# Israel > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Israel > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Israel.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel > Source revision: 1357125429 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Country in West Asia}} {{About|the country|the region|Land of Israel|other uses}} {{pp-extended|small=yes}} {{Use British English|date=July 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2025}} {{Infobox country | conventional_long_name = State of Israel | native_name = {{native name|he|מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל}}
{{transliteration|engvar=gb|he|Medīnat Yisrā'el}}
{{native name|ar|دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل}}
{{transliteration|engvar=gb|ar|Dawlat Isrā'īl}} | common_name = Israel | image_flag = Flag of Israel.svg | alt_flag = The flag of Israel – Star of David centred between two horizontal stripes of a Tallit (a Jewish prayer shawl) | image_coat = Emblem of Israel.svg | coa_size = 80 | alt_coat = Menorah surrounded by an olive branch on either side | symbol_type = Emblem | national_anthem = {{lang|he|הַתִּקְוָה}} (''[Hatīkvāh](/source/Hatikvah)''; "The Hope"){{parabr}}{{center|File:Hatikvah instrumental.ogg}} | image_map = {{Switcher|frameless|Show globe|frameless|Map of Israel ([Green Line](/source/Green_Line_(Israel)))}} | alt_map = Israel proper shown in dark green; Israeli-occupied territories shown in light green | map_caption = {{Legend|#346733|Israel within internationally recognised borders}} {{Legend|#49c946|[Israeli-occupied territories](/source/Israeli-occupied_territories)}} | capital = [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem)
([limited recognition](/source/Status_of_Jerusalem)){{refn|group=fn|Recognition by other UN member states: Russia ([West Jerusalem](/source/West_Jerusalem)),{{cite web |title=Foreign Ministry statement regarding Palestinian-Israeli settlement |url=http://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/-/asset_publisher/cKNonkJE02Bw/content/id/2717182 |website=mid.ru |date=6 April 2017 |access-date=15 December 2018 |archive-date=4 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200104201944/https://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/-/asset_publisher/cKNonkJE02Bw/content/id/2717182 |url-status=live }} the [Czech Republic](/source/Czech_Republic) ([West Jerusalem](/source/West_Jerusalem)),{{cite web |url=https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Czech-Republic-announces-it-recognizes-West-Jerusalem-as-Israels-capital-517241 |title=Czech Republic announces it recognizes West Jerusalem as Israel's capital|work=The Jerusalem Post|date=6 December 2017 |access-date=6 December 2017|quote=The Czech Republic currently, before the peace between Israel and Palestine is signed, recognizes Jerusalem to be in fact the capital of Israel in the borders of the demarcation line from 1967." The Ministry also said that it would only consider relocating its embassy based on "results of negotiations.|archive-date=3 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200303093750/https://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Czech-Republic-announces-it-recognizes-West-Jerusalem-as-Israels-capital-517241|url-status=live}} [Argentina](/source/Argentina),{{cite web |title=Javier Milei on his first diplomatic visit to Israel as President of Argentina |url=https://www.gov.il/en/pages/javier-maili-on-his-first-diplomatic-visit-to-israel |access-date=28 November 2025}} [Honduras](/source/Honduras),{{cite news |title=Honduras recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/honduras-recognizes-jerusalem-as-israels-capital/ |work=The Times of Israel |date=29 August 2019 |access-date=29 August 2019 |archive-date=3 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203023556/https://www.timesofisrael.com/honduras-recognizes-jerusalem-as-israels-capital/ |url-status=live }} [Guatemala](/source/Guatemala),{{cite web |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/mundo/2017/12/24/guatemala-se-suma-a-eeuu-y-tambien-trasladara-su-embajada-en-israel-a-jerusalen/|title=Guatemala se suma a EEUU y también trasladará su embajada en Israel a Jerusalén|trans-title=Guatemala joins US, will also move embassy to Jerusalem|website=Infobae|date=24 December 2017 |language=es|access-date=25 December 2017|archive-date=17 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417074208/https://www.infobae.com/america/mundo/2017/12/24/guatemala-se-suma-a-eeuu-y-tambien-trasladara-su-embajada-en-israel-a-jerusalen/|url-status=live}} Guatemala's embassy was located in Jerusalem until the 1980s, when it was moved to Tel Aviv. [Nauru](/source/Nauru),{{cite news |title=Nauru recognizes J'lem as capital of Israel |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/268084 |work=Israel National News |date=29 August 2019 |language=en |access-date=29 August 2019 |archive-date=11 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611110231/http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/268084 |url-status=live }} and the United States.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/06/world/middleeast/trump-jerusalem-israel-capital.html |title=Trump Recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's Capital and Orders U.S. Embassy to Move|work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |date=6 December 2017|access-date=6 December 2017|archive-date=17 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617225602/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/06/world/middleeast/trump-jerusalem-israel-capital.html |url-status=live}}}}{{refn|group=fn|Jerusalem is Israel's largest city if including [East Jerusalem](/source/East_Jerusalem), which is widely recognised as occupied territory.