Greek govt finds signs of arson in deadly wildfires

"We have serious indications and significant findings of criminal activity concerning arson," Nikos Toskas said, referring to a "suspicious discovery" in Mati, where all the deaths have been registered.

Government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos emphasized that the investigation has been carried out with the help of satellite images provided by NASA, the European Space Agency and by other international entities at the request of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

These images show that not only the Mati fire, but also the Kineta fire in a forested area west of Athens, were probably started intentionally.

There, in less than half an hour, 13 distinct sites were spotted where separate fires had broken out - all of them parallel to a road - according to the satellite photos and videos.

Toskas, upon being asked about whether this crisis could have been handled differently, said that he had offered his resignation "as a matter of conscience" but that the prime minister refused to accept it.

In the face of criticism for not having evacuated the town of Mati, Tzanakopoulos emphasized the impossibility of undertaking such an operation in the short amount of time available, given that the fires spread quite quickly, fanned by winds of up to 120 kph (75 mph).