A wildfire tore through a historic forest near Paris on Monday, forcing highway closures and mobilising water-bombing aircraft, while Spain's death toll from one of its deadliest wildfires rose to 13, as much of western Europe simmered in a string of heatwaves.

French firefighters are battling a huge blaze in a forest just south of Paris as a devastating heatwave extends its deadly sweep across Europe.

France is battling an unusually large fire near Fontainebleau as investigators examine several ignition points; in Spain, at least 13 people died in the country’s deadliest blaze…