Around 12,000 people have been evacuated from southwestern France as the country battles wildfires days after two firefighters died near Bordeaux airport, French media reported. The Gironde region government said more than 2,000 hectares (4,000 acres) of land have been destroyed. The use of electric and internal combustion engines has been banned in predominantly forested
Prosecutor Diane Ngomsik told AFP news agency that the 18-year-old volunteer firefighter initially confessed to having “set twigs on fire with a lighter and gasoline” before recanting. BFMTV said a second 18-year-old man had also been placed under formal investigation, a stage of French criminal procedure that can lead to formal charges and a subsequent
