World

Wildfires on Rhodes force hundreds of holidaymakers to flee their hotels

Published

2 years ago

July 22, 2023

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Wildfires on the Greek island of Rhodes have forced hundreds of holidaymakers to flee their hotels.

Images show the skies above the island full of smoke with the orange hue of the flames clearly visible.

Four locations close to the areas of Kiotari and Lardos in the southeastern part of the island have been evacuated.

Users on social media have been describing the scene, with Paul Karlburgi writing on Twitter: “Currently stranded in #Rhodes escaping the wildfires on foot – left everything at the hotel and fled with towels across our faces.

“My youngest just told me he doesn’t want to die. No news from any authorities. Terrifying situation here.”

The flames have reached three hotels, which have also been evacuated, according to local media reports.

Fire Service spokesman Yannis Artopios said more than 200 firefighters and 40 fire engines were operating on the ground, assisted by three planes and five helicopters.

The force includes 31 firefighters from Slovakia, with five fire engines.

Three coastguard vessels, plus one from the army, were evacuating people from two beaches on Saturday.

More than 20 private boats were also assisting and the Greek navy was sending a vessel.

Mr Artopios added the residents of four localities were sent SMS messages to evacuate – in two of these areas they were told to move to the northeast and, in two others, to the southwest.

Wildfires have been plaguing Greece for days as a result of the heatwave ongoing across southern Europe.

James Hall, who is holidaying on the island, told Sky News: “It was a bit of madness this morning. We got the government text telling us to evacuate then we dragged our suitcases for two hours in 40C heat.

“After the two-hour walk, we took refuge in a hotel. If we see any fire on a nearby hilltop we’ll have to evacuate again.

“We were meant to be picked up from our hotel at 7am but that seems to have burned down.

“We’ve heard nothing from our airline.

“If you were in a wheelchair the chances of you getting out in a timely manner were pretty much nil.

“There was very little help.”

Another tourist, David Woodhouse, said fires are spreading and smoke is encompassing much of the island.

Freelance TV producer Daphne Tolis added: “More than 1,000 people evacuated by sea so far on #Rhodes as the #wildfire is raging.

“The coastguard has ordered nearby yachts and private boats to assist evacuation operations by sea.”

While holidaymaker Jon Hughes tweeted: “Jet2 where are you? No help, contact or guidance. Had to walk 4 mile in the heat across dirt tracks in smoke and ash with a 5 year old. No possessions #jet2 #rhodes #lindosimperial.”

A spokesperson from the air line TUI said: “We’re aware of wildfires in an area in the south of Rhodes and our teams in resort are following advice from the local authorities.

“A small number of hotels have been impacted and as a precaution we’re relocating affected customers and providing them with alternative accommodation.

“Flights continue to operate as normal and we will be in contact with customers should their holidays be impacted. Our main priority is always the safety of our customers and we’ll continue to keep a close eye on the situation.”

Easyjet also released a statement saying that the airline was “aware of the wildfires currently affecting Rhodes and its thoughts are with those affected.

“Flights to and from Rhodes are currently operating as normal however we continue to closely monitor the situation and the advice provided by the relevant authorities.

“Whilst our schedule is not affected and will operate as planned, we advise customers travelling to and from Rhodes to check the status of their flights on Flight Tracker on our mobile app or website.”

The blaze in Rhodes was just one of several active across Greece, Mr Artopios said.

The fire northwest of Athens and one near Sparta were subsiding, he said, although the conditions, including temperatures set to reach 45C on Sunday and low humidity (below 15%), mean that the danger is not over and more wildfires might break out.

The Fire Service has designated almost the whole eastern part of the mainland, plus the islands of Evia and Rhodes, as well as large parts of the southwest, as Category 5 – the highest for the risk of fire outbreaks – on Sunday.

A further chunk of the country has been designated Category 4.

There will be a brief respite in the heatwave on Monday, but it will resume on Tuesday and could last until at least Friday, meteorologists have warned.

