African Forest Fires In Spotlight After Amazon Outcry

In NASA satellite images, forest fires in central Africa appear to burn alarmingly like a red chain from Gabon to Angola

KINSHASA: In NASA satellite images, forest fires in central Africa appear to burn alarmingly like a red chain from Gabon to Angola similar to the blazes in Brazil’s Amazon that sparked global outcry.

At the G7 summit this week, French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted about the central Africa fires and said nations were examining a similar initiative to the one proposed to combat Brazil’s blazes.

G7 nations have pledged USD 20 million on the Amazon, mainly on fire-fighting aircraft.

Macron’s concern may be legitimate, but experts say central Africa’s rainforest fires are often more seasonal and linked to traditional seasonal farming methods.