While the world grieves at the devastating destruction of the Notre Dame Cathedral, few have the guts to consider if this could have been a deliberate attack on France’s Christian community during this Holy Week.

Consider this; according to a group that studies hate crime attacks against Christians in France, February was the worst month for attacks on Christian churches since they began collecting data. Catholic League president Bill Donahue said he was “suspicious that the fire was truly an accident.” Adding that, “Just last month, a 17th century church was set on fire in Paris. We have seen Tabernacles knocked down, crosses have been torn down, and statues have been smashed.”

The blaze that consumed much of Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral on Monday afternoon was, by all official accounts, a tragic accident related to ongoing renovations on the structure’s wooden frame. However, TIME columnist Christopher J. Hale tweeted, “A Jesuit friend in Paris who works in Notre Dame told me cathedral staff said the fire was intentionally set.”

Hale very suddenly and suspiciously deleted the tweet within minutes after it attracted attention.

Other Churches in France Have Been Attacked and Desecrated

The Saint Sulpice church in Paris was deliberately set on fire earlier this year, although media reports downplayed the story.

As stated above, anti-Christian attacks in France are on the rise while attacks against Jewish symbols have also risen by 74 per cent.

According to Ellen Fantini, anti-Christian attacks are being minimized despite representing the largest share of hate crimes.

Furthermore, as pointed out by Alex Jones, and other free-thinking patriots, there were quite a number of those of Muslim decent posting smiley-face emojis on Facebook and other social media beneath pictures of the iconic church in flames, and at least a few pictures have been captured of Muslims laughing and smiling watching in real life as the church burned.