{{citation|title=The Legal Status of East Jerusalem|publisher=[Norwegian Refugee Council](/source/Norwegian_Refugee_Council) |date=December 2013|url=https://www.nrc.no/globalassets/pdf/reports/the-legal-status-of-east-jerusalem.pdf|pages=8, 29 |access-date=26 October 2021|archive-date=10 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510192041/https://www.nrc.no/globalassets/pdf/reports/the-legal-status-of-east-jerusalem.pdf |url-status=live}} If East Jerusalem is not counted, the largest city would be [Tel Aviv](/source/Tel_Aviv).}} | coordinates = {{coord|31|47|N|35|13|E|region:IL-JM_type:city(880000)}} | largest_city = capital | languages_type = Official language | languages = [Hebrew](/source/Modern_Hebrew){{Cite web |title=Constitution for Israel |url=https://knesset.gov.il/constitution/ConstIntro_eng.htm |access-date=9 December 2023 |website=knesset.gov.il. |archive-date=4 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230804001041/https://knesset.gov.il/constitution/ConstIntro_eng.htm |url-status=live }} | languages2_type = Special status | languages2 = [Arabic](/source/Modern_Standard_Arabic){{refn|group=fn|Arabic has a "special status" as set by the [Basic Law of 2018](/source/Basic_Law%3A_Israel_as_the_Nation-State_of_the_Jewish_People), which allows it to be used by official institutions.{{cite news |title=Israel Passes 'National Home' Law, Drawing Ire of Arabs |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/18/world/middleeast/israel-passes-national-home-law.html |url-access=subscription |work=The New York Times |date=19 July 2018 |language=en |access-date=19 July 2018 |archive-date=7 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107092323/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/18/world/middleeast/israel-passes-national-home-law.html%20 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Lubell |first1=Maayan |title=Israel adopts divisive Jewish nation-state law |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-politics-law/israel-adopts-divisive-jewish-nation-state-law-idUSKBN1K901V |work=Reuters |date=19 July 2018 |access-date=19 July 2018 |archive-date=24 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181224205808/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-politics-law/israel-adopts-divisive-jewish-nation-state-law-idUSKBN1K901V |url-status=live }} Prior to that law's passage, Arabic had been an official language alongside Hebrew.{{cite web |title=Arabic in Israel: an official language and a cultural bridge |url=http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/IsraelExperience/Culture/Pages/Arabic-in-Israel--an-official-language-and-a-cultural-bridge-18-December-2016.aspx |website=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |date=18 December 2016 |access-date=8 August 2018 |archive-date=2 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200802014731/http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/IsraelExperience/Culture/Pages/Arabic-in-Israel--an-official-language-and-a-cultural-bridge-18-December-2016.aspx |url-status=live }}}} | ethnic_groups = {{ubl |{{percentage|7,274.2|10,119.4|1}} [Jews](/source/Israeli_Jews) |{{percentage|2,124.2|10,119.4|1}} [Arabs](/source/Arab_citizens_of_Israel) |{{percentage|10,119.4-7,274.2-2,124.2|10,119.4|1}} [others](/source/Demographics_of_Israel)}} | ethnic_groups_year = 2025 est. | ethnic_groups_ref = {{cite report |date=14 August 2025 |title=Population, by Population Group |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/DocLib/2025/yarhon0825/b1.pdf |work=Monthly Bulletin of Statistics |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=14 September 2025}} | religion = {{ublist |{{percentage|7,153.0|9,699.2|1}} [Judaism](/source/Israeli_Jews) |{{percentage|1,773.9|9,699.2|1}} [Islam](/source/Islam_in_Israel) |{{percentage|180.5|9,699.2|1}} [Christianity](/source/Christianity_in_Israel) |{{percentage|151.3|9,699.2|1}} [Druze faith](/source/Druze_in_Israel) |{{percentage|9,699.2-7,153.0-1,773.9-180.5-151.3|9,699.2|1}} [others](/source/Religion_in_Israel) }} | religion_year = 2023 est. | religion_ref = {{cite report |date=30 December 2024 |title=Population Of Israelis, by Religion |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/DocLib/2024/2.ShnatonPopulation/st02_02.pdf |work=Statistical Abstract of Israel |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=14 September 2025}} | demonym = [Israeli](/source/Israelis) | government_type = [Unitary parliamentary republic](/source/Unitary_parliamentary_republic) | leader_title1 = [President](/source/President_of_Israel) | leader_name1 = [Isaac Herzog](/source/Isaac_Herzog) | leader_title2 = [Prime Minister](/source/Prime_Minister_of_Israel) | leader_name2 = [Benjamin Netanyahu](/source/Benjamin_Netanyahu) | legislature = [Knesset](/source/Knesset) | sovereignty_type = Establishment | established_event1 = [Declaration of independence](/source/Israeli_Declaration_of_Independence) | established_date1 = 14 May 1948 | area_km2 = 22,072 or 20,770{{Cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/israel/#geography |title=Israel|date=27 February 2023|publisher=Central Intelligence Agency|via=CIA.gov|access-date=24 February 2023|archive-date=10 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110072816/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/israel#geography |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |title=Israel country profile |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14628835 |website=BBC News |access-date=27 January 2021 |date=24 February 2020 |archive-date=24 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124133129/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14628835 |url-status=live }} | area_sq_mi = 8,470 | area_rank = 148th | area_footnote = {{efn|20,770 km2 is Israel within the [Green Line](/source/Green_Line_(Israel)). 