Including 70,000 people evacuated in central Spain, wildfires in southern Europe this week have displaced more than a quarter of a million people. French interior minister Laurent Nunez said the A400M aircraft will join what is expected to be a “long and very difficult” battle against the blaze raging in the Gironde region of south-western France. The government mobilised soldiers to join the battle and was rushing in 1.5 million face masks to protect against choking smoke. Spain deployed 2,600 firefighters, police and other emergency personnel to two blazes west of Madrid, backed by 19 water-dumping aircraft and helicopters. A burned house and vehicle in Lanton (Emma Da Silva/AP) (Emma Da Silva/AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)Other European nations were helping.