George Clooney and wife Amal are forced to flee their French estate as wildfire closes in

George Clooney and his wife Amal evacuated their luxury French estate after a fast-moving wildfire raced towards their home.The Hollywood actor, 65, and human rights lawyer Amal, 48, fled their sprawling property near Brignoles as flames swept through the area on Wednesday evening.The couple, who have nine-year-old twins, said they feared for the future of their home as France continues to battle some of the worst wildfires in its history.In a letter to the mayor of Brignoles, Clooney wrote: 'At this point we have no idea whether our beautiful home makes it through this terrible moment.''Amal and I are committed to making sure that whatever happens to our village, we are part of this community and we'll be part of making it whole,' he added.The mayor of Brignoles, Didier Bremond, said the Clooneys were not ordered to leave but chose to evacuate as a precaution.Their estate, Domaine du Canadel, spans 420 acres and boasts an 18th-century manor house, vineyards, a swimming pool and pond.The wildfire burning near Brignoles, in south-eastern France, scorched 321 acres and forced more than 600 residents to flee their homes, local officials said. George Clooney and his wife Amal evacuated their luxury French estate after a fast-moving wildfire raced towards their home Their estate, Domaine du Canadel, spans 420 acres and boasts an 18th-century manor house, vineyards, a swimming pool and pond Several wildfires are affecting the southern part of Brignoles and threatening the village of Camps-la-Source Most evacuees were allowed to return on Thursday after conditions improved. But some 270 firefighters remained on the ground on Thursday, assisted by four water-bombing helicopters. Four firefighters were reportedly injured during the operation. The blaze comes as France grapples with a devastating wildfire crisis. The country's largest current fire has already ravaged 103,000 acres in the southwest. Emergency services continue to monitor conditions amid fears that hot, dry weather could fuel further fires across the country.Meanwhile, the prefect of Gironde, the French region worst hit by the fires, offered some hope yesterday. 'It is the first somewhat optimistic day, because we have the feeling that we are beginning to return to normal life,' said Sophie Brocas. She added that conditions in the region are starting 'to improve significantly'. Elsewhere, west of Bordeaux, French firefighters have been battling a massive wildfire which forced the evacuation of 220,000 people. An aerial view shows firefighting teams continue aerial and ground operations to contain a forest fire that spread due to strong winds in the Alanya district of Antalya Firefighters take a break after working to extinguish a fire in the forest near Blagon, during wildfires in southwestern France A volunteer works to extinguish a fire in low-lying vegetation in Krya Vrysi, Rethymno, CreteEarlier Thursday, their service also said they were 'reasonably optimistic' the blaze was no longer progressing.Firefighting chief Marc Vermeulen said hotspots in the wildfire zone had dropped from six to three since yesterday morning.The wildfire has destroyed more than 200 homes and 42,000 hectares (104,000 acres) and killed two firemen.Meanwhile in Greece, around 8,000 people have been evacuated from their homes on the island of Crete as wildfires spread.Two firefighters were found dead on Wednesday inside their vehicle in Rethymno after they were reportedly trapped by the flames. And another was killed in the Peloponnese region in southern Greece. Elsewhere in Spain, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez lifted a state of emergency over a wildfire west of Madrid. It comes as the country's prefect's office said there were no longer any 'active fronts'.More than 60,000 people had been evacuated during the worst of the fire, but by Thursday most had been allowed to return home.In the adjoining Avila region, another inferno raging since last week has become the biggest since Spain's records began in 1961, burning 50,000 hectares.Spain is experiencing a new heatwave this week, which officials warned could reignite fires in the Madrid region.Near Spain's border with Portugal, a new fire broke out on Wednesday in Fermoselle, forcing the evacuation of more than 600 people, emergency services said.In northern Portugal, in Valpacos, nearly 800 firemen were battling a forest fire in the north of the country, the civil protection service said.Five people have been lightly injured, including three firemen and a police officer, it added.Since Tuesday, fires have burned through more than 6,000 hectares, said the service. Meanwhile, firefighters in Turkey were battling forest fires near the popular tourist regions of Antalya and the Dardanelles.Agriculture Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said all but five of 110 fires sparked across the country were under control.Turkey's forestry agency said 'intensive operations' on the ground and from the air were tackling blazes along frequent fire routes along coastal areas from Antalya to Alanya, and from Mugla to Fethiye.