* Fire hits Islamic center in Corvallis, Oregon
* Alleged bomber studied nearby, went to mosque sometimes
* Portland imam calls bomb plot a 'big, dangerous mess'
* 19-year-old alleged bomb plotter due in court on Monday (Adds reaction of local Muslim leader, background)
By Teresa Carson
PORTLAND, Oregon, Nov 28 (Reuters) - U.S. investigators said on Sunday a fire at an Islamic center in Oregon was arson and warned they would tolerate no attack in retribution for a foiled attempt by a Somali-born teenager to detonate what he thought was a car bomb.
The fire occurred less than two days after Mohamed Osman Mohamud, who attended prayers at the center, was arrested in a sting operation for attempting to detonate a fake bomb at a Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Oregon's largest city, Portland. [ID:nN27142099]
The fire struck the Salman Alfarisi Islamic Center in Corvallis before dawn on Sunday, and an official said the damage was limited to one room.
"We eliminated other causes of the fire, and we do have evidence that it was arson," said Carla Pusateri of Corvallis Fire Department, who led the investigation of the fire.
Mohamud, 19, took classes at Oregon State University in Corvallis, about 80 miles (130 km) south of Portland, and the imam at Salman Alfarisi had previously told local television that Mohamud "occasionally" attended prayers there.
The FBI said agents were investigating the apparent arson attack, offering up to ${esc.dollar}10,000 for any information leading to a conviction.
"We have made it quite clear that the FBI will not tolerate any kind of retribution or attack on the Muslim community," Arthur Balizan, a senior FBI agent in Oregon, said in a statement. "We are working very closely with the leadership at the mosque."
Islamic leaders roundly condemned the alleged bomb plot, worrying about what it could mean for local Muslims and the fast-growing community of Somalis in the Portland area, estimated to number 8,000.
FEARS OF BACKLASH
"This is a big, dangerous mess," Imam Mikal Shabazz, president of the Oregon Islamic Chaplains Organization and a prominent Muslim activist in Portland, told Reuters on Sunday as he learned of the mosque fire.
He said Mohamud's actions were having unintended consequences, and he feared a broader backlash against the alleged plot to kill people at a popular annual holiday event attended by thousands in the center of Portland.
"The picture of what was proposed is horrible and people can be riled up, instigated and manipulated now," Shabazz said, adding that he had spoken with an African-American Muslim woman who was verbally attacked by a young man in southwest Portland, before others intervened in her defense.
The supposed car bomb in Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square was a fake provided by law enforcement, and officials said the public had never been in danger at any time during the sting operation, which lasted for months.
Officials said Mohamud, a naturalized U.S. citizen, had been in contact with an unnamed individual believed to be in northwest Pakistan and involved in terrorist activities.
He proceeded with the plot despite opportunities to back away, said a U.S. government complaint, which quotes him praising the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and expressing a desire to see "body parts and blood" in Portland.
He is due to appear in a federal court in Portland on Monday. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and a ${esc.dollar}250,000 fine if convicted of the charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction. (Additional reporting and writing by Braden Reddall in San Francisco; editing by Mohammad Zargham)
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