Jerusalem Still Paralyzed From Rare Snowstorm

December 17, 2013

Jerusalem is still paralyzed following a rare snowstorm late last week, with public transportation and schools in the city shut down and thousands left without power.

Israel’s Electric Corp. said on Monday that some 8,000 homes – more than half of them in Jerusalem itself – were still without electricity.

Many of the city’s roads have not yet been cleared of snow, ice and downed trees.

In the Gaza Strip, schools and government offices have opened after rains flooded parts of the Palestinian territory.

Gaza’s Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh says his Hamas government will compensate Gazans for the damages.

The storm started Wednesday, dumping up to two feet of snow on Jerusalem, which often goes entire winters without snow, and forcing some 40,000 Gazans to flee their flooded homes.