22,072 km2 includes the occupied [Golan Heights](/source/Golan_Heights) (c. {{convert|1,200|km2|abbr=on}}) and [East Jerusalem](/source/East_Jerusalem) (c. {{convert|64|km2|abbr=on}}).}} | percent_water = 2.71{{cite web |title=Surface water and surface water change |access-date=11 October 2020 |website=OECD.Stat |publisher=OECD |url=https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=SURFACE_WATER |archive-date=24 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210324133453/https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=SURFACE_WATER |url-status=live }} | population_estimate = 10,147,200{{cite web |title=Time Series DataBank |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/en/Statistics/Pages/Generators/Time-Series-DataBank.aspx?r=ea3bd53b-b8ef-4c4a-8f6f-8eb5e8cdb84f&uptodate=1 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=14 September 2025}} | population_estimate_year = {{CURRENTYEAR}} | population_estimate_rank = 93rd | population_census = 9,601,720{{cite web |title=Geographic Areas – Nationwide |url=https://census.cbs.gov.il/geographic-area?search=%D7%9B%D7%9C%D7%9C%20%D7%90%D7%A8%D7%A6%D7%99&type=%D7%9B%D7%9C%D7%9C%20%D7%90%D7%A8%D7%A6%D7%99 |website=2022 Population Census Data |publisher=[Central Bureau of Statistics](/source/Central_Bureau_of_Statistics_(Israel)) |access-date=31 July 2024}} | population_census_year = 2022 | population_density_km2 = {{pop density|{{data Israel|poptoday}}|22072|km2|prec=0|disp=num}} | population_density_rank = 30th | GDP_PPP = {{increase}} $609.411 billion{{cite web |url=https://data.imf.org/en/Data-Explorer?datasetUrn=IMF.RES:WEO(9.0.0) |title=World Economic Outlook Database (April 2026 Edition) |publisher=[International Monetary Fund](/source/International_Monetary_Fund) |website=www.imf.org |date=14 April 2026 |access-date=18 April 2026}} | GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $59,095 | GDP_PPP_year = 2026 | GDP_PPP_rank = 50th | GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 35th | GDP_nominal = {{increase}} $719.848 billion | GDP_nominal_year = 2026 | GDP_nominal_rank = 25th | GDP_nominal_per_capita = {{increase}} $69,804 | GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 14th | Gini_change = increase | Gini = 37.9 | Gini_ref = {{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/gini-index-coefficient-distribution-of-family-income/country-comparison/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204222738/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/gini-index-coefficient-distribution-of-family-income/country-comparison/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 February 2021 |title=Gini Index coefficient |publisher=[The World Factbook](/source/The_World_Factbook) |access-date=24 September 2024}} | Gini_year = 2021 | HDI = 0.919 | HDI_rank = 27th | HDI_year = 2023 | HDI_change = increase | HDI_ref = {{Cite web |date=6 May 2025 |title=Human Development Report 2025 |url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250506051232/https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf |archive-date=6 May 2025 |access-date=6 May 2025 |publisher=[United Nations Development Programme](/source/United_Nations_Development_Programme)}} | currency = [New shekel](/source/Israeli_new_shekel) ({{lang|he|₪}}) | currency_code = ILS | time_zone = [IST](/source/Israel_Standard_Time) | utc_offset = +2:00 | time_zone_DST = [IDT](/source/Israel_Summer_Time) | utc_offset_DST = +3:00 | cctld = [.il](/source/.il) | iso3166code = IL | calling_code = +972 | footnotes = {{notelist}} }} '''Israel''',{{efn|group=fn|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɪ|z|r|i|ə|l|,_|-|r|eɪ|-|audio=LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Israel.wav}}; {{langx|he|יִשְׂרָאֵל}}, {{small|romanised:}} {{Transliteration|engvar=gb|he|Yīsrāʾēl}} {{IPA|he|jisʁaˈʔel|}}; {{langx|ar|إِسْرَائِيل}}, {{small|romanised:}} {{Transliteration|engvar=gb|ar|ʾIsrāʾīl}}}} officially the '''State of Israel''',{{efn|group=fn|{{langx|he|מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל}}, {{small|romanised:}} {{transliteration|engvar=gb|he|Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl}} {{IPA|he|mediˈnat jisʁaˈʔel|}}; {{langx|ar|دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل}}, {{small|romanised:}} {{transliteration|engvar=gb|ar|Dawlat Isrāʾīl}}}} is a country in the [Southern Levant](/source/Southern_Levant) region of [West Asia](/source/West_Asia). It is [bordered](/source/Borders_of_Israel) by [Lebanon](/source/Lebanon) to the north, [Syria](/source/Syria) to the northeast, [Jordan](/source/Jordan) to the east, and [Egypt](/source/Egypt) to the southwest. [Israel's western coast](/source/Israeli_coastal_plain) lies on the [Mediterranean Sea](/source/Mediterranean_Sea), its southern tip reaches the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea), and to the east is [Earth's lowest point](/source/Extremes_on_Earth) near the [Dead Sea](/source/Dead_Sea). [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem) is the government seat and [proclaimed capital](/source/Status_of_Jerusalem),Akram, Susan M., Michael Dumper, Michael Lynk, and Iain Scobbie, eds. 2010. ''International Law and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Rights-Based