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By James Mackenzie JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Hamas said on Saturday its militants in Gaza were ready to confront Israeli attacks with

Thousands of holidaymakers have been forced to evacuate their hotels on the Greek island of Rhodes, as wildfires raged for a fifth day. Coastguard vessels and more than 30 private boats evacuated at least 2,000 people from beaches close to the areas of Kiotari and Lardos in the southeastern part of the island, coastguard spokesman Nikos Alexiou said. Long queues of tourists were videoed walking with their luggage along a road as part of an evacuation operation, while smoke could be seen in the background. Those evacuated are being housed at an indoor stadium and at hotels on the island, said Konstantinos Taraslias, a deputy mayor of Rhodes. Three passenger ferries were also committed to host tourists during the night, the coastguard said. The wildfire had been confined to the island’s mountainous centre, but aided by winds, high temperatures and dry conditions, it began to spread more widely on Saturday. Local media reported the fires had reached three hotels, which had already been evacuated. Tourists told how they had been forced to walk for hours in the searing heat to try and escape the smoke. Fire Service spokesperson Yannis Artopios said on Saturday afternoon that residents of four localities were sent SMS messages to evacuate – in two places they were told to move to the northeast and in two others to the southwest. Tourists posted videos of their evacuations on social media, as they described the scenes and the experiences of their families. “Currently stranded in Rhodes escaping the wildfires on foot – left everything at the hotel and fled with towels across our faces”, said Paul Kalburgi on Twitter. “My youngest just told me he doesn’t want to die. Terrifying situation here.” Another Twitter user, John Hughes, said he “had to walk four miles in the heat across dirt tracks in smoke and ash with a five year old. No possessions”. Nikita Bassi tweeted: “Arrived in Rhodes this morning to be told that wild fires have spread throughout and our hotel has been evacuated. No hotels anywhere for us to go and now looking for a flight home as news says the fires are getting worse around Greece. “600/700 people from the evacuated hotels are coming to this one hotel and are having to sleep in the lobby and outside on the sun beds. This is honestly crazy. I can’t believe this is happening”. Becky Mulligan, a British tourist on Rhodes, told the BBC that she was evacuated from her hotel with her sister and daughter, but was now stuck on a beach alongside hundreds of others. “There’s just a small shack here and there’s so many of us,” seh said. “There’s children, it’s the middle of the day, we are just stuck here with no help, it’s disgusting.” Another tourist, Simon Wheatley told the broadcaster that his hotel had initially said the situations was “normal and there was no need to worry”. His hotel was subsequently evacuated. “We saw that a beach bar that we were at just the day before had burnt down. The smoke was so bad. We had to leave two bags of luggage”, he said. Another holidaymaker, James Hall, told Sky News: “It was quite a bit of madness this morning. We noticed smoke and ash coming down and we got the government text, pretty much telling us to evacuate. “And we walked south, as far as we could… We dragged our suitcases for two hours in the 40-degree heat.” He said that he was worried he would miss his plane home, adding: “Honestly it was bizarre, if you are in a wheelchair or on crutches, the chances of you getting out in a timely manner was almost nil. “We got instruction to go to the beach but we decided to keep walking. The sheer volume of smoke I don’t imagine it’s particularly safe right now.” Jet2, a budget airline that flies multiple daily flights from the UK to Rhodes during the summer, told The Independent that it was working to support tourists on the ground. “We are aware of the fast-moving situation in Rhodes, and our in-resort teams are working to comply with the guidance of local authorities”, a spokesperson said. “The health, safety and well-being of our customers will always be our number one priority and we ask any customers in affected areas to follow the advice of the local authorities, or their hoteliers who will be acting under the advice of the authorities.” A spokesperson for travel company Tui, which organises package holidays to Rhodes, told The Independent that they are “aware of wildfires in the south of Rhodes and are monitoring the situation closely. “A number of hotels have been impacted and our resort teams are working with the local authorities and following their advice to relocate impacted customers”, added the spokesperson “Our main priority is always the safety of our customers and we will proactively be in touch with anyone due to travel who’s holiday is affected”. Fire Service spokesperson Yannis Artopios added that more than 200 firefighters and 40 fire engines were operating on the ground, assisted by three planes and five helicopters. The force includes 31 firefighters from Slovakia, with five fire engines. “The situation in Rhodes is serious and extremely difficult. Due to the strong wind and quickly changing direction of the fire, firefighters had to withdraw and move,” Slovak Fire and Rescue Services said on Facebook. The main front of the fire is a triangle, with two of its points near the sea and one in the mountains. On maps, each side of the triangle appears more than six miles long. Three coast guard vessels, plus one from the army, were evacuating people from two beaches. Twenty private boats were also assisting, and the Greek navy was sending a vessel. The blaze in Rhodes is the most fearsome of several blazes ongoing around Greece. The fire northwest of Athens and one near Sparta were subsiding, said Mr Artopios, although weather conditions, including temperatures set to reach 45C on Sunday and low humidity, mean there is a risk more wildfires might break out. The Fire Service has designated almost the whole eastern part of the mainland, plus the islands of Evia and Rhodes, as well as large swathes of the southwest, as category five, the highest for the risk of fire outbreaks on Sunday. There will be a brief respite in the heatwave on Monday, but it will resume on Tuesday and could last until at least Friday, meteorologists have said. Firefighting forces from eight EU countries are either operating or due to arrive soon, Mr Artopios said. Israel, Jordan and Turkey have also sent reinforcements, mostly aerial equipment. Read More Best UK hotels 2022 Best luxury hotels in Scotland for 2022 Family-friendly hotels in the UK for style, location and value Helicopters battle wildfires fuelled by strong winds in Turkey Watch as wildfires continue to rage in Greece during Europe’s heatwave European heatwave - latest updates as record temperatures continue

