Four Dead from Devastating Cyprus Forest Fire

Smoke from a forest fire is seen in Ora village, Larnaca, Cyprus, July 3, 2021, in this picture obtained from social media. (Andrea Anastasiou via Reuters)
Smoke from a forest fire is seen in Ora village, Larnaca, Cyprus, July 3, 2021, in this picture obtained from social media. (Andrea Anastasiou via Reuters)
TT
20

Four Dead from Devastating Cyprus Forest Fire

Smoke from a forest fire is seen in Ora village, Larnaca, Cyprus, July 3, 2021, in this picture obtained from social media. (Andrea Anastasiou via Reuters)
Smoke from a forest fire is seen in Ora village, Larnaca, Cyprus, July 3, 2021, in this picture obtained from social media. (Andrea Anastasiou via Reuters)

Four people were found dead on Sunday as a huge fire raged for a second day in Cyprus, razing tracts of forest and gutting dozens of homes in a blaze one official called the worst on record.

The blaze, fanned by strong winds, affected at least 10 communities over an area exceeding 50 square kilometers (19 square miles) in the foothills of the Troodos Mountain range, an area of pine forest and densely vegetated shrubland.

"It’s one of the most destructive (fires) we have experienced, unfortunately, with victims," Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades told reporters from the area. The state would stand by and support all those affected, he said.

The area includes some of Cyprus's most picturesque mountain villages. Witnesses said slopes of lush pine or fruit tree orchards had been turned to smoldering black stumps on a barren grey landscape.

"It will take them at least 10 years to grow back. How are we to survive?" said farmer Andreas Costa, 70, who wept as Anastasiades tried to comfort him.

"It burnt everything," Costa told state TV.

The victims, thought to be Egyptian nationals, were found dead close to Odou, a mountainous community north of the cities of Limassol and Larnaca.

"All indications point to it being the four persons who were missing since yesterday," Interior Minister Nicos Nouris said.

The EU's executive, the European Commission, said firefighting planes had departed from Greece to battle the fire and Italy was also planning to deploy aerial firefighters.

Israel also pledged assistance and aircraft from British military bases in Cyprus also contributed.

The EU's emergency Copernicus satellite was activated to provide damage assessment maps of the affected areas, the Commission said in a statement.

The cause of the fire, which started around midday on Saturday, was unclear. Cyprus experiences high temperatures in the summer months, with temperatures in recent days exceeding 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit).

Police said they were questioning a 67-year-old person in connection with the blaze.



Russian Overnight Attack on Ukraine Kills One, Damages Energy Facilities, Ukraine Says 

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, firefighters put out the fire following a Russian attack in Sumy, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, firefighters put out the fire following a Russian attack in Sumy, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)
TT
20

Russian Overnight Attack on Ukraine Kills One, Damages Energy Facilities, Ukraine Says 

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, firefighters put out the fire following a Russian attack in Sumy, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, firefighters put out the fire following a Russian attack in Sumy, Ukraine, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

At least one person was killed and 10 injured, including three children, in overnight drone attacks by Russia on Ukraine, officials said on Wednesday.

Various attacks also damaged energy facilities in two regions, according to the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

The attacks came as both sides accuse each other of not abiding by a US-proposed moratorium on strikes on each other's energy facilities.

"This systematic and constant nature of Russian strikes clearly indicates that Moscow despises the diplomatic efforts of partners," Zelenskiy said. "What's needed is new and tangible pressure on Russia to put this war on a path toward ending."

A drone hit a substation in the northeastern Sumy region and artillery fire damaged a power line in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, cutting electricity to nearly 4,000 consumers, he said on X.

A 45-year-old civilian was killed and two people were injured in a strike on a settlement near the frontline in Zaporizhzhia region, the governor of the southeastern region said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.

Fifteen drone strikes were carried out on Kharkiv, which is Ukraine's second largest city and lies close to the Russian border, city Mayor Ihor Terekhov said in a post on Telegram.

Oleh Sinehubov, the region's governor, said that a 9-month infant, a 7-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl were among the eight injured in Kharkiv.

Russia has recently intensified its strikes on the city, with its attacks killing at least two people over the weekend and injuring tens more.

The Ukrainian air force shot down 41 drones out of 74 launched by Russia, it said in a statement on Telegram.

Another 20 drones did not reach their targets, likely due to electronic warfare countermeasures, it added, without saying what happened to the remaining 13 drones.

Both sides deny targeting civilians in the war that began with Russia's invasion in February 2022, saying their attacks are aimed at destroying each other's infrastructure crucial to war efforts.