Civil defense Directorate manager Darwish Hobeika indicated the fires are premeditated, saying they erupted before dawn, which is not normal in summer fires that erupt due to heat.

Civil defense teams, Lebanese Army helicopters and Cypriot helicopters took part in trying to combat the blaze as tongues of flame shot up in the sky and smoke billowed from the slopes overlooking Beirut.

The civil defense Directorate said the blaze could threaten the villages of Basatine, Qabr Shmoun, Sarhamoul and Ainab, southeast of the capital.

Mayor of Ainab Fouad Shaar questioned the allegations that the fires are premeditated . He told reporters around noon today: Until this moment we cannot declare for sure whether that the fire was arsenal despite the claims that point in this direction, but we can say for sure that there was delay in the extinguishing of the fire"

Wild wood fires are common in Lebanon during the summer season.

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