Israel sends 'Wings of Fire' wildfire relief to Cyprus amid unprecedented heatwave
Israel sent a wildfire relief rescue mission to Cyprus on Monday to help combat a recent outbreak of fires due to soaring temperatures on the nearby island nation.
Dubbed “Wings of Fire,” the Israeli rescue mission comes at the request of Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides. The Jewish state will join international efforts to extinguish considerable fires in the port city of Limassol.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu initiated the Israeli relief mission, which was greenlighted by Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
“This is pursuant to a request by the Republic of Cyprus for emergency assistance, based on the strong bilateral partnership,” stated the Prime Minister’s Office.
“The crews and equipment will be transported by the IDF Shimshon aircraft… which will assist in extinguishing the huge fires that are raging in the Republic of Cyprus due to the extreme weather [and] strong winds,” according to the PMO statement.
Great Britain, Jordan, Greece and Lebanon have also sent firefighting crews to assist Cyprus in containing the huge fires caused by extreme weather conditions.
Cypriot Justice Minister Anna Koukkides-Procopiou spoke with international media about progress in fighting the enormous wildfire.
"Today we managed to contain the fire. There are some fronts which are a cause for concern so air assets will be dispatched tomorrow for precautionary reasons. ... We hope tomorrow will be better," Koukkides-Procopiou told journalists.
Israel and Cyprus enjoy close diplomatic, security and commercial relations.
In May, the two nations discussed potential cooperation to establish a strategic pipeline that would transport Israeli natural gas via Cyprus to the European market.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
