‘SEVERELY GUTTED’

Man Facing Arson Charges Over South African Parliament’s ‘Devastating’ Blaze

A parliament spokesperson declined to identify the suspect, who is in his early 50s and was arrested Sunday morning inside the parliamentary complex.

A man has been arrested after a large fire at South Africa’s Houses of Parliament tore through multiple historic structures on Sunday. The suspect is in his early 50s, according to Parliament’s spokesperson Moloto Mothapo, and is facing charges of arson, housebreaking, and theft. Mothapo declined to identify the man, but said he was arrested early Sunday morning inside the parliamentary complex. President Cyril Ramaphosa called the blaze a “terrible and devastating event,” though no injuries were reported.

Jean-Pierre Smith, a member of Cape Town’s mayoral committee for safety and security, reported that the extent of the damage had yet to be assessed. However, “the entire parliamentary complex is severely damaged—waterlogged and smoke damaged,” Smith said. He added that the roof of the old assembly hall was “completely gone,” and confirmed there had been “significant damage” to the New Assembly Wing. Some offices, a statement reported, were also “severely gutted.” Firefighters were still working to extinguish the blaze, which was reported around 6 a.m. on Sunday night.