Firefighters battle blaze in Ben Shemen forest
Woods are popular with hikers, cyclists and families; JNF asks people to avoid the area amid efforts to control flames
Illustrative: Firefighters try to extinguish a forest fire blazing near Kiryat Anavim, outside of Jerusalem, on June 08, 2022. (Noam Revkin Fenton/FLASH90)
A large wildfire broke out Monday in the Ben Shemen forest, located between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Fifteen teams of firefighters were battling the blaze, with four aircraft assisting from the skies.
The KKL-JNF Jewish National Fund, which administers the Ben Shemen park, asked the public to avoid the area.
The cause of the fire wasn’t immediately clear.
In 2019, a fire in the area almost completely destroyed Mevo Modiim, a community of some 250 people nestled into the Ben Shemen forest.