Approach to Middle East Peace''. Routledge. p. 119: "UN General Assembly Resolution 181 recommended the creation of an international zone, or corpus separatum, in Jerusalem to be administered by the UN for a 10-year period, after which there would be a referendum to determine its future. This approach applies equally to West and East Jerusalem and is not affected by the occupation of East Jerusalem in 1967. To a large extent it is this approach that still guides the diplomatic behaviour of states and thus has greater force in international law." while [Tel Aviv](/source/Tel_Aviv) is Israel's [largest urban area](/source/Gush_Dan) and [economic centre](/source/Economy_of_Israel). The [Land of Israel](/source/Land_of_Israel), also called [Palestine](/source/Palestine_(region)) or the [Holy Land](/source/Holy_Land), was home to the ancient [Canaan](/source/Canaan)ites and later the kingdoms of [Israel and Judah](/source/Ancient_Israel_and_Judah) and [Hasmonean Judea](/source/Hasmonean_Judea). Located near [continental crossroads](/source/Levantine_corridor), its [demographics shifted](/source/Demographic_history_of_Palestine_(region)) under various empires. 19th-century [European antisemitism](/source/European_antisemitism) fuelled the [Zionist](/source/Zionist) movement for a [Jewish homeland](/source/Jewish_homeland), which gained [British](/source/British_Empire) support with the 1917 [Balfour Declaration](/source/Balfour_Declaration). After [World War I](/source/World_War_I), Britain occupied the region and established [Mandatory Palestine](/source/Mandatory_Palestine). British rule and [Jewish immigration](/source/Aliyah) in the leadup to the [Holocaust](/source/The_Holocaust) intensified [Arab-Jewish tensions](/source/Intercommunal_conflict_in_Mandatory_Palestine),{{cite book |last = Morris | first = Benny |author-link = Benny Morris|title= Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict, 1881–2001 |publisher= Knopf |year= 1999 |edition= reprint |isbn= 978-0-679-74475-7 |page= |quote= The fear of territorial displacement and dispossession was to be the chief motor of Arab antagonism to Zionism down to 1948 (and indeed after 1967 as well). |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=746mQgAACAAJ |access-date= 22 March 2024 |archive-date= 22 March 2024 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240322131219/https://books.google.com/books?id=746mQgAACAAJ |url-status= live }} Also quoted, among many, by Mark M. Ayyash (2019). ''Hermeneutics of Violence: A Four-Dimensional Conception''. University of Toronto Press, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=W1G_DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA195 195] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240322131220/https://books.google.com/books?id=W1G_DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA195 |date=22 March 2024 }}, {{ISBN|978-1-4875-0586-8}}. Accessed 22 March 2024.{{cite journal |last1=Fildis |first1=Ayse |last2=Nisanci |first2=Ensar |title=British Colonial Policy "Divide and Rule": Fanning Arab Rivalry in Palestine |year=2019 |journal=International Journal of Islamic and Civilizational Studies |volume=6 |issue=1 |publisher=UTM Press |url=https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/78420814/ea601a07a2310f41e37ea266a47b38107202-libre.pdf?1641751843=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DBritish_Colonial_Policy_Divide_and_Rule.pdf&Expires=1715344527&Signature=UEfPzsmbLIHNW7Sd0jLxe4OpYUu4sPt5cIaU2beASuCt0BXqpfOQmcXAcR9EAPzkenh~ohMRrZlUREfMTTfqEosnMw8oqlVa2Ap6HVteACMhsC0VpH~MUmjcYs8f8rQUrWjZTnMuKwhEtiRQ92Md~PThKvq6IbAds05mX-cJzPamGLZ7fpx8xA3ejpYDXiG1uYE7Ks550xBeDWLCCPkfuOUJXMTbmJAucKnXRZnDL78EuDeQx0CNpSWdujVlcd82klFyLverjL5AAJs5AH2eHNVpXzym0fPdbY2YJWz5sgMYZOC9oN09cDXB007r7qRj2nFSL3Zs13Un0i~~1~pwbg__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA |access-date=10 May 2024 |archive-date=10 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510121206/https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/78420814/ea601a07a2310f41e37ea266a47b38107202-libre.pdf?1641751843=&response-content-disposition=inline&%20filename=British_Colonial_Policy_Divide_and_Rule.pdf&Expires=1715344527&Signature=UEfPzsmbLIHNW7Sd0jLxe4OpYUu4sPt5cIaU2beASuCt0BXqpfOQmcXAcR9EAPzkenh~ohMRrZlUREfMTTfqEosnMw8oqlVa2Ap6HVteACMhsC0VpH~MUmjcYs8f8rQUrWjZTnMuKwhEtiRQ92Md~PThKvq6IbAds05mX-cJzPamGLZ7fpx8xA3ejpYDXiG1uYE7Ks550xBeDWLCCPkfuOUJXMTbmJAucKnXRZnDL78EuDeQx0CNpSWdujVlcd82klFyLverjL5AAJs5AH2eHNVpXzym0fPdbY2YJWz5sgMYZOC9oN09cDXB007r7qRj2nFSL3Zs13Un0i~~1~pwbg__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA |url-status=live }} which escalated into [a civil war](/source/1947%E2%80%931948_civil_war_in_Mandatory_Palestine) after the 1947 [United Nations](/source/United_Nations) (UN) [Partition Plan](/source/United_Nations_Partition_Plan_for_Palestine). Israel [declared independence](/source/Israeli_Declaration_of_Independence) as the [British Mandate ended](/source/end_of_the_British_Mandate_for_Palestine) on 14 May 1948, followed by an [invasion](/source/1948_Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_War) by [Arab states](/source/Arab_world). The [1949 armistice](/source/1949_Armistice_Agreements) expanded Israel beyond the UN plan,{{Cite web |date=19 October 2023 |title=Zionism {{!}} Definition, History, Examples, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Zionism |access-date=29 October 2023 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en |archive-date=25 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225204632/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Zionism |url-status=live }} while no new Arab state was created, leaving [Gaza under Egyptian control](/source/Occupation_of_the_Gaza_Strip_by_the_United_Arab_Republic) and the [West Bank ruled by Jordan](/source/Jordanian_annexation_of_the_West_Bank).