Turkiye deploys firefighting aircraft to Syria as wildfires intensify on both sides of border

Istanbul: Turkiye sent two firefighting aircraft Saturday to help battle wildfires in neighbouring Syria as Tu rkish firefighters battled a blaze on their side of the border and one person was reported dead in the country’s west.

Eleven fire trucks and water support vehicles were also dispatched to help beat back flames in Syria’s northwest Latakia region, according to Raed Al Saleh, the Syrian minister of emergency and disaster management. He posted on X, saying “sudden wildfires in Turkiye” delayed their arrival by almost a day.

Turkiye has been battling wildfires since June 26.

Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said Saturday that firefighters successfully controlled 10 major fires in western Turkiye, but an injured forestry worker had died, the third in the municipality of Odemis in Izmir province.

Authorities said most of the fires in Izmir were caused by faulty power lines. In Turkiye’s Hatay province, crews battled a fast-spreading fire near Dortyol, prompting the evacuation of 920 homes, officials said. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya reported 44 arrests linked to 65 fires nationwide. Blazes across Turkiye, Greece, and Syria—driven by

extreme heat, winds, and low humidity—have

damaged homes.