Large swaths of northern Israel were engulfed by wild fires set off by rockets launched from Lebanon by the terrorist group Hezbollah, with rescue teams battling on Monday to get them under control.
Many Israelis who live in towns near the Lebanon border evacuated months ago given the escalating fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Israeli media reported several minor injuries and that some houses had caught fire.
Hot and dry weather have made the flames harder to contain.
Israel’s parks authority said earlier on Monday that fires had already covered hundreds of acres. The national fire service said that at least nine firefighting brigades were operating late into the night in several spots, including in the town of Kiryat Shmona where they were trying to protect a line of houses.
Northern Israel fire crisis
Pictures from the scene showed heavy smoking clouds forming as Fire and Rescue authority brigades attempted to gain control of the flames.
Police said they closed off roads and were telling residents still in the area to clear out.
According to later reports, six IDF reserve soldiers suffered minor injured as a result of inhaling smoke. All six were evacuated to a hospital and their families were notified.
The spokesperson for the meyor of Kiryat Shmona interviewed at Kan News on Monday night, where he said regarding the fires, “No major damage to the houses. We hear too many promises, let there be more actions.”
Following the fires in northern Israel, Chairman of Yesh Atid party Yair Lapid criticised National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Ynet reported on Tuesday. According to the report, Lapid said, “The entire north is burning and the minister in charge of firefighting services went to a show at the Sultan’s Pool.”
On Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stated, “The Prime Minister held a situational assessment with the heads of the security branches regarding the developments in northern Israel. The Prime Minister received an update from the National Fire and Rescue Authority on the firefighting efforts,” concerning the widespread fires in northern Israel.
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