{{cite journal |last1=Meir-Glitzenstein |first1=Esther |date=Fall 2018 |title=Turning Points in the Historiography of Jewish Immigration from Arab Countries to Israel |journal=Israel Studies |publisher=Indiana University Press |volume=23 |issue=3 |pages=114–122 |doi=10.2979/israelstudies.23.3.15 |jstor=10.2979/israelstudies.23.3.15 |s2cid=150208821 |quote=The mass immigration from Arab countries began in mid-1949 and included three communities that relocated to Israel almost in their entirety: 31,000 Jews from Libya, 50,000 from Yemen, and 125,000 from Iraq. Additional immigrants arrived from Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, Iran, India, and elsewhere. Within three years, the Jewish population of Israel doubled. The ethnic composition of the population shifted as well, as immigrants from Muslim counties and their offspring now comprised one third of the Jewish population—an unprecedented phenomenon in global immigration history. From 1952–60, Israel regulated and restricted immigration from Muslim countries with a selective immigration policy based on economic criteria, and sent these immigrants, most of whom were North African, to peripheral Israeli settlements. The selective immigration policy ended in 1961 when, following an agreement between Israel and Morocco, about 100,000 Jews immigrated to the State. From 1952–68 about 600,000 Jews arrived in Israel, three quarters of whom were from Arab countries and the remaining immigrants were largely from Eastern Europe. Today fewer than 30,000 remain in Muslim countries, mostly concentrated in Iran and Turkey.}}{{sfn|Fischbach|2008|p=26–27}} Most [Palestinian Arabs](/source/Palestinians) [fled or were expelled](/source/1948_Palestinian_expulsion_and_flight) during the [Nakba](/source/Nakba),{{sfn|Slater|2020|pp=81–92, 350|ps=, "[p. 350] It is no longer a matter of serious dispute that in the 1947–48 period—beginning well before the Arab invasion in May 1948—some 700,000 to 750,000 Palestinians were expelled from or fled their villages and homes in Israel in fear of their lives—an entirely justifiable fear, in light of massacres carried out by Zionist forces."}}{{cite journal |last1=Ghanim |first1=Honaida |date=March 2009 |title=Poetics of Disaster: Nationalism, Gender, and Social Change Among Palestinian Poets in Israel After Nakba |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40608203 |journal=[International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society](/source/International_Journal_of_Politics%2C_Culture%2C_and_Society) |volume=22 |pages=23–39 [25–26] |doi=10.1007/s10767-009-9049-9 |jstor=40608203 |s2cid=144148068 |number=1 |issn=0891-4486 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211106040944/https://www.jstor.org/stable/40608203 |archive-date=6 November 2021 |url-status=live |quote=Around 750,000–900,000 Palestinians were systematically expelled from their homes and lands and about 531 villages were deliberately destroyed.|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite book |last1=Cleveland |first1=William L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CUhaDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT290 |title=A History of the Modern Middle East |last2=Bunton |first2=Martin |date=2016 |publisher=[Westview Press](/source/Westview_Press) |isbn=978-0-429-97513-4 |language=en |page=270 |quote=Not only was there no Palestinian Arab state, but the vast majority of the Arab population in the territory that became Israel-over 700,000 people-had become refugees. The Arab flight from Palestine began during the intercommunal war and was at first the normal reaction of a civilian population to nearby fighting-a temporary evacuation from the zone of combat with plans to return once hostilities ceased. However, during spring and early summer 1948, the flight of the Palestinian Arabs was transformed into a permanent mass exodus... .}} while Israeli independence prompted [antisemitism in the Arab world](/source/antisemitism_in_the_Arab_world) and [Jewish exodus therefrom](/source/Jewish_exodus_from_the_Muslim_world), mainly to Israel.{{Cite journal |last=Beker |first=Avi |date=2005 |title=The Forgotten Narrative: Jewish Refugees from Arab Countries |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25834637 |journal=Jewish Political Studies Review |volume=17 |issue=3/4 |pages=3–19 |jstor=25834637 |issn=0792-335X |access-date=23 May 2024 |archive-date=9 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240109013108/https://www.jstor.org/stable/25834637 |url-status=live }}{{Cite book |last=Dinstein |first=Yoram |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-cpKEAAAQBAJ&dq=650000+%2872%25%29+of+these+Jews+resettled+in+Israel.&pg=PA282 |title=Israel Yearbook on Human Rights, Volume 6 (1976) |date=11 October 2021 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-42287-2 |page=282 |language=en |access-date=23 May 2024 |archive-date=21 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240521171644/https://books.google.com/books?id=-cpKEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA282&lpg=PA282&dq=650000+(72%25)+of+these+Jews+resettled+in+Israel.&source=bl&ots=F8PgTaUhaN&sig=ACfU3U0WsiDOJxluxSyPsNK60ypjp28O-A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjnzt69mZ-GAxUiweYEHeYlBh04ChDoAXoECAMQAw#v=onepage&q=650000%20(72%25)%20of%20these%20Jews%20resettled%20in%20Israel.