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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST
A foreign tourist, with the Ottoman-era Sultanahmet mosque, known as the Blue mosque in the background, takes souvenir photos as she strolls in snow-covered Sultanahmet square in Istanbul

Many parts of the Middle East have been covered in a blanket of snow, a rare event in this part of the world. The winter storm spread over parts of Syria, Lebanon, Israel and the Palestine shutting schools, roads, and businesses in many places.  

Rediff.com presents a slideshow on how people of the region are coping with the rare December snow.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

A dog stands in the snow at a park in Jerusalem.

Snow fell in Jerusalem and parts of the occupied West Bank where schools and offices were widely closed and public transport was paused. 

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men walk on a snow-covered road in winter in Jerusalem.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

A man walks past debris from damaged buildings covered with snow in the besieged area in Homs.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men roll a snowball after a snowstorm at a park during winter in Jerusalem.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

Flamingos stand in their enclosure during snowfall in winter in Jerusalem's Biblical Zoo. 

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

A man covers himself with a plastic bag near Damascus Gate outside Jerusalem's Old City during a snowstorm.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

Free Syrian Army fighters play with snow in Raqqa, eastern Syria.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

Syrian refugees play with snow during a winter storm in Zahle town, in the Bekaa Valley. The worst of winter is yet to come for 2.2 million refugees living outside Syria and millions more displaced inside the country. A storm named Alexa is sweeping across Syria and Lebanon, bringing with it high winds and freezing temperatures - and marking the beginning of the third winter since the Syrian conflict began in March 2011.

In the tented settlement a few kilometres from the border in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, more than 1,000 people live in rudimentary shelters. 

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

A view of Khalid bin al Walid Mosque covered with snow in Homs.

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PHOTOS: It's an unusual December in the Middle East

Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

The snow capped Dome of the Rock in the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City, is seen from the Mount of Olives.

Schools and offices in Jerusalem and parts of the occupied West Bank were widely closed and public transport paused after heavy snowfall.

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Last updated on: December 13, 2013 18:14 IST

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