Fires destroy 450 hectares of forests in Tunisia

TUNIS, Tunisia

Wildfires in Tunisia's northern Bizerte and Jendouba provinces have destroyed 450 hectares of the country’s pine and acacia forests.

"Nine wildfires erupted in Bizerte in less than 24 hours and damaged around 50 hectares,” Brigadier Kamal El-Meliti, the director of civil protection department in the province, said.

According to El-Meliti, more than 100 hectares of forests were also damaged by the flames in Mount Nadhour in Bizerte.

Fires were also reported in Ain Drahem in Jendouba province, amid reports that around 300 hectares of forests were destroyed.

A Tunisian source said on condition of anonymity that efforts were underway to contain the fires in cooperation between the Tunisian army, the Civil Protection and the Forests Management.

The Tunisian National Institute of Meteorology blames the fires on high temperatures in the North African country.

A number of countries on the Mediterranean Sea are struggling to extinguish fires that broke out in different areas in recent weeks, including Turkey, Greece, Algeria and Italy.

Writing by Ahmed Asmar