Jordan Valley

The Jordan Valley (غور الأردن, Ghor al-Urdun, עֵמֶק הַיַרְדֵּן, Emek HaYarden) forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. Unlike most other river valleys, the term "Jordan Valley" often applies just to the lower course of the Jordan River, from the spot where it exits the Sea of Galilee in the north, to the end of its course where it flows into the Dead Sea in the south. In a wider sense, the term may also cover the Dead Sea basin and the Arabah valley, which is the rift valley segment beyond the Dead Sea and ending at Aqaba/Eilat, farther south. The valley, in the common, narrow sense, is a long and narrow trough, long if measured "as the crow flies", with a width averaging with some points narrowing to over most of the course, before widening out to a delta when reaching the Dead Sea. Due to meandering, the length of the river itself is . This is the valley with the lowest elevation in the world, beginning at below sea level (BSL) and terminating at less than BSL. On both sides, to the east and west, the valley is bordered by high, steep escarpments rising from the valley floor by between to . Over most of its length, the Jordan Valley forms the border between Jordan to the east, and Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, to the west. The details are regulated by the Israel–Jordan peace treaty of 1994, which establishes an "administrative boundary" between Jordan and the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, without prejudice to the status of that territory. Israel has allocated 86% of the land, in the west bank portion of the valley, to Israeli settlements. Annexation of the Jordan Valley to Israel has been proposed by a variety of Israeli politicians, most recently Benjamin Netanyahu in September 2019. According to the definition used in this article, what is elsewhere sometimes termed the Upper Jordan Valley is not considered part of the Jordan Valley. The Upper Jordan Valley comprises the Jordan River sources and the course of the Jordan River through the Hula Valley and the Korazim Plateau, both north of the Sea of Galilee.