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West Ham defender Hawa Cissoko has reflected on the racist abuse she suffered last year and called for social media companies to offer more security online. Cissoko received a torrent of racism after she was sent off following an altercation with Aston Villa’s Sarah Mayling during a 2-1 defeat in the Women’s Super League on October 15. It was subsequently reported to the police, but Cissoko believes racist people will “find every opportunity” to be so. “Yes I was surprised to be honest,” Cissoko admitted of the racism she faced. “It’s not that I thought the men were lying or that it wasn’t happening to them, but it never happened in women’s football or maybe if it did then the women were quiet. I didn’t expect it would happen to me, especially when the people that did it don’t even watch our games. “If it was from people who follow the league I would understand a little bit more, but when it was from not even French or English people I was like, ‘you should focus on your own business’. “I realised, okay some people are just racist and they just find every opportunity to be racist and say whatever they want. “When I understood this, it was easier to deal with because at the beginning you take things personally, you think they don’t like you when they see you every week, they hate me, but when I realised it was outside of WSL fans, I thought, ‘I don’t care’. “I know that some people, they send messages because they know that nothing is going to happen even if you tell them you’re going to the police. They know nothing will happen. We need more security and more. I don’t know how they can do it.” The Government did last week sign off an Online Safety Bill, which is designed to make the internet in Britain safer. I realised, okay some people are just racist and they just find every opportunity to be racist and say whatever they want. West Ham's Hawa Cissoko However, Sheffield United goalkeeper Wes Foderingham received racist abuse earlier this month to further highlight the fight to rid the sport of discrimination still has a long way to go. Cissoko conceded the best way she found to deal with the racism was to turn off her phone. She added: “Yeah it’s hard (to receive abuse), but it depends on who you have around you. If you have nice team-mates and your manager supports you and shows you love, respect and the support you need, then it is easier. Obviously I have my family as well. “On social media I just ignore people because it is not real. Those people, they can say a lot of things on social media but if they met me they would never say this because they would see I am actually a human with a heart and feelings. “If I turn off my phone, they don’t exist. The most important thing is the relationships I have with my team-mates, my coach and my family.” Paris-born Cissoko will begin her fourth season with West Ham this weekend and remains eager to change the perception around her. The France international was sent off twice in the 2021-22 campaign before her notable red card last October. “I think some people have made a picture around me as a player that I am aggressive and stuff like that, but if you look, I think I do less fouls than any other defender,” Cissoko pointed out. “I’m really quite chill and calm. When I go to the referees, I try to be respectful, I speak with a low voice all the time. I have had the same with male and female refs. “Once I was tackled and I felt like it was a foul and he didn’t and I said, ‘hey, ref, this is a foul!’ And he said, ‘no, just calm down’. This is not the moment to say, ‘calm down’ just ignore me and I will calm down! “I think it’s just the misunderstanding between players and referees. I think we just need to speak to them. I will understand them more if I speak to and they will understand more. “I am going to tell you a secret. As players, everyone wants to be a journalist or a coach, but I think after my career I would like to become a referee. “Maybe I need to start learning with the under 15’s and go to their game and referee, maybe it will change my mind. No top level player in the men’s or women’s game has become a referee. Maybe I can be the first one.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Maro Itoje keen to reach ‘another level’ after England secure quarter-final spot Europe complete Ryder Cup foursomes clean sweep to take 4-0 lead over USA Luke Crosbie appreciates his journey from public schoolboy to World Cup starter

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