Fire hits palm plantation in Egypt's New Valley, 37 hurt -report

Egypt used air force helicopters on Saturday to fight a fire which swept through palm plantations in the southwest of the country, threatening residential areas, state news agency MENA reported.

The agency said that at least 37 people were hurt, mostly due to smoke inhalation, by the fire which broke out on Friday near the New Valley provincial village of el Rashda.

Authorities declared a high state of emergency and evacuated houses as 30 fire trucks, backed by four fire-fighting helicopters, battled the flames for more than 16 hours before bringing the fire under control, the agency said.

Seven fire fighters and civil defence personnel were among the injured, who suffered from smoke inhalation or minor burns, the agency said.

There were no reports of deaths and most of the injured were released after treatment at a school after the local clinic was gutted by the fire, it said.

New Valley Governor Mohamed el Zamlout was quoted as saying that the fire had affected an area of around 100-feddan (104 acre) of mainly palm plantations and threatened to spread to another village.

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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010

Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013

The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
not be younger than 25 years old
not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially