Chile blames forest fires on terrorists

SANTIAGO, Chile, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- Six firefighters were killed trying to put out forest fires in the Carahue community of southern Chile, officials said.

President Sebastian Pinera said Thursday the recent fires in La Araucaria, Maule and Biobio were deliberately set by criminals with terrorist intentions, the Buenos Aires Herald reported.

"We have trustworthy information that makes us presume that there is a criminal intention behind these fires," Pinera told a press conference. "We must not only fight the fires, but the criminals who allegedly started them."