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Swimmers Brave Dead Sea Salinity to Highlight Environmental Crisis
Around 30 experienced open-water swimmers from Israel and abroad completed a five-kilometer extreme swim in the Dead Sea on Friday, November 13, 2026. The event, organized by the Dead Sea Guardians in cooperation with the Megilot Dead Sea Regional Council, aimed to raise awareness about the severe environmental crisis facing the lake.
3 newsrooms · 3 languages · since
What happened
- 01Around 30 experienced swimmers completed a five-kilometer extreme swim in the Dead Sea on Friday, November 13, 2026.
- 02The event was organized by the Dead Sea Guardians and the Megilot Dead Sea Regional Council to highlight the lake's environmental crisis.
- 03The Dead Sea's water level has dropped by 11 meters over the past decade, losing more than one meter every year.
- 04Swimmers wore specialized full-face masks to protect themselves from the extreme salinity of the water.
- 05The rapid decline in water levels has caused dangerous sinkholes along the coast, threatening local infrastructure and access.
- 06Dead Sea Guardians founder Oded Rahav criticized the government for not making the preservation of the Dead Sea a national priority.
- 07Primary causes of the crisis include reduced inflow from the Jordan River and mineral extraction by industrial companies.
To cope with the extreme salinity of the world's lowest point, the participants wore specialized full-face masks. According to Mignews, the swimmers navigated a course from Metzoqei Dragot to Mitspe Shalem, while Walla reported the course was along the shore of Masada Beach, and The Jerusalem Post reported it was along Mitzpe Shalem beach.
The initiative commemorated a similar swim held ten years prior, which included participants from Israel, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority. Since that 2016 event, the Dead Sea's water level has dropped by an additional 11 meters, losing over a meter annually. This rapid decline has caused dangerous sinkholes along the coast, threatening infrastructure and access.
Oded Rahav, a world-record swimmer and founder of the Dead Sea Guardians, spearheaded the event. He criticized the lack of national priority given to the Dead Sea, calling it a global natural wonder that has become Israel's backyard. Organizers attribute the crisis to reduced water inflow from the Jordan River due to diversions for drinking, agriculture, and industry, alongside mineral extraction by companies using evaporation ponds.
Summarized by baba from the reports of 3 newsrooms. Updated
Latest report: The Jerusalem Post. Read The Jerusalem Post’s originalThe coverage
3 newsrooms on this story
Who covered it
- LeftNone
- Centre2
- RightNone
- HarediNone
- ArabNone
- Other1
Not in the Left, Right or Arab press
