A quarter-million Israelis said to face health crisis

(JNS) — Some 250,000 Israelis living in communities along the Samaria security barrier are facing an escalating environmental and health emergency from Palestinian waste fires, Channel 12 News reported on Thursday.

Tens of thousands in Emek Hefer, Menashe and Shoham and nearby towns have reported sleepless nights, strong odors and respiratory issues, a Knesset Interior Committee hearing revealed on Wednesday.

At the meeting, residents shared testimony of nights when “you simply cannot breathe,” while government representatives blamed the lack of enforcement and insufficient infrastructure acro...