Israel Scrambles to Extinguish Wildfires Near Jerusalem for 2nd Day
Firefighters battled wildfires on the outskirts of Jerusalem for a second consecutive day, hoping to extinguish some of the worst blazes in the country in recent years before an expected uptick in winds later on Thursday.
The authorities reopened the main highway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and allowed evacuees to return to their homes in Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank after the fires interrupted celebrations to mark Independence Day.
But firefighters were racing to take full control of the blazes before winds were forecast to pick up, said Tal Volvovitch, a spokeswoman for Israel's fire and rescue service.
'We're doing everything we can to finish in the coming hours because the wind gusts can bring us back to where we started,' she said by telephone.
The exact cause of the fires was unclear, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said that 18 people had been detained on suspicion of arson, including one who he said was caught in the act.
On Wednesday, Mr. Netanyahu said strong winds, dryness, and open areas with shrubbery had created a 'deadly combination' that fueled the fires. On Thursday, the Israeli police arrested a 19-year-old man from a Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem after they said he wrote on social media in support of the wildfires.
Firefighting planes from Croatia, Italy, and Cyprus were scheduled to arrive on Thursday afternoon to help the Israeli effort, Ms. Volovitch said.
The Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has also offered to help, according to Hussein al-Sheikh, a senior Palestinian official. But Ms. Volovitch suggested they would not be joining the firefighting efforts.
In 2021, Palestinian firefighters joined Israeli efforts to deal with a similar wildfire near Jerusalem. The current Israeli government has frequently criticized the Palestinian Authority, even though they cooperate closely on security in the West Bank.
Israel's fire and rescue service issued an order banning the lighting of fires in open spaces until May 7, but it said Israelis could hold barbecues in designated areas. Many Israelis flock annually to parks and beaches to hold barbecues on Independence Day, a holiday to commemorate the founding of the country.
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