Deposed Prime Minister of the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip Ismail Haneya said Sunday the wildfire in Israel, which has killed more than 40 people, was God' s revenge.

"These are strikes from the God; Allah has attacked them from what they did not expect," Haneya told reporters after he participated in a special prayer for rain.

About 43 Israelis were killed in the fire in northern Israel which broke out on Thursday, the worst in the Jewish state's history.

Haneya, meanwhile, prayed for rain to bucket down, as the rains were late for this season.

The Palestinian National Authority (PNA), Hamas' bitter rival that rules the West Bank, participated in the regional and international relief efforts to put out the fire.

Israeli leaders called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and thanked him for sending Palestinian firefighters through the West Bank city of Jenin to contribute?to controlling the spread of flames. The two sides have suspended their pace talks in September due to a dispute on Jewish settlement building in the West Bank.