The firefighters fought the fires on the outskirts of Jerusalem for a second consecutive day, hoping to extinct some of the country's worst flames in recent years before an expected increase in the winds later on Thursday.
The authorities reopened the main highway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and allowed the displaced people to return to their homes in Israel and the Israeli occupied West Bank after the fires interrupted the celebrations to mark the day of independence.
But the firefighters were running to take full control of the flames before the winds were foreseen, said Tal Volvovitch, spokesperson for the rescue and rescue service of Israel.
“We are doing everything possible to finish in the next few hours because the gusts of wind can take us where we started,” he said by phone.
The exact cause of the fires was not clear, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said that 18 people had been arrested for suspicion of a malicious fire, including one who said he was captured by the act. But Aryeh Doron, spokesman for the Israeli police, said that only three people were arrested for suspicion of malicious fire.
On Wednesday, Mr. Netanyahu said that strong winds, dryness and open areas with shrubs created a “fatal combination” that fed the fires. Thursday, the Israeli police arrested a 19 -year -old man from a Palestinian neighborhood in Jerusalem Est after saying he had written on social media in support of fires.
The fire -fighting planes from Croatia, Italy and Cyprus had to arrive on Thursday afternoon to help the Israeli effort, said Mrs. Volovitch.
The Palestinian authority, which manages parts of the Israeli western West Bill, has also offered to help, according to Hussein Al-Sheikh, a high Palestinian official. But Mrs. Volovitch suggested that they would not have united to the fire efforts.
In 2021, the Palestinian firefighters joined the Israeli efforts to face a similar fire near Jerusalem. The current Israeli government has often criticized the Palestinian authority, even if they collaborate closely on safety in the West Bank.
Israel's fire and rescue service has issued an order that prohibits fire lighting in open spaces until May 7, but said the Israelis could contain barbecues in the designated areas. Many Israelis crowd every year with parks and beaches to keep the barbecues on the day of independence, a holiday to commemorate the foundation of the country.
The cartilage of Sheikh Ahmad AND Aaron Boxerman Relationships contributed to this article.