Rainy day in Mea Shearim, Jerusalem
Rainy day in Mea Shearim, JerusalemFlash 90

Winter rains will begin Friday in central and northern Israel, weather forecasters say. There may be scattered thunderstorms.

While some cities got rain earlier in the season, this rain is expected to last longer, with local showers continuing on and off until Saturday afternoon.

Temperatures will begin to drop Friday and will continue to fall on Saturday, forecasters say.

By Sunday, the winter weather will have passed, they predict. Temperatures are expected to rise, with skies clear and pleasant.

The surface of the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), Israel’s largest single source of freshwater, is expected to keep dropping despite the first winter rains. Experts predict that the lake will grow slowly emptier until mid-December, at which point the stronger flow of water from rivers swollen by winter rainfalls will lead the lake to begin rising again.