Israel, Jordan, Palestine hold disaster-response drills

Palestinian, Jordanian and Israeli emergency services participated in joint exercises on Tuesday with a view to preparing for region-wide natural disasters.

Now underway in southern Israel, the two-day exercise -- which involves 400 firefighters, medics and first-responders -- is meant to simulate a cross-border disaster.

Israel's Foreign Ministry said the operation was aimed at "saving lives, irrespective of nationality".

In a statement, the ministry said the main goal of the drill was to allow participants "to share their experiences and build common capacities with a view to effectively responding to disaster scenarios".

The three-country exercise is partly sponsored by the Italian, Spanish and French governments.

Israel has long sought to normalize relations with Arab states of the region. As it currently stands, the self-proclaimed Jewish state only enjoys diplomatic relations with Egypt and Jordan.