At Least 65 Dead in Massive Wildfires in Algeria Blamed on Arson

At least 65 people have been killed in forest fires that have been ravaging Algeria since Monday night. Some 25 of the dead are soldiers who were working to put out the fires sweeping through the mountainous Kabyle region, located 60 miles east of the capital Algiers. Algeria’s Interior Minister Kamel Beldjoud on Tuesday blamed the dozens of fires, said to have started at the same time, on arson, though he did not provide any evidence. Beldjoud said that his priority is to prevent the fire from taking any more victims and said the country would compensate those affected. Massive fires also are blazing in Turkey and Greece as the area battles an oppressive heat wave.