AMMAN, Jordan, May 9 (UPI) -- Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority Monday signed an agreement to conduct a feasibility study on building a canal linking the Dead and Red seas.
The agreement was signed in the Dead Sea region in Jordan by the Jordanian Minister of Water Raed Abu Saud, PA Minister of Planning Ghassan Khatib and Israeli Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben Eliezer.
The agreement allocates $20 million for the feasibility study, to be conducted within four years.
The project aims to keep the Dead Sea, which is at 400 meters below sea level, from drying out. It calls for joint tourism projects and construction of two power plants.
The $3 billion canal will be built on the Jordanian side of the Jordanian-Israeli border and will be 176 kilometers long and be flanked by tunnels and pipes to secure 850 cubic meters of fresh water.
