Geology of the Metulla quadrangle, northern Israel: Implications for the offset along the Dead Sea Rift

Abstract

A stratigraphic analysis of Jurassic to Eocene rock units in the Metulla quadrangle provides ample evidence for a left-lateral offset based on the differences between the two sides of the Dead Sea Rift (DSR). The stratigraphic evidence for this offset is as follows: (1) The Jurassic Kidod shales of Mount Hermon face a limestone domain on the west side of the DSR throughout all of the Galilee; (2) the Neocomian volcanic sequence east of the DSR at the base of the Hatira sandstones in Mount Hermon is equivalent to the Tayasir Volcanics to its west in northern Samaria, and is different from the volcanic sequence of the Naftali Mountains and of Gebel Niha, which occur higher in the stratigraphic section; (3) sandstones of the Aptian Hidra Formation exposed in Mount Hermon are correlated with sandstones from the same stratigraphic unit in Samaria, while the Hidra Formation in the Naftali Mountains lacks sandstones; (4) the Albian Mas'ada Formation of Mount Hermon comprises limestone in the lower part and marl above it, while the equivalent Rama Formation in the Naftali Mountains is basically a marl sequence; (5) the Turonian Bina Formation exposed in the Shamir "windows" is divided into three units comparable to the Derorim, Shivta, and Nezer formations in the Gilboa Mountains, 90 km to the south and west of the DSR; (6) the Paleocene Taqiye marls in the Hula 3 borehole, north of Kefar Gil'adi and less than 2 km to the east of the Qiryat Shemona fault (and west of the Tel Hay fault) is about 360 m thick, which is comparable with the 370-m section exposed in Nahal Bezeq 100 km to the south, only several kilometers west of the western fault of the DSR. The Taqiye Formation of the Naftali Mountains is much thinner, and it appears in a marl and chert facies. Based on the last evidence, we suggest that the Qiryat Shemona fault forms the boundary between the African and Arabian plates in northern Israel.

Formation of fault-related calcite precipitates and their implications for dating fault activity in the East Anatolian and Dead Sea fault zones

“…The fault shows normal separation between the Bar Kokhba limestone (mid-Eocene; Ebk in Fig. 1c) in the hanging wall and the Deir Hanna Formation (Cenomanian; Kudk in Fig 1c) in the footwall (Sneh & Weinberger 2003). Kinematic indicators suggest a younger reverse motion occurred along this fault (Weinberger et al 2009).…”

Morphometric and geomorphic approaches for assessment of tectonic activity, Dead Sea Rift (Israel)

“…The marginal faults of the western Hula , the En Te'o and Yesha faults, are located 500 m and 1000 m respectively, west of the 'Western Hula fault'. The vertical displacement of these faults is more than 100 m and several tens of meters, respectively (Sneh and Weinberger, 2003) (Fig. 2).…”

“…Its eastern flank was cut since the Pliocene by major faults and is buried deep in the valley. A series of geological mapping projects have been carried out in the region, and provide detailed maps and sections (Dubertret, 1952;Picard, 1956;Vroman, 1958;Rosenberg, 1960;Picard, 1963;Glikson, 1966a,b;Flexer, 1968;Gerson, 1970;Kafri, 1991, Sneh andWeinberger, 2003). The exposed lithology includes soft and hard carbonate rocks, deposited from the lower Cretaceous up to the Neogene: ① Neocomian-Barremian soft sandstone and marls; ② Lower to Middle Cretaceous (Albian and Aptian) marl and limestone; ③ Mid-Cretaceous limestone, chert and dolomite; ④ Senonian to Paleocene chert, chalk and marls; ⑤ Eocene limestone and chalk; ⑥ Neogene lacustrine conglomerate and freshwater chalks, which are exposed in the Qiryat Shemona and Kefar Gil'adi areas (Fig.…”

“…Horowitz (1973) suggested that this complex of sediments was of Pliocene age, and Bar and Harash (1983) defined them as "alluvial fans" and patches of "pediment". Sneh and Weinberger (2003), who conducted detailed geological mapping, identified a well-cemented, polymictic conglomerate -the "En-Awwazim Conglomerate" -of Plio-Pleistocene times, as well as an overlying basalt bed, the En-Awwazim basalt flow, dated to 0.88 ± 0.06 Ma (Harlavan et al, in press). They identified the colluvial-alluvial units deposited along the mountain piedmont as "Slope movement materials."…”

“…Also the study will establish an initial relation between the geometrical expression of the mountain front Sneh and Weinberger (2003); The Unconfined Compressive Strength Term (R1-R5) -following www. mininglife.com).…”