A dedication ceremony was held on Tuesday morning 21 Cheshvan, at the Masada National Park Visitor’s Center, for Dead Sea Research Institute, in which Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian Authority scientists will work together to study the Dead Sea in order to find ways to rehabilitate it and the region around it on both shores. The institute was established under the aegis of the International Cooperation Ministry, which invested NIS 4 million in it. Additional partners in the establishment of the institute are the Tamar Regional Council, Tel Aviv University, the JNF and the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.

Deputy Regional Cooperation Minister Ayoub Kara said that the institute would coordinate the work of four separate research institutes in Israel and Jordan that are working on the area from the Aravah to the Jordan Valley and are carrying out advanced studies for the benefit of the local population and neighboring peoples.

He added, “This place serves as a symbol of the deep desire of the Israeli people for cooperation with our neighbors in joint research, progress and development in order to improve life in general and our common life in particular. The Dead Sea, the preservation of which we are currently fighting for, is an historic source for heritage, tourism and raw materials used by the entire world in technological, agricultural and medical developments. Under my leadership, the Regional Cooperation Ministry is advancing many projects to raise awareness of the Dead Sea with our neighbors, especially the canal between the seas which, in a few years, will raise the level of the Dead Sea by millions of cubic meters of water and supply freshwater to the peoples of the region.

“Taking a historical and cultural view, I will work together with the various regional councils to rename the section of Highway 90 between Jericho and Eilat, which was known in ancient times as a conduit for the spice trade, after the Queen of Sheba, as a sign of cooperation between us and our neighbors.”

The institute will coordinate the research that is currently being done on the Dead Sea, boost interest and define a list of priorities. It will also serve to increase the study and teaching of various disciplines associated with the Dead Sea, assist in carrying out studies in the area and be a regional center for researchers and students.

Studies carried out by the institute will concentrate on issues such as: Climate and environmental medicine and health; Dead Sea studies (flora and fauna, environment, geology, archaeology and heritage); natural resource, environmental and community management and regional-international cooperation, as well as bio- and nanotechnology.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)