&f=false |url-status=live }} After the 1967 [Six-Day War](/source/Six-Day_War), Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza and Egyptian [Sinai](/source/Israeli_occupation_of_the_Sinai_Peninsula), and annexed [East Jerusalem](/source/Israeli_annexation_of_East_Jerusalem) and the Syrian [Golan Heights](/source/Golan_Heights_Law). Peace treaties were signed with [Egypt](/source/Egypt%E2%80%93Israel_peace_treaty) in 1979 (the Sinai being returned in 1982) and [Jordan](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Jordan_peace_treaty) in 1994. The 1993 [Oslo Accords](/source/Oslo_Accords) introduced limited [Palestinian self-rule](/source/Palestinian_Authority) in the West Bank and Gaza, while the 2020 [Abraham Accords](/source/Abraham_Accords) [normalised](/source/Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_normalization) ties with more Arab states, but the [Israeli–Palestinian conflict](/source/Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian_conflict) persists. Israeli [occupation of the Palestinian territories](/source/Israeli-occupied_territories) has drawn international criticism, with experts calling its actions [war crimes](/source/Israeli_war_crimes) and crimes against humanity. After the [Hamas](/source/Hamas)-led [October 7 attacks](/source/October_7_attacks), Israel began committing [genocide against Palestinians in Gaza](/source/Gaza_genocide).Multiple sources: * {{Cite web |date=2024-11-19 |title=A genocide is unfolding before our eyes: History will not forgive our inaction, UN Special Committee warns General Assembly in report |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2024/11/genocide-unfolding-our-eyes-history-will-not-forgive-our-inaction |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251002205342/https://www.ohchr.org/en/statements-and-speeches/2024/11/genocide-unfolding-our-eyes-history-will-not-forgive-our-inaction |archive-date=2025-10-02 |access-date=2025-12-21 |website=OHCHR |quote=Our findings conclude that Israel’s methods of war align with the characteristics of genocide}} * {{Cite web |date=2025-09-16 |title=Israel has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip, UN Commission finds |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/09/israel-has-committed-genocide-gaza-strip-un-commission-finds |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251206074842/https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/09/israel-has-committed-genocide-gaza-strip-un-commission-finds |archive-date=2025-12-06 |access-date=2025-12-21 |website=OHCHR |language=en |quote=The Commission has been investigating the events on and since 7 October 2023 for the last two years, and concluded that Israeli authorities and Israeli security forces committed four of the five genocidal acts defined by the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, namely killing, causing serious bodily or mental harm, deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of the Palestinians in whole or in part, and imposing measures intended to prevent births.}} * {{Cite web |date=2025-08-14 |title=Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel |url=https://docs.un.org/en/A/80/337 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251118125758/https://docs.un.org/en/A/80/337 |archive-date=2025-11-18 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=UN Human Rights Council |quote=para. 76: ...Israeli authorities deliberately inflicted conditions of life on the Palestinians in Gaza calculated to destroy, in whole or in part, the Palestinians in Gaza, which is an underlying act of genocide...}} * {{Cite web |date=2025-09-16 |title=Legal analysis of the conduct of Israel in Gaza pursuant to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide |url=https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session60/advance-version/a-hrc-60-crp-3.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251210152028/https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session60/advance-version/a-hrc-60-crp-3.pdf |archive-date=2025-12-10 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=UN Human Rights Council |quote=Para. 233: the Commission concludes that the ‘direct and public incitement to commit genocide’ under article III(c) of the Genocide Convention is established. Para. 252. The Commission concludes on reasonable grounds that the Israeli authorities and Israeli security forces have committed and are continuing to commit the following actus reus of genocide against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, namely (i) killing members of the group; (ii) causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (iii) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and (iv) imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group}} * {{Cite web |date=2025-03-13 |title=“More than a human can bear”: Israel's systematic use of sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence since 7 October 2023 |url=https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session58/a-hrc-58-crp-6.