Today's solar eclipse will be a major event in the eastern Mediterranean because of its clear, sunny skies.
In the Levant the eclipse will begin at 1.07 p.m. and last 88 minutes. The maximum period of coverage, 86 per cent, will take place at 3.35 p.m. and last 2.5 minutes. Weathermen are predicting slight haze in coastal areas.
In ancient and medieval times in this part of the world warriors engaged in conflicts suspended military operations during an eclipse; dwarfs and hunchbacks were sacrificed. These days regional authorities are dealing with the eclipse in very different ways.
In Cyprus the meteorological service, wrongly, advised viewing the eclipse through sunglasses or smoked glass. Opthalmologists said neither provided any protection and suggested welders' glasses or specially made glasses obtained at opticians.
The health ministry recommended staying indoors with the shutters and curtains closed, particularly if children and pets were around, and watching the event on television. But the authorities, mindful of the hundreds of thousands of tourists holidaying here, have issued no prohibitions. Not so elsewhere.
The Jordanian government and the Palestine Authority have declared today a public holiday. The bridges across the Jordan river between Jordan and the Israeli-occupied West Bank will be closed. In Amman the leading Muslim cleric, the mufti, issued a fatwa, a judicial ruling, warning believers against going out during the eclipse on the grounds that the Koran prohibited self-inflicted injuries. The ministry of religious affairs recommended staying inside and reciting a special eclipse prayer.
The Palestine Authority forbade going out during the eclipse on pain of prosecution. Prayers will be held at that time within the safe confines of al-Aksa mosque on the acropolis of Jerusalem.
In Lebanon the populace is expected to go to work but not to the beach or swimming pool. All beaches and pools have been closed from noon till 4 p.m.
Any resort which fails to comply with the closure order will be shut down for several days as punishment. In the capital, Beirut, the recommended method of viewing the eclipse is filling a bucket with water and watching the reflection of the passage of moon and sun.
