Hydro-‐political Baseline of the Upper Jordan River - Ibrahim Abd El Al

3. Upper Jordan Flows and Use
The climate in the Upper Jordan River basin is typically Mediterranean: wet winters with
intense rains and storms are followed by hot and dry summers. The rainy season generally
runs from late October until April-­‐May, though its timing and duration varies considerably.
Rainfall is also highly variable between years, as seen in Figure C.1 (Annex C), and average
annual precipitation in the Hasbani basin is estimated at 900 to 950 mm. The precipitation
falls as rain or snow, and flows over or through the geology, as described in greater detail
following.
3.1 Basins and Surface Water
The Upper Jordan River Basin is part of the Lake of Tiberias Basin, and composed of three
main sub-­‐basins: the Hasbani River Basin; the Liddan River Basin; and the Banias River Basin.
The catchment areas for the sub-­‐basins (as well as for the much smaller Ajoun Stream fed by
the Dardana Spring) are shown in Figures 3.1 and 3.2.
With a surface area of 670 km 2 (including the Marj el Khowkh area 6 ) (Abdallah, et al. 2006),
the Hasbani sub-­‐basin is one of the largest river basins in the country. It crosses the Israeli
border at its southern edge, while it follows the border with Syria along the crest of Mt
Hermon (Jebel el Sheik) on its eastern side. The Hasbani basin borders on both the Banias
and Liddan basins along (though not entirely aligned with) the provisional blue line of the
occupied Cheba'a Farms. On its western side, the basin borders on the Litani Basin, and on
the Marj el Khowkh plain, in the southwest.
The Hasbani originates near the town of Hasbaya at the Hasbani Springs, which discharge
groundwater which fell as rain or snow in the north of the basin. From Hasbaya, the Hasbani
runs for about 22 kilometres until reaching the town of Ghajar, at which point its flow is
substantially increased by another spring – the Wazzani. The larger river then forms the
current line of separation between Lebanon and the Israeli-­‐occupied Lebanese Cheba’a
Farms for roughly 3 kilometres, to join the Banias and Liddan at the confluence of the Upper
Jordan in Israel. As seen in Figure 3.2, the Hasbani is also fed from the seasonal el Cheba’ani
and smaller seasonal streams draining snowmelt and surface water from Mount Hermon.
The Banias River Basin covers about 150 km 2 on the southern flank of Mt Hermon. It is
formed by a number of sub-­‐catchments feeding seasonal streams and springs, of which the
Banias is the most important. The al-­‐'Asl Stream (also known as Wadi al ‘Asl, or Sion) is the
Banias’ most northern seasonal source, and fed by a spring at 1,000m above sea level
6 The Marj ak Khowkh plain is often considered part of the Hasbani Basin, and included in surface area
estimates. Klein (1998) estimates the basin size without the plain at at 629km2. Rain falling on the plain in
Lebanon in fact generates the Ajoun Stream, which joins the Hasbani just south of the border in Israel (see
Fig 3.1).
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