Jordan sent firefighters, while Egypt, another Arab neighbour, offered 10 tonnes of fire retardant and countries ranging from Switzerland to Azerbaijan dispatched helicopters to help battle the blaze.

At least four Canadair water bombers could be seen flying through the smoke-choked skies near the northern port city of Haifa, dumping water and fire retardant into the sea of flames.

Two helicopters and three small planes were also involved in the huge task of quelling the inferno, which has swept across more than 10,000 acres (more than 4,000 hectares) of land since it erupted on Thursday morning.

In a statement to his security cabinet on Friday morning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said four planes from Greece had arrived in the area, along with a plane and a police helicopter from Cyprus.

"The response was immediate, the aircraft are here," he said.

Two British helicopters from bases in Cyprus were also helping fight the enormous blaze from above, as France, Croatia, Romania and Spain said they would send airplanes and helicopters.

Germany said it was helping Israel procure "special drugs to treat victims of fume poisoning."

Bulgaria sent 92 firefighters, who were accompanied to the scene by the country's deputy foreign minister, Dimiter Tzantchev.

"We arrived this morning with the governmental aircraft and we have 92 firefighters, experienced people, professionals. These people participated in the operations to fight fires in Russia last summer," he told AFP.

"We are fighting the fire, preventing the expansion of the fire to the houses. One of the teams is staying near a gas station, trying to prevent the expansion of the fire," Tzantchev added.

"We have been told that we are the first foreign firefighters ever to have participated here on any operations of this kind."

Israel has only 1,500 firefighters of its own, a number widely accepted as woefully inadequate for a country of 7.6 million people.

The fire service has no firefighting planes at its disposal, prompting an urgent appeal for international help from Netanyahu.

Despite lingering diplomatic tensions between Israel and Turkey, Ankara said it would send two firefighting planes in a gesture personally ordered by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The head of Turkey's emergency situations agency, Mehmet Ersoy, told Anatolia news agency the decision was a "humanitarian gesture" to the Jewish state.

"We very much appreciate this mobilisation and I am certain that it will be an opening toward improving relations between our two countries, Turkey and Israel," Netanyahu said in a statement thanking his Turkish counterpart.

US President Barack Obama also said American firefighters were on standby to help, in a gesture echoed by Australia.

"As rescuers, firefighters, are continuing their work, the United States is acting to help our Israeli friends in this time of disaster," he said.

"This tragedy is all the more sad as it comes as the Jewish community around the world celebrates Hanuka, a time of hope and joy," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement of condolences to victims' families.

Battling the fire has also been hampered by Israel's lack of airborne fire retardant, rescue workers said, with stocks running low after a string of forest fires in what was the hottest summer since records began.

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