Israeli and Palestinian firefighters, helped by foreign aircraft, have been battling dozens of bush blazes fed by drought and high winds that have seen tens of thousands of people evacuated.
Around 1,000 residents had to leave the Halamish settlement near Ramallah as 45 homes were damaged or destroyed by fire, a police spokeswoman said.
Blazes were also reported near the West Bank settlements of Dolev, Alfei Menashe and Karnei Shomron although there were no evacuations there.
A newly arrived US Supertanker, considered the largest firefighting aircraft in the world, was due to join the emergency operation today.
Also Read
Police said they had arrested 14 people on suspicion of negligence or deliberately starting fires, without providing details on their identities.
In the country's third city Haifa, where tens of thousands had been evacuated Thursday from the path of towering flames which threatened entire neighbourhoods, residents have started to return to assess the damage.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday there was "no doubt" some of the fires had been deliberate.
"There is a price to pay for the crimes committed, there is a price to pay for arson terrorism," he said.
Arab Israeli leaders have argued that their community, which makes up about 17.5 per cent of the country's population, is as much affected by the fires as Jews.
The Palestinians joined the efforts overnight to extinguish the blazes, sending 41 firefighters and eight trucks to Haifa where around 200 families have been left homeless, the municipality said.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content