Palm trees, file
Palm trees, fileAbed Rahim Khatib/ Flash90

Former MK Nitzan Horowitz (Meretz) raised a storm about a little-known epidemic in Israel on Monday: the mass dieout of Israel's palm trees. 

"This matter has been brought to my attention by so many people all over the country, and this lawlessness is intolerable; it requires serious attention," Horowitz fired in a Facebook post Monday night. "Imagine this country, your cities, your yard, the different regions, without palm trees. Israel without palm trees. Without these magnificent trees, with palm branches. That is what is happening now." 

Female palm weevil beetles have slowly been eating away at the core of Israel's palms, he noted, calling them "the quiet murderers." 

"I walk through the streets of Tel Aviv, Haifa and its suburbs, Holon, and my heart hurts to see it," Horowitz continued. "Rishon Letzion's palm-lined scenic city park has been destroyed. These trees were planted 120 years ago; even Theodore Herzl admired them."

"As a child I used to play there, and it was amazing garden. But the current mayor has neglected them." 

Palm weevils first infiltrated Israel in the early 2000s via Jordan and Lebanon. Since then, they have spread from the Jordan Valley and the Galilee to eat palm trees nationwide. The female weevil is able to lay 300 eggs in a tree trunk; pupae then hatch and burrow thoroughly through the trunks, causing them to crumble.

While seemingly a small problem, the hollow cores of the palms then become hazards: even the slightest wind can crack them, toppling them onto unsuspecting pedestrians. 

Horowitz criticized the lackadaisical measures from the Agriculture Ministry and local authorities - both of whom have pointed fingers and passed the responsibility for it in a game of political hot potato. 

"This is incredible carelessness and even [presents] a danger to humans, since trees might collapse," he wrote. "And the Ministry of Agriculture? This office is just a joke. Instead of making a national, organized, prevention effort, and assigning professionals to the issue, there is chaos and anarchy." 

Instead, the infestation gets passed to local authorities to handle, he noted - and "indeed, everyone does what he wants, and usually that's nothing at all." 

Ehud Aviram, an extermination expert at Bio B, notes that treatment could have long-lasting effects. 

"The cost of treating a single tree stands at 200 shekel ($51.65 - ed.), which is negligible in relation to the treatment of dead wood should we have to cut down and clear the palms," he noted. 

"The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is an advisory body and provides a guide on how to address concerns in the agricultural sector, including palm weevil," the Agriculture Ministry responded. "Trained professionals have received training on palm weevils and pesticides. Those responsible for treating the trees are local authorities."