Thousands of firefighters backed by the military and water-bombing aircraft on Monday battled dozens of wildfires across Spain and Portugal, as the death toll increased to six since the outbreaks began.

The Iberian peninsula has been particularly affected by forest fires fuelled by a succession of heatwaves and droughts blamed on climate change that have hit the southern Mediterranean.

Two firefighters were killed on Sunday -- one in each country, both in road accidents -- taking the death toll to two in Portugal and four in Spain.

The head of Spain's Civil Protection and Emergencies, Virginia Barcones, told broadcaster TVE there were currently 23 "active fires in operation status two", indicating a serious and direct threat to the population.

The fires, now in their second week, were

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