Mermaid Spotted Off Haifa Coast -- $1 Million Reward Offered

Loch Ness Monster, look out.  You've got competition.

A mermaid has been reported off the beaches of Kiryat Yam, a suburb of Haifa.

(There are so many funny things happening in the Jewish world and so many funny Jewish videos cropping up on YouTube that some even get by our eagle eye searches for the latest and the funniest.  That's why we're grateful to some of the web sites that list their top 10 whatever -- songs, jokes, videos of the previous year.  Here's one of the best, courtesy of israel21c.org.)

As Harvey Stein wrote for Israel21c,

There were always rumors about mermaids in the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Yam, according to Shmuel Sisso, mayor of the quiet beachside municipality. But it was six months ago, when the promenade along the sea was completed, that the number of sightings reported by residents leapt dramatically.

That's when Sisso decided to offer a million dollar reward to anyone supplying unshakeable proof of the mermaid's existence.

Many are hoping to reel in that prize with proof that Israel's mermaid really does exist. Last year an NBC film crew shot footage in Kiryat Yam last summer as part of NBC's Destination Truth, which follows unique natural phenomenon all over the world.

As part of the report, the show's film crew spent a week on the Kiryat Yam beach, filming morning and night, both under and above water. The crew claims that late one night they spotted a human figure that disappeared under the water. The show's researchers dived after the figure, but were unable to trace it.

While the crew's footage hasn't yet been confirmed by the municipality, interest in the Kiryat Yam mermaid and the $1 million prize is growing fast worldwide.

Here's the video report, including an interview with the mayor and a man who says the mermaid spread his legs apart and passed through them.  Really.  Enjoy!