Firefighting forces from eight European Union countries are either operating or due to arrive soon, Mr Artopios said.

Israel, Jordan and Turkey have also sent reinforcements, mostly in the form of aerial equipment.

World

Migrants locked up in notorious El Salvador jail released in Venezuela-US prisoner swap

Published

19 hours ago

July 20, 2025

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Migrants locked up in notorious El Salvador jail released in Venezuela-US prisoner swap

On Friday, Paola Paiva waited in a hotel near Caracas airport, nervous but giddy with excitement to be reunited with her brother, finally.

For five months, Arturo Suarez has been detained in a notorious prison in El Salvador.

“I am going to wait for my brother to call me,” she told Sky News, “and after giving him a hug, I want to just listen to him, listen to his voice. Let him talk and tell us his story.”

Suarez was one of the more than 250 Venezuelan migrants who had been living in America but were arrested in immigration raids by the Trump administration and sent to El Salvador, a showpiece act in the president’s promise to deport millions of migrants.

Most of the men had never even been to El Salvador before. Their detention has been controversial because the White House claims the men are all part of the dangerous Tren de Aragua gang but has provided little evidence to support this assertion.

The only evidence Paola had that Suarez was still alive was a picture of him published on a news website showing the inside of the maximum security CECOT jail.

He is one of dozens of men with their hands and feet cuffed, heads shaved and bodies shackled together.

Now he is returning to his home country, one of the bargaining chips in a deal that saw the release of ten Americans and US permanent residents who had been seized by the Venezuelan authorities.

Paola had tried to go to the airport to greet her brother as he disembarked a charter plane bringing the men back from El Salvador but authorities told her to wait at a nearby hotel.

“They told us they are taking them all to a hotel to rest,” she said.

“But I managed to get someone to give my phone number on a piece of paper to my brother, so I am expecting his call tomorrow, as soon as he can access a phone.

“We heard they are going to perform some medical exams on them and check their criminal records,” she added. “I’m not afraid; I’m not worried since my brother has a clean record.

“I am so happy. I knew this day would happen, and that it would be unexpected, that no one was going to notify us. I knew it was going to be a total surprise.”

The Trump administration had paid the El Salvador government, led by President Nayib Bukele, millions of dollars to imprison the men.

Homeland security secretary Kristi Noem visited CECOT last month, posing in front of prisoners for a photo opportunity.

But Cristosal, an international human rights group based in El Salvador, says it has “documented systematic physical beatings, torture, intentional denial of access to food, water, clothing, health care,” inside the prison.

A video which was seemingly filmed aboard the charter flight bringing the Venezuelan migrants back to Caracas shows Arturo briefly talking about his experience inside.

He looks physically well but speaks into the camera and says: “We were four months with no communication, no phone calls, kidnapped, we didn’t know what (the) day was, not even the time.

“We were beat up at breakfast, lunch and dinner,” he continues.

Sky News interviewed Arturo Suarez‘s brother Nelson near his home in the US in April, weeks after Arturo – an aspiring singer – had been arrested by immigration and customs enforcement (ICE) agents while filming a music video inside a house.

Nelson said he believed Arturo’s only crime was “being Venezuelan and having tattoos.” He showed me documents that indicate Arturo has no criminal record in Venezuela, Chile, Colombia or the United States, the four countries he has lived in.

Now Nelson is delighted Arturo is being released – but worries for his future.

“The only thing that casts a shadow in such a moment of joy is that bit of anger when I think that all the governments involved are going to use my brother’s story, and the others on that flight, as political gain,” he said.

“Each of them will tell a different story, making themselves the heroes, when the reality is that many innocent people suffered unfairly and unnecessarily, and many families will remain separated after this incident due to politics, immigration and fear.”

