The Latest Breaking News from Jerusalem

Fire is being whipped up by strong winds and hot, dry weather

France is sending a firefighting plane to help Israel control wildfires burning west of Jerusalem. The fires have spread quickly due to strong winds and extreme heat, forcing evacuations and putting emergency services on high alert.

Several countries are sending firefighting aircraft to Israel as crews battle for a second day to extinguish a wildfire that had shut down a major highway linking Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and sent drivers scrambling from their cars

Firefighter planes from Greece, Cyprus, Croatia and Italy were sent to Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Wednesday that rapidly spreading wildfires near Jerusalem could reach the city, as he declared the situation a "national emergency".

Many events planned for the country’s memorial day have been cancelled

Help was on the way from across the region, including aircraft from Italy, Croatia and North Macedonia, Israeli officials said.

A wildfire has shut the main highway linking Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, sending at least a dozen people to the hospital and turning the skies over Jerusalem gray

Israeli diplomatic missions worldwide also instructed to delete similar posts and not to sign Vatican embassy condolence books, according to local media

In the last 18 months of his life, Pope Francis frequently called with the only Catholic church in Gaza to see how people huddled inside were coping with the devastating war.

As the killings in Gaza continue, Israel prevents many Christians from reaching holy sites or homes in Jerusalem.