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In this Tuesday, April 14, 2009 file photo, an Assyrian Orthodox Christian clergyman baptizes a baby in the Jordan River during a ceremony at Qasr-el Yahud near Jericho, in the West Bank, during Holy Week. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.![Debate Over the Jordan River]()
In this Tuesday, April 22, 2008 file photo, a Christian Greek Orthodox priest bathes in the Jordan River after it was blessed during a baptism ceremony in the waters of the Jordan River at Qasr-el Yahud near Jericho, in the West Bank, during Holy Week. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.![Debate Over the Jordan River]()
In this Tuesday, April 14, 2009 file photo, an Orthodox Christian pilgrim immerses herself in a tub of water taken from the Jordan River after it was blessed during a baptism ceremony at Qasr-el Yahud near Jericho, in the West Bank, during Holy Week. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.![Debate Over the Jordan River]()
An Orthodox Christian takes a baptismal bath in water from the Jordan River at the baptismal site of Kasser el Yahud on the banks of the Jordan River, near the West Bank city of Jericho April 14, 2009. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.![Debate Over the Jordan River]()
An Orthodox Christiandunks in the Jordan River during a ritual baptism ceremony January 18, 2009. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.![Debate Over the Jordan River]()
An Orthodox pilgrim dunks himself in the Jordan River on the Jordanian side of the baptismal site known as Qasr el-Yahud, near the West Bank city of Jericho, January 18, 2010. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.![Debate Over the Jordan River]()
A boy cries as he is dunked into the Jordan River during a baptism ceremony near the northern Israeli city of Tiberias September 3, 2009. The Israeli government and environmentalists are sparring over the safety of a baptism site on the Jordan River. The green group Friends of the Earth-Middle East says the site known as Qasr el-Yahud is unsafe for baptism because of the amount of sewage pumped into the famous river from Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.Health Debate Over the Jordan River
Environmentalist groups contend that high levels of bacteria have made the Jordan River unsafe for bathing but water tests released in July prove otherwise according to Israel's Nature and Parks Authority.
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- Health Debate Over the Jordan River