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251019075921/https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session58/a-hrc-58-crp-6.pdf |archive-date=2025-10-19 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=UN Human Rights Council |quote=Para. 175: The Commission concludes that the destruction of the Basma IVF clinic was a measure intended to prevent births among Palestinians in Gaza, which is a genocidal act under the Rome Statute and Genocide Convention. Para. 178: The Commission concludes that the ISF caused serious bodily and mental harm to members of this group, and deliberately inflicted conditions of life that were calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians in Gaza as a group, in whole or in part, which are categories of genocidal acts in the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention. Para. 218: The Commission finds that the Israeli authorities have destroyed in part the reproductive capacity of the Palestinians in Gaza as a group, including by imposing measures intended to prevent births, one of the categories of genocidal acts in the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention. Para. 219: The harm for pregnant, lactating and new mothers is of an unprecedented scale in Gaza…The underlying acts amount to crimes against humanity and deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians as a group, one of the categories of genocidal acts in the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention}} * {{Cite web |date=2024-10-18 |title=UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry, legal analysis and recommendations on the implementation of the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion, Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory |url=https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/coiopt/2024-10-18-COI-position-paper_co-israel.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251010022635/https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/coiopt/2024-10-18-COI-position-paper_co-israel.pdf |archive-date=2025-10-10 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=UN Human Rights Council |quote=Para. 23: On the issue of genocide, the Commission notes the provisional measures orders issued by the Court in the Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel). The Commission finds that all States are on notice that Israel may be or is committing internationally wrongful acts in both its conduct in the military operations in Gaza and its unlawful occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Thus, the Commission finds that, unless States cease their aid and assistance to Israel in the commission of these acts, those States shall be deemed to be complicit in those internationally wrongful acts.}} * {{Cite web |date=2024-01-26 |title=Application of the Genocide Convention (Order 26 I 24) |url=https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240126-ord-01-00-en.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250926134400/https://www.un.org/unispal/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/192-20240126-ord-01-00-en-1.pdf |archive-date=2025-09-26 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=International Court of Justice |quote=Para. 54: In the Court’s view, the facts and circumstances mentioned above are sufficient to conclude that at least some of the rights claimed by South Africa and for which it is seeking protection are plausible. This is the case with respect to the right of the Palestinians in Gaza to be protected from acts of genocide and related prohibited acts identified in Article III, and the right of South Africa to seek Israel’s compliance with the latter’s obligations under the Convention.}} * {{Cite web |date=2025-03-28 |title=Application of the Genocide Convention (Order 28 III 24) |url=https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240328-ord-01-00-en.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250312091442/https://www.un.org/unispal/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/192-20240328-ord-01-00-en.pdf |archive-date=2025-03-12 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=International Court of Justice |quote=Para. 25: …The Court also sees no reason to revisit this conclusion [referring to para. 54 & 59 of Order of 26 January 2024 that there was/is a plausible case of genocide in Gaza]. Para. 30: The Court has already observed that the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip that existed when it issued its Order of 26 January 2024 has deteriorated even further… Para. 34: …“[t]he situation of hunger, starvation and famine is a result of Israel’s extensive restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid and commercial goods, displacement of most of the population, as well as the destruction of crucial civilian infrastructure”…}} * {{Cite web |date=2025-05-24 |title=Application of the Genocide Convention (Order 24 V 24) |url=https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20240524-ord-01-00-en.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250615061906/https://www.un.org/unispal/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/192-20240524-ord-01-00-en-1.pdf |archive-date=2025-06-15 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=International Court of Justice |quote=Para. 31-32: [reaffirms para. 25 Order of 28 March 2024 of para. 54 & 59 of Order of 26 January 2024 that there was/is a plausible case of genocide in Gaza]. Para. 47: the Court finds that the current situation arising from Israel’s military offensive in Rafah entails a further risk of irreparable prejudice to the plausible rights claimed by South Africa [in their genocide case against Israel]}} Israel and its allies, including the [United States](/source/United_States), [reject](/source/Gaza_genocide_denial) that Israel's actions constitute genocide.