Illustration. Firefighters fight blaze west of Jerusalem
Illustration. Firefighters fight blaze west of JerusalemFlash90

Dozens of American firefighters arrived in Israel on Sunday to assist in the ongoing efforts to battle blazes across the country in what has been dubbed the “Arson Intifada”.

Forty volunteer firefighters from the US landed in Ben Gurion airport on Sunday in cooperation with the Emergency Volunteer Project.

The EVP, which re-trains American firefighters to operate in Israel during emergency situations, dispatched the team after hundreds of fires across the country have strained Israel’s own fire departments.

While the dry, windy weather is responsible for some of the hundreds of fires that have been sparked over the past week, security officials estimate at least half of the recent blazes can be attributed to arson.

Israeli police are currently investigating 233 suspected cases of arson, and have arrested 37 individuals.

A series of fires in the northern coastal city of Haifa forced some 85,000 residents to flee their homes last week and left more than 400 houses destroyed.