Firefighters Battle to Contain Three Wildfires in Western Türkiye

People walk in front of the Eminonu New Mosque during sunset in Istanbul, Türkiye, 15 August 2024. EPA/ERDEM SAHIN
People walk in front of the Eminonu New Mosque during sunset in Istanbul, Türkiye, 15 August 2024. EPA/ERDEM SAHIN
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Firefighters Battle to Contain Three Wildfires in Western Türkiye

People walk in front of the Eminonu New Mosque during sunset in Istanbul, Türkiye, 15 August 2024. EPA/ERDEM SAHIN
People walk in front of the Eminonu New Mosque during sunset in Istanbul, Türkiye, 15 August 2024. EPA/ERDEM SAHIN

Firefighters are trying to contain wildfires raging in three provinces of northwestern Türkiye, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said late on Thursday, adding that the outlook was positive.

Fourteen planes, 31 helicopters and 265 land vehicles were involved in the firefighting efforts, along with some 1,400 forestry personnel, Reuters quoted Yumakli as saying.
The wildfires broke out in the Eceabat district of Canakkale province, the Goynuk district of Bolu province and Manisa province's Gordes district.
It was not yet clear what caused the fires.
"In all three ongoing wildfires, there is a process that's heading for the better. God willing, I hope to give you good news tomorrow (Friday) and share with you that all three of our fires are finished," he said.
Footage from the three fires showed flames engulfing swathes of lands with black smoke billowing above forests and cities. No residential areas were at risk from the flames, local officials said.
Canakkale Governor Omer Toraman said certain neighborhoods in three villages had been evacuated as a precaution, but that there was no threat to residential areas.
Bolu Governor Erkan Kilic was cited by state media as saying that around 100 hectares of land had been damaged in the fire so far, and that three villages had been evacuated as a precaution.
The wildfire in Manisa, which started on Wednesday, is now in its third day.



North Korea’s Kim and Russia’s Putin Vow Deeper Ties on Korean Liberation Day 

This picture taken on August 15, 2024 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 16, 2024 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) visiting the children of flood-affected victims, who were relocated from the northwestern part of the country, as they eat at a dining hall in Pyongyang.  (KCNA via KNS / AFP)
This picture taken on August 15, 2024 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 16, 2024 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) visiting the children of flood-affected victims, who were relocated from the northwestern part of the country, as they eat at a dining hall in Pyongyang. (KCNA via KNS / AFP)
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North Korea’s Kim and Russia’s Putin Vow Deeper Ties on Korean Liberation Day 

This picture taken on August 15, 2024 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 16, 2024 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) visiting the children of flood-affected victims, who were relocated from the northwestern part of the country, as they eat at a dining hall in Pyongyang.  (KCNA via KNS / AFP)
This picture taken on August 15, 2024 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on August 16, 2024 shows North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) visiting the children of flood-affected victims, who were relocated from the northwestern part of the country, as they eat at a dining hall in Pyongyang. (KCNA via KNS / AFP)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed a pledge to deepen cooperation with Russia in a message to President Vladimir Putin as Pyongyang marked an anniversary of independence from Japan's colonial rule, KCNA state news agency said on Friday.

It was in reply to a message of congratulations from Putin on the Aug. 15 liberation day anniversary where the Russian leader said the bond forged as Soviet soldiers fought against Japan continues to serve as the basis of their ties, KCNA said.

"The friendly feelings of the armies and peoples of the two countries forged and deepened in the bloody struggle against the common enemy serve as a strong driving force for developing ... relations of friendship and cooperation into comprehensive strategic partnership and invincible comradeship," Kim said.

Kim and Putin held a second summit meeting in less than a year in June in Pyongyang, signing a pact on "comprehensive strategic partnership" that includes a mutual defense agreement.

It came amid accusations by South Korea, Ukraine and the United States that Kim is helping Russia in the war against Ukraine by supplying rockets and missiles in return for economic and other military assistance from Moscow.

Kim visited a memorial honoring the Korean revolutionary soldiers who fought in resistance to Japan to end the 1910-1945 colonial rule and the Liberation Tower where Soviet Red Army soldiers are remembered, KCNA said.

North Korea's state founder Kim Il Sung, who is the current leader's grandfather, was backed by Soviet Union General Secretary Joseph Stalin who declared war against Japan near the end of World War Two.

The Soviets backed Kim's communist forces that eventually established North Korea after Korea's liberation in 1945.

North Korean state media made no mention of a blueprint for unification announced by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday, calling for dialogue with Pyongyang and proposing an international conference on North Korea's human rights.

Coming at one of the lowest points in the two Koreas' ties, Yoon's blueprint was accepted with skepticism among some experts, who doubt whether it is realistic to expect Pyongyang to see it as anything other than an existential threat to its regime.

On Friday, South Korea's Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho, who oversees inter-Korea relations, said he disagreed with those who say North Korea will reject the plan if it responds at all.

"I believe North Korea will carefully review our government proposal," he told a briefing.