Israel sends firefighting aircraft to battle blaze in Cyprus
Published June 19, 2016
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel dispatched three firefighting aircraft to assist in efforts to extinguish a major fire near Paphos, Cyprus.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the planes to leave on Saturday following a formal request from Cyprus, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Cyprus was one of the first countries to send a firefighting aircraft to Israel during the massive 2010 fire in the Carmel forest near Haifa in northern Israel. The blaze burned for four days and killed 44 people.
The Cyprus fire, which lasted for two days, was extinguished by Sunday morning, according to local media. It burned 53 square feet of forest vegetation.
