Israel winter weather

Analysis

A significant rain system began hitting Israel over the weekend, accompanied by lower-than-average seasonal temperatures and thunderstorms (iefimerida, 2026; הארץ — חדשות, 2026b; ערוץ 7 — מבזקים, 2026; JDN, 2026). The system focused primarily on cities along the coastal plain, while raising concerns of flash floods in the Judean Desert and Dead Sea wadis (iefimerida, 2026; HotNews, 2026; הארץ — חדשות, 2026a; רשת 13, 2026). Emergency authorities warned in advance of the risk of flooding in these areas (iefimerida, 2026; JDN, 2026; הארץ — חדשות, 2026a; רשת 13, 2026).

Throughout Friday, significant rainfall amounts were recorded in various cities, including Ashdod, Nahariya, and Tel Aviv (הארץ — חדשות, 2026a; רשת 13, 2026). However, the peak of the system concentrated on the Sharon region, where an exceptional 117 mm of rain was recorded in just an hour and a quarter at the Kadima weather station (מעריב — מבזקים, 2026a; C14, 2026; מעריב — מבזקים, 2026b). The extreme volume of precipitation led to widespread flooding, the creation of strong water currents in streets, and the submersion of vehicles in communities such as Even Yehuda (ynet — חדשות, 2026).

Following the extreme conditions in the Sharon area, residents were instructed to remain indoors (מעריב — מבזקים, 2026a). Simultaneously, significant rainfall continued to be recorded in other locations, such as 35 mm in Tel Aviv within one hour and an accumulation of approximately 90 mm throughout the day in Ashdod (ynet — חדשות, 2026). The system is expected to weaken gradually in the coming days, while full details on the extent of infrastructure damage have not yet been released (הארץ — חדשות, 2026a; ynet — חדשות, 2026).

What to watch

• Assessment of the extent of infrastructure damage following the floods
• Continued monitoring of the weakening of the winter system

How it was covered

Reporting on the weather began on November 6, as Israeli media outlets noted the arrival of the system (הארץ — חדשות, 2026b; ערוץ 7 — מבזקים, 2026; JDN, 2026). Starting November 7, as the rain intensified, reports shifted to focus on specific measurement data and images of damage on the ground (הארץ — חדשות, 2026a; רשת 13, 2026; מעריב — מבזקים, 2026a; C14, 2026; ynet — חדשות, 2026). While Haaretz, Reshet 13, and ynet provided general data on rainfall amounts across the country (הארץ — חדשות, 2026a; רשת 13, 2026; ynet — חדשות, 2026), Maariv and C14 focused on the exceptional peak measured in Kadima and the instructions issued to residents in the area (מעריב — מבזקים, 2026a; C14, 2026; מעריב — מבזקים, 2026b). Information regarding specific measurement data and emergency instructions originates solely from these sources (מעריב — מבזקים, 2026a; מעריב — מבזקים, 2026b; ynet — חדשות, 2026).