At least 12 people have died in a massive forest fire in the Kurdish region of southeastern Turkey.
Announcing X’s death toll, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said 78 people were injured as flames spread across Diyarbakir and Mardin provinces.
Hundreds of animals have died in the fire, which started on Thursday and continued until Friday.
Temperatures exceeded 40C (104F) in most parts of Turkey last week, drying out forests and bushes.
An investigation into the cause of this fire is underway.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya blamed “stubble burning”, the practice of deliberately lighting crop residue on fire.
This is not the first time the South has been ravaged by fire. In the summer of 2021, blazes devastated a coastal resort and claimed nine lives.
