Syria thanked the State of Qatar on Saturday for sending helicopters, vehicles, and personnel to support efforts to extinguish the ongoing forest fires in Latakia Governorate, which have been raging for ten days.
Syrian Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management Raed al-Saleh said via the X platform: "We thank the sisterly State of Qatar and the Support and Reinforcement Group of the Qatari Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya) for sending five aircraft carrying firefighting helicopters, fire engines, and 138 personnel to support efforts to extinguish the forest fires in the Latakia countryside (western governorate)."
Saleh explained that "the first Qatari teams arrived at Aleppo International Airport on Saturday morning and are on their way to the fire sites in the Latakia countryside," without specifying the number of personnel.
He continued: "We highly appreciate this noble humanitarian contribution, which reflects the depth of the fraternal ties between the Syrian and Qatari peoples."
For his part, Qatari Interior Minister Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani stated that, in implementation of the directives of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, a team from the Qatari International Search and Rescue Group, affiliated with the Lekhwiya Force, arrived at Aleppo International Airport today, representing the Standing Committee for Rescue, Relief, and Humanitarian Aid in Affected Areas in Brotherly and Friendly Countries.
He added, "This support is an extension of the State of Qatar's stance toward our brothers in Syria."
Syrian firefighting teams are facing significant difficulties in controlling the Latakia forest fires, which have been raging for 10 days. This is due to strong winds, which have rekindled the flames and spread sparks over long distances. This is in addition to the presence of war remnants and the extremely rugged terrain, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
In addition to the Qatari team that arrived today, Turkish, Jordanian, and Lebanese firefighting teams are also participating in extinguishing these fires.
According to Syrian authorities, the fires were sparked by high temperatures during the summer, while the Ministry of Interior stated that it is investigating the possible role of remnants of the former regime.
Regarding the latest developments in the fires, the Syrian Civil Defense announced via its Telegram channel on Saturday that firefighting teams were able to control several fires last night on the Qastal-Maaf-Kasab road in the Latakia countryside, despite the significant difficulties facing firefighting operations.
The Civil Defense explained that intensive efforts are being made by field firefighting teams to combat the fires, limit their spread, and cool the fires that have been extinguished in the areas of Jabal al-Nisr, Burj Zahia, al-Barakah, and Sheikh Hassan.
It indicated that isolation operations in these areas are continuing, with fire lines being opened in the forests to facilitate access, and aircraft continue to support extinguishing operations and prevent the spread of the fires.
Speaking about the difficulties facing the extinguishing operation, the Civil Defense stated that strong winds on Friday afternoon caused the fires to spread again and expand in the forests of the northern Latakia countryside, despite the teams' ability to stop the spread of the flames in the morning, especially in the Nabaa al-Mar area near the city of Kasab, which is one of the most difficult areas for teams to combat the spread of fires.
Last night, the Civil Defense stated that extinguishing operations were being conducted on three main axes to combat the spread of fires in the forests of the northern Lattakia countryside. These are Burj Zahia, the Farnaq forests, and the Nabaa al-Mar area. These are the most difficult axes to operate on due to the dense forests, rugged terrain, and the widespread presence of mines and war remnants.
Mazen Alloush, Director of Public Relations at the General Authority for Land and Sea Ports, announced earlier this morning the temporary closure of the Kasab border crossing in the Lattakia countryside from the Turkish side due to the fires raging in the coastal mountains and their proximity to the border area.
AA, Syria Journal
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