World

Ha Long Bay: At least 34 dead after tourist boat capsizes in Vietnam

Published

19 hours ago

July 20, 2025

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Ha Long Bay: At least 34 dead after tourist boat capsizes in Vietnam

At least 34 people have died after a tourist boat capsized in Vietnam, according to state media reports.

The Wonder Sea boat was reportedly carrying 53 people, including five crew members, when it capsized due to strong winds in Ha Long Bay on Saturday.

It happened at roughly 2pm local time (7am GMT). Rescue teams have found 11 survivors and recovered 34 bodies, eight of them children, the state-run Vietnam News Agency said, citing local authorities.

The People’s Army Newspaper, which cited local border guards, said authorities have not yet confirmed details about the tourists, including their nationalities, as the rescue operation continues.

Most of the passengers were tourists, including about 20 children, from the country’s capital city, Hanoi, the newspaper said.

The incident comes shortly after the arrival of Storm Wipha in the South China Sea, bringing strong winds, heavy rain and lightning to the area.

The named storm is the third typhoon to hit the South China Sea this year, and is expected to make landfall along the northern coast of Vietnam early next week.

Disruptions linked to the storm have also had an impact on air travel, according to Noi Bai Airport.

The airport reported that nine incoming flights were diverted to other airports, while three outgoing flights were temporarily grounded due to adverse weather conditions.

The winds brought by Storm Wipha reached up to 63mph (101kmph) and gusts of up to 68mph (126kmph) as it passed south of Taiwan on Saturday, according to the island’s Central News Agency.

Ha Long Bay is around 125mi (200km) north east of Hanoi and attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year.

Of those who visit Ha Long Bay, many choose to take overnight boat tours to further explore the area.

World

Gaza: More than 30 people killed ‘as Israeli troops open fire towards Palestinians waiting for aid’

Published

19 hours ago

July 20, 2025

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Gaza: More than 30 people killed 'as Israeli troops open fire towards Palestinians waiting for aid'

More than 30 people have been killed after Israeli troops opened fire towards crowds of Palestinians waiting for aid, according to witnesses and hospital officials.

The deaths occurred near distribution hubs operated by the US-Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May, after Israel eased its 11-week blockade of aid into the territory.

At least 32 people were killed on Saturday, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, while a further 100 people were injured, according to local reports.

Most of the deaths came as Palestinians massed in the Teina area, around 3km (2 miles) away from a GHF aid distribution centre east of the city of Khan Younis.

Mahmoud Mokeimar said he was walking with crowds of people – mostly young men – towards the food hub when troops fired warning shots as the crowd advanced, before opening fire towards the marching people.

“It was a massacre… the occupation opened fire at us indiscriminately,” he said.

Akram Aker said troops fired machine guns mounted on tanks and drones.

“They encircled us and started firing directly at us,” he said.

The Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis said it received 25 bodies, along with dozens of wounded.

Seven other people, including one woman, were killed in the Shakoush area, hundreds of yards north of another GHF hub in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, the hospital said.

The army and GHF did not immediately comment on Saturday’s violence.

The GFH, which has four distribution centres, three of which are in the southern Gaza Strip, says it has distributed millions of meals to hungry Palestinians.

But local health officials and witnesses say hundreds of people have been killed by Israeli army fire as they try to reach the distribution hubs.

The GHF, which employs private armed guards, says there have been no deadly shootings at its sites, though this week, 20 people were killed at one of its locations, most of them in a stampede.

The group accused Hamas agitators of causing a panic, but gave no evidence to back the claim.

The army, which is not at the sites but secures them from a distance, says it only fires warning shots if crowds get too close to its forces.

The 21-month war in Gaza was triggered when Hamas militants stormed into southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 others hostage.

An Israeli military offensive has killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry, while Gaza’s more than two million Palestinians are living through a catastrophic humanitarian crisis.

Israel and Hamas have been holding ceasefire talks in Qatar in recent weeks, but international mediators say there have been no breakthroughs.

US President Donald Trump said another 10 hostages will be released from Gaza shortly, without providing details.