Eilat beach glows in the sun (file)
Eilat beach glows in the sun (file)Nati Shohat/Flash 90

Mere days after Mount Hermon in the north was covered in unseasonable snow "you only see in January" last Friday amid surprising cold around the country, Israel is bearing the brunt of a nationwide heat wave on Wednesday.

Temperatures rose dramatically on Wednesday, with haze predicted for most parts of Israel after having already settled in on much of the coastal plain and the northern Negev.

Due to the fog, the Sde Dov Airport in the south announced it would be closed for takeoffs and landings until further notice.

Brutal highs are expected in temperatures around the country.

The worst temperatures are to be felt in Eilat on Israel's southern tip with a whopping 42 C (108 F). The Dead Sea region comes in second at 38 C (100 F).

In the north the Golan Heights received 34 degrees Celsius (93 degrees Fahrenheit), and 31 C (88 F) were felt in the northern mountains. The temperature is even higher in the Lake Kinneret region at 37 C (98 F), and 34 C in Haifa.

The coastal plains fared little better, with Tel Aviv notching up to 30 C (86 F) accompanied by heavy humidity, and the shfela coastal plain reaching 36 C (97 F).

Jerusalem is to reach 34 C (93 F), while in the south Be'er Sheva was to reach up to 37 C, and the Negev mountains were to get up to 34 C.

Despite the high temperatures, Thursday is anticipated to bring a noticeable drop in the heat, although the eastern and southern parts of the country are to still remain above seasonal averages.

The temperatures are to hold steady until Friday when an additional cooling is expected, as the temperature is to return to seasonal norms and be comfortable, a change that is to stay for Saturday.