Live UpdateFrom the Liveblog of Sunday, August 15, 2021

Gantz orders IDF to assist firefighting efforts near Jerusalem

By Judah Ari Gross 15 August 2021, 6:47 pm Edit

Judah Ari Gross is The Times of Israel's religions and Diaspora affairs correspondent.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz orders the military to assist firefighters in battling a massive blaze outside the capital, his office says.

According to the military, firefighters and search-and-rescue troops from the Home Front Command, along with elite helicopter-borne Unit 669 rescue units, have been deployed to the area around Shoresh, west of Jerusalem.

“A number of aircraft have been dispatched for reconnaissance operations in the area,” the Israel Defense Forces says.