The European Union (EU) will help Israel fight the forest fires that have engulfed the country.

Axar.az informs that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote about this on the "X" social network.

"We have activated the European Civil Protection Mechanism. Firefighting aircraft have been sent from Greece, Croatia, and Italy," the EC head wrote.

According to the Jewish National Fund, about 20 square kilometers of land have burned in Israel since Wednesday morning, more than half of which is forest.

Recall that on May 30, forest fires broke out in the Jerusalem mountains during extreme heat in Israel. The fire, accompanied by strong, dry winds, quickly spread to several areas west of Jerusalem. Fires also broke out in other areas of the country during the day. As a result, roads and railways were closed. The population was also evacuated from some villages.