Unseasonably dry weather has caused nearly 10,000,000 pounds worth of drought damage to Israel crops, the Ministry of Agriculture reported today. The Ministry said the hardest hit section was the Negev where some 50,000 acres of crops were already lost. In other parts of the country, some 10,000 acres had been crippled.
Hundreds of Orthodox Jews wearing prayer-shawls prayed for rain today at the Honi Hameaggel Tomb near Tel Aviv. Prayers for rain also were offered at special services held on Mount Zion and the Caves of Sanhedrin in Jerusalem. (Honi Hameaggel-“Honi the circle-drawer”–was a pious man of the first century. He received his name from an incident during a drought period. According to the legend when all prayers for rain went unanswered, he managed to produce rainfall by drawing a circle on the ground and vowing to stay inside of it until rain came.)
The drought this year is the worst ever recorded and the third successive dry year. Most of Israel’s field crops appear to be irretrievably lost. Orchards may still be saved if the rains come but the yields will be far below normal.
Many Orthodox Jews have come to Safed, home of the Cabbalists, to participate in special prayers as the continuing parching not only imperiled the whole winter crop but also could prevent preparation of fields for summer crops.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
