MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

“The first stage of a mysterious disease affecting Kinneret fish begins in one of its eyes, which starts to pop out, and gets destroyed leaving an empty hole in the socket. Then the second eye is affected. In the third stage, the blind fish blacken and starves. Red spots appear on its body and then it dies. So far, there is no official answer whether the disease is an unknown virus, or a mutation of a virus, a bacteria or a parasite.

Initial signs of the problem were discovered ten years ago in small numbers. The phenomenon was first noticed by Menachem Lev, a fisherman from Kibbutz Ein Gev, a local expert on everything that happens in the Kinneret. The plague first affected St. Peter’s Fish, which is considered sacred by Christians (from the story of the bread and the fishes). About a million Christian pilgrims visit Israel every year. Most of them visit the Kinneret and eat St. Peter’s fish; the Ein Gev restaurant alone serves more than 300,000 fish dinners to pilgrims every year.

The problem has worsened since then, and it is not only St. Peter’s Fish that are affected by the disease, but also the Jordan River tilapia raised in fish ponds in the Hula Valley, silver carp, carp, and mullet. 12-15% of the fish in the lake have already contracted the disease.

The Ministry of Agriculture denies the presence of this serious disease in the Kinneret. However, as a result of the numerous occurrences, a number of tests have been conducted in the last few weeks to identify the problem. The ministry’s Fish Division laboratory at Nir David has concluded that the cause is not bacteriological. Its preliminary report in September found the characteristic symptoms in fishes’ eyes. If the problem is a parasite, this will cause a major kashrut problem and the Rabbinate is liable to ban fish from the Kinneret. The Water Authority believes that the disease is genetic in origin.” Read more.