Photos: Heavy snowfall, gales as winter storm hits Middle East

Snow blanketed parts of Israel, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria blocking roads, disrupting traffic and postponing vaccination campaigns against COVID-19 and even exams at some universities. Above, a street is covered in snow following a snowstorm in the Jordanian capital Amman.

A woman holding a dog slides down a snow-covered slope following a snowstorm in Jerusalem.

A Lebanese municipality bulldozer removes snow to open a road that was blocked in Sawfar village, Mount Lebanon Governorate of Lebanon.

Jerusalem woke up to the rare experience of seeing its holy sites covered in snow on Thursday, with the Dome of the Rock under a layer of white after an overnight snowstorm. Above, snow covers the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Children play in the snow following a snowstorm in the Jordanian capital Amman. Osama al-Tarifi, director of the operating room of the Arabia Weather site, said snow has reached 20 cm (8 inches) in the mountains of Ajloun in northern Jordan, where snowfall has been non-stop since Tuesday night. Heavy snow is expected in the capital, Amman, on Wednesday. Wind exceeded 100 km/hour (62 miles/h) in some areas in Jordan.

People play with snow and take selfies during a snowy morning in Jerusalem. The snowstorm began on Wednesday evening, leading the authorities to shut down public transportation and block the main road to Jerusalem.

The archaeological site of Baalbek is covered with snow in the eastern Lebanese Bekaa valley. The whole territory of Lebanon has been left without electricity because of the heavy snowfall that hit the Middle East country, the national energy company said.

A man shovels snow covering his car following a snowstorm in the Jordanian capital. In Jordan, the COVID-19 vaccination drive was suspended due to severe weather conditions. Schools and universities also put off classes.

A child prepares to place a cucumber as a nose on a snowman at Sacher Park in Jerusalem.

People walk their dogs next to a snowman decorated with a face mask in a snow-covered park, in Jerusalem. Before dawn children were up hurling snowballs at each other outside the Old City gates.

A young Syrian girl runs on a snow-covered street in the Jabal al-Zawiya region in the rebel-held northern countryside of Syria's Idlib province.

Palestinians play with snow in Hebron.

Snow covers the Roman Temple of Jupiter at the historic site of Baalbek in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley.

Sanitation workers clear a street of snow following snowfall in Amman.

A Syrian family have a snowball fight during a heavy snowfall in Sawfar village, Mount Lebanon Governorate of Lebanon.

An Ultra-Orthodox Jew prays as snow falls at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City.

A Syrian man rides a motorcycle among groves covered with snow in the Jabal al-Zawiya region in the rebel-held northern countryside of Syria's Idlib province.

Snow that fell overnight melts on the steps leading to the Damascus Gate of the Old City of Jerusalem.