Tel Aviv, May 1 -- The battle against what may be Israel's largest fire entered its second day on Thursday morning, casting a pall over what would have been a festive Independence Day.

"At this stage we still have not gained control of the fires," the Israel Fire and Rescue Service said Thursday morning. Seventeen firefighters have been injured, with two requiring hospitalization.

"We are amidst a very large wildfire, maybe the largest there has ever been in this country," Fire and Rescue Service's Jerusalem District Commander Shmulik Friedman told reporters on Wednesday.

According to fire officials, 142 teams and 10 aircraft are currently deployed in the Jerusalem Hills as of 8:00 AM. The first groups of international firefighters and...