A DELIBERATE house fire in the Highlands is being treated as attempted murder, police have said.
Officers were called to a blaze on Wallace Place in Fort William at about 12.50am on Friday.
A woman and a girl were inside the house but they were not injured.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service extinguished the blaze and some nearby properties were evacuated as a precaution.
Detectives are now looking for two men who were seen in the area at the time.
One man was seen on Wallace Place wearing two-tone trousers with dark-coloured patches over the knees and a hooded top.
The other man was seen running on Bruce Place wearing a dark coloured jacket, baseball cap and shorts.
Detective Inspector Andy Bilton said: "Whoever is responsible showed complete disregard for the safety of the woman and a girl who were within the property.
"Luckily no-one was injured however the consequences of this dangerous and reckless act could have been much more serious.
"If there are people in the local area with information that could assist or if you recognise the descriptions of the men given, please contact us.
"It is imperative to our investigation that anyone who saw anything suspicious or out of the ordinary gets in touch as soon as possible."
Anyone with information has been asked to contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 0140 of April 25.
