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)
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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.



Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve Celebrates Birth of its 15th Arabian Oryx Calf

The reserve announced the birth of its 15th Arabian oryx calf since the launch of its rewilding program in late 2022. SPA
The reserve announced the birth of its 15th Arabian oryx calf since the launch of its rewilding program in late 2022. SPA
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Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve Celebrates Birth of its 15th Arabian Oryx Calf

The reserve announced the birth of its 15th Arabian oryx calf since the launch of its rewilding program in late 2022. SPA
The reserve announced the birth of its 15th Arabian oryx calf since the launch of its rewilding program in late 2022. SPA

Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve has announced the birth of its 15th Arabian oryx calf since the launch of its rewilding program in late 2022, as part of the reserve’s Integrated Development Management Plan (IDMP), launched under the leadership of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, chairman of the Board of Directors.

“The birth of the reserve’s 15th oryx is a milestone in our conservation work and our contribution to the regional conservation effort to establish sustainable wild populations of this culturally iconic Arabian species across its native terrain,” a statement quoted CEO of the Reserve Andrew Zaloumis as saying.

The Arabian oryx, once extinct in the wild across the Arabian Peninsula, was declared extinct in the 1970s due to overhunting and loss of habitat.

Sustained conservation and reintroduction programs have since led to its reclassification as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List, highlighting its remarkable recovery.

The reserve’s habitat restoration program continues to support the reintroduction of native species, strengthen ecological resilience, and restore connectivity across landscapes — proof of the reserve’s commitment to Vision 2030 and the Saudi Green Initiative.