Israel, Jordan sign ‘historic’ Red-Dead pact

Israel and Jordan sign the “Red-Dead” agreement to jointly build a desalination plant north of the Jordanian tourist resort of Akaba. Water with high quantities of salts left over from the desalination process will be moved to the Dead Sea to help replenish the dwindling natural resource.

Energy Minister Silvan Shalom was in Jordan for the official ceremony of signing the treaty. Standing alongside his Jordanian counterpart and representatives of the World Bank, he said, “This is a historic agreement. Today we realize the vision of Binyamin Ze’ev Herzl, the visionary of the state, who already at the end of the 19th century understood the need to revive the Dead Sea. This is the most important and significant agreement since the peace treaty was signed with Jordan.”