wartime fire; fires of war
Literal fires caused by warfare, such as bombing or shelling. Often used in historical or news contexts.
See also: 兵火
空襲で町は戦火に包まれた。
The town was engulfed in wartime fire from the air raid.
The village was engulfed in the fierce fires of war.
war; wartime destruction; horrors of war
Figurative extension: the destructive impact and suffering of war in general. Often interchangeable with 戦禍.
See also: 戦禍
多くの文化財が戦火で失われた。
Many cultural properties were lost to the destruction of war.
戦火を逃れて国外へ避難した。
They fled the horrors of war and evacuated abroad.
The two countries finally ended up going to war.
The war spread into the neighboring country as well.
Many people fled the war and took refuge abroad.
兵火 is a more literary, less common word for fires caused by military action, closely matching the literal sense of 戦火.
戦火 and 戦禍 are pronounced identically but 戦火 literally means the 'flames/fires of war' (i.e. fighting or combat itself), while 戦禍 means the damage and suffering that result from war.
戦火 means the destruction or 'flames' of war itself, not a place, so it should not be confused with 戦地, which denotes the actual war-zone location.
Compound of 戦 (war, battle) and 火 (fire). The literal meaning 'wartime fire' extended figuratively to the broader destruction and horrors of war.