Water restrictions imposed throughout Israel amid nationwide supply disruption

A widespread malfunction at Israel's desalination facilities led to nationwide water supply disruptions and restrictions on Monday. Five of the country's six desalination plants were forced to shut down due to severe seawater turbidity, possibly linked to stormy conditions or an algae buildup from the Nile region. The Water Authority Director-General, Yehezkel Lifshitz, stated, "disruptions to water supply may occur in the coming hours, including reduced pressure and water outages in certain areas."

• Residents in Givatayim, Jerusalem, and Rishon Lezion were warned of potential reduced water pressure and outages.
• The Gezer Regional Council instructed residents to immediately halt watering private gardens and agricultural areas to maintain household water supplies.
• Farmers in the Eshkol Regional Council were asked to reduce freshwater use, while the Ramat Negev Regional Council temporarily halted agricultural water supplies.
• Mekorot was instructed to increase the use of other production and drilling resources to mitigate the shortage.

The Water Authority anticipates some facilities may resume operation as seawater clarity improves.