Ilayda Cakirtekin
31 July 2026•Update: 31 July 2026
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced Friday that more than 300 people had been arrested in connection with wildfires across France since the start of the fire season.
Nunez told French broadcaster RTL that 308 people had been arrested, describing the figure as "very high."
He said around two-thirds of the arrests involved suspected arson. Thirty-three of those arrested had reportedly been placed in pretrial detention, were awaiting trial or had already been convicted.
The Interior Ministry later clarified to RTL that 127 of those arrested were minors.
Nunez also provided an update on the wildfire in the southwestern Gironde department, which has burned nearly 42,000 hectares (103,784 acres).
He said the fire remained stable but had not yet been fully contained, with several hotspots still needing to be extinguished.
As the wildfire situation continues to improve in southwestern France, authorities have allowed thousands more residents to return home, according to French broadcaster BFMTV.
The Gironde prefecture said an additional 84,000 people could immediately return to their homes in nine municipalities near Bordeaux.
On Thursday, Nunez told BFMTV that authorities believed "the worst may be behind us" as the wildfire situation continued to improve, while urging people to remain vigilant.
Meteo-France's current alert map places 29 departments under a high orange risk for wildfires.
