Greek prime minister promises free holidays for those forced to flee Rhodes wildfires

ITV News' Kelly Foran reports live on the pledge that the Greek PM has made Britons

British holidaymakers who had their trips cut short by wildfires in Rhodes have been offered a week's free stay on the island by the Greek Prime Minister.

Over 1,400 fires ravaged parts of Greece from July 22 onwards and forced the evacuation of around 20,000 tourists.

Less than 15% of Rhodes was affected and there are now no active wildfires across the island, Greece's prime minister told ITV's Good Morning Britain on Wednesday.

"I'm happy to report (that) Rhodes today is more welcoming than ever - the island is back to normal," Kyriakos Mitsotakis said.

"And for all of those whose holidays were cut short as a result of the wildfires, the Greek government, in cooperation with the local authorities, will offer one week of free holidays on Rhodes next spring or next fall so we make sure that they come back to the island and enjoy its natural beauty."

Thousands of Britons were forced to flee when fires spread across Rhodes, Corfu, and Evia last week.

One mother, from Devon, told ITV News of the "frantic scramble" to escape the fires on Rhodes, while others described the evacuation flights as "traumatising".

The UK government urged people travelling to Greek islands to be cautious, and airline TUI suspended all Rhodes holidays until August.

Many of the fires were caused by frighteningly hot weather, while others were caused by arson, Greece's climate minister said.

Multiple people died in the flames across the Mediterranean as emergency services battled on.

In Greece, two pilots died after a firefighting plane crashed in Evia.

In Algeria, at least 34 people were killed and in southern Italy two bodies were found.

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