Located in a swampy and, in ancient times, malarial basin about midway between the Sea of Galilee and Mount Hermon, this small lake is not mentioned in the Bible but is referred to several times as Lake Semichonitis by Josephus (Antiquities and Jewish Wars), and as Sea of Samcho (Yam Sumchi) in Rabbinic literature.
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Fisherman catching fish in Lake Huleh, 1943
Supplied by the northern stretches of the Jordon River, the lake was about 5.3 km long and 4.4km wide prior to its drainage by the Israeli government beginning 1951. Public reactions to the operation led to the establishment of the Society for Protection of Nature, the most prominent environmental group in Israel. The concerns raised led to the decision in the 1980 to reverse the environmental deterioration resulting from the operation. But already the results are stunning, and the Huleh is today a major nature reserve providing succour for the millions of migratory birds that pass by the region.
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