The Media Line: 4.2 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Southern Israel, Dead Sea Region  

4.2 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Southern Israel, Dead Sea Region  

By The Media Line Staff  

At 9 a.m. on Thursday, a 4.2-magnitude earthquake shook southern Israel in the Arad and Dead Sea. Thursday, as reported by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre. The epicenter of the earthquake was near Dimona.  

Sirens were activated in Arad, Mitzpe Shalem, Ein Bokek, Neot HaKikar, Ein Tamar, Ein Gedi, Masada, the Rotem Industrial Zone, and the hotel area in the Dead Sea.  

“Immediately go out into the open,” the Home Front Command advised those in the area. “If not possible, enter a protected room or stairwell.”  

As of 10 a.m., Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency service, had not reported any injuries. Police said teams were sent to locations where the tremor was reported to check buildings and public areas for potential safety risks.  

Some residents of Beit Shemesh told Ynet they felt tremors. However, not everyone in the region near the earthquake realized what was happening. The Ein Gedi company, based near the Dead Sea, said it received an earthquake alert, but no tremors were felt at Kibbutz Ein Gedi.  

Israel’s primary earthquake threat comes from the Dead Sea fault system, a major geological break running through the region.  

This fault line, part of the Great Rift Valley, marks the boundary where the Arabian tectonic plate slowly pushes north against the Sinai–Israel plate. That collision zone cuts through the eastern side of the country, running from the Gulf of Eilat through the Arava, past the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley, and up into the Galilee.  

Scientists say the two plates shift at an average rate of about 5 millimeters each year, a gradual movement that can build pressure over time and eventually trigger significant earthquakes.   

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