Israeli planes help fight wildfire in Cyprus breakaway north

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Israel has dispatched two water-dropping aircraft to help battle a large wildfire that has scorched at least 10,000 acres of forest on the foothills of the Pentadaktylos mountain range in the breakaway north of ethnically divided Cyprus.

The two Israeli aircraft on Thursday joined another two planes and a helicopter that the Cyprus government sent to fight the blaze following a request from breakaway Turkish Cypriot authorities made through the United Nations Peacekeeping Force (UNFICYP) on the island nation.

Aircraft from Turkey, the UN and two British military bases on the island are also helping in firefighting efforts.