional destruction of property was "not part of the Australian way of life and must be rejected on every occasion."〔 Bob McMullan, Australia's Acting Foreign Minister, advised the media to show restraint and discourage "copy-cat incidents".〔 Western Australia's Premier, Richard Court, said the fire was "an act of terrorism which we don't accept in this country".〔 Later that day, a group named the Pacific Popular Front claimed responsibility for the fire.〔 Sergeant Chris Ferris, the WA Police media liaison officer, said that a male telephoned all newspapers and television stations in Perth and SBS in Sydney and read them a message.〔 SBS reporter Jane Willcox said the caller told them, "The Pacific Popular Front is claiming responsibility for fire-bombing the French embassy (). It was an attack on their belligerence."〔 Sergeant Ferris said the police force had not previously heard of the Pacific Popular Front.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1995 bombing of the French Consulate in Perth, Western Australia」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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