Turkish Firefighters Battle to Contain Wildfire in Northwest 

A helicopter carries a water bucket as a wildfire burns in Canakkale, Türkiye, August 22, 2023, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. (Gurkan Duzenli/via Reuters)
A helicopter carries a water bucket as a wildfire burns in Canakkale, Türkiye, August 22, 2023, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. (Gurkan Duzenli/via Reuters)
TT

Turkish Firefighters Battle to Contain Wildfire in Northwest 

A helicopter carries a water bucket as a wildfire burns in Canakkale, Türkiye, August 22, 2023, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. (Gurkan Duzenli/via Reuters)
A helicopter carries a water bucket as a wildfire burns in Canakkale, Türkiye, August 22, 2023, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. (Gurkan Duzenli/via Reuters)

Firefighters battled a forest fire in the northwestern Turkish province of Canakkale on Wednesday as it spread for a second day because of high temperatures and strong wind.

Helicopters and land vehicles worked through the night and Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said more than 1,200 people from nine villages were moved to safety, with 48 people needing medical treatment.

Authorities also moved patients, including elderly people, from some medical centers as a precaution.

News footage showed raging fames and billowing smoke in hills visible from residential areas. Flames engulfed some abandoned village houses.

Marine traffic in the Dardanelles Strait, a narrow passage connecting the Aegean Sea to the Black Sea, was suspended again, the Tribeca shipping agency said, to allow aircraft including helicopters to collect water to douse the flames.



Saudi Interior Ministry Issues Special Stamp Commemorating World Arabic Language Day

The stamp will be applied on the passports of travelers at Saudi Arabia's international entry/exit points. SPA
The stamp will be applied on the passports of travelers at Saudi Arabia's international entry/exit points. SPA
TT

Saudi Interior Ministry Issues Special Stamp Commemorating World Arabic Language Day

The stamp will be applied on the passports of travelers at Saudi Arabia's international entry/exit points. SPA
The stamp will be applied on the passports of travelers at Saudi Arabia's international entry/exit points. SPA

The General Directorate of Passports, at the Saudi Ministry of Interior, in coordination with the King Salman Global Academy for Arabic Language, issued a special stamp to commemorate World Arabic Language Day on December 18, with the slogan "We Are Proud of our Language.”

The stamp will be applied on the passports of travelers at Saudi Arabia's international entry/exit points.