{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Deutsch|first1=Anthony|last2=Sterling|first2=Toby|last3=Berg|first3=Stephanie van den|date=12 January 2024|title=Israel rejects genocide charges, tells World Court it must defend itself|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-counter-genocide-accusations-world-court-2024-01-12/|access-date=23 June 2025|work=[Reuters](/source/Reuters)|language=en|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/BlhuU|archive-date=11 March 2026}}{{#invoke:Cite|news |date=20 May 2024 |title=Biden: What's happening in Gaza is not genocide |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/biden-whats-happening-gaza-is-not-genocide-2024-05-20/|access-date=27 February 2026 |work=[Reuters](/source/Reuters)}}{{#invoke:Cite|web |date=4 August 2025 |title=Trump Rejects Israel Is Committing Genocide In Gaza: 'They're In a War' |url=https://www.latintimes.com/trump-rejects-israel-committing-genocide-gaza-theyre-war-588011 |access-date=23 August 2025 |website=Latin Times |language=en}} The [Basic Laws of Israel](/source/Basic_Laws_of_Israel) establish the [Knesset](/source/Knesset) as a [proportionally](/source/proportional_representation) elected [parliament](/source/parliamentary_system). It shapes the [government](/source/Cabinet_of_Israel), led by the [prime minister](/source/Prime_Minister_of_Israel), and elects the largely ceremonial [president](/source/President_of_Israel). Israel has one of the Middle East's largest economies,{{Cite web |title=Israel datasets|url=https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/profile/ISR |access-date=22 April 2025 |website=www.imf.org}} [one of Asia's highest living standards](/source/List_of_countries_in_Asia_and_Oceania_by_Human_Development_Index), and globally ranks [25th in nominal GDP](/source/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)) and [14th in nominal GDP per capita](/source/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)_per_capita).{{Cite web |date=9 September 2023 |title=30 Wealthiest Countries by Per Capita Net Worth |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/30-wealthiest-countries-per-capita-111348314.html |access-date=15 July 2024 |website=Yahoo Finance |language=en-US}} One of the world's most [technologically advanced](/source/Science_and_technology_in_Israel) countries,{{Cite web |title=Global Innovation Index (GII) |url=https://www.wipo.int/en/web/global-innovation-index |access-date=28 October 2025 |website=global-innovation-index |language=en-US}} Israel allocates a larger share of its economy to research and development [than any other state](/source/List_of_sovereign_states_by_research_and_development_spending){{Cite book |title=Global Innovation Index 2023, 15th Edition |url=https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2023/index.html |access-date=10 August 2024 |date=2022 |publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization |doi=10.34667/tind.46596 |isbn=978-92-805-3432-0 |language=en |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |last3=Wunsch-Vincent |first3=Sacha}}{{Cite web |last=Getzoff |first=Marc |date=9 August 2023 |title=Most Technologically Advanced Countries In The World 2023 |url=https://gfmag.com/data/non-economic-data/most-advanced-countries-in-the-world/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231108044803/https://gfmag.com/data/non-economic-data/most-advanced-countries-in-the-world/ |archive-date=8 November 2023 |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=Global Finance Magazine |language=en-US}} and is believed to [possess nuclear weapons](/source/Israel_and_nuclear_weapons). The only country with a [revived](/source/Revival_of_the_Hebrew_language) official language, [Hebrew](/source/Modern_Hebrew), the [culture of Israel](/source/culture_of_Israel) combines [Jewish traditions](/source/Jewish_culture) with [Arab](/source/Arab_culture) influences. ==Etymology== {{Further|Israel (name)|Names of the Levant#Israel and Judea}} The names [Land of Israel](/source/Land_of_Israel) and Children of Israel have historically been used to refer to the biblical [Kingdom of Israel](/source/Kingdom_of_Israel_(united_monarchy)) and the entire [Jewish](/source/Jews) people respectively. The [name ''Israel''](/source/Israel_(name)) (Hebrew: {{lang|he-Latn|Yīsrāʾēl}}; [Septuagint](/source/Septuagint) {{langx|grc|Ἰσραήλ}}, {{lang|grc-Latn|Israēl}}, "[El (God)](/source/El_(deity)) persists/rules") refers to the patriarch [Jacob](/source/Jacob) who, according to the [Hebrew Bible](/source/Hebrew_Bible), was given the name after he successfully [wrestled](/source/Jacob_wrestling_with_the_angel) with the [Angel of the Lord](/source/Angel_of_the_Lord).{{cite encyclopedia |author=Geoffrey W. Bromiley |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yklDk6Vv0l4C&pg=PA907 |title=Israel |encyclopedia=[International Standard Bible Encyclopedia](/source/International_Standard_Bible_Encyclopedia): E–J |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |date=1995 |page=907 | isbn=978-0-8028-3782-0 }} The earliest known archaeological artefact to mention the word ''Israel'' as a collective is the [Merneptah Stele](/source/Merneptah_Stele) of [ancient Egypt](/source/ancient_Egypt) (dated to the late-13th century BCE).{{harvnb|Barton|Bowden|2004|p=126}}. "The Merneptah Stele ... is arguably the oldest evidence outside the Bible for the existence of Israel as early as the 13th century BCE."K.L. Noll, [https://books.google.com/books?id=hMeRK7B1EsMC&pg=PA139 ''Canaan and Israel in Antiquity: A Textbook on History and Religion,''] A&C Black, 2012, rev.ed. pp. 137ff.[Thomas L. Thompson](/source/Thomas_L._Thompson), [https://books.google.com/books?id=RwrrUuHFb6UC&pg=PA275 ''Early History of the Israelite People: From the Written & Archaeological Sources,''] Brill, 2000 pp. 275–276{{refn|group=fn |The [personal name "Israel"](/source/Israel_(name)) appears much earlier, in material from [Ebla](/source/Ebla).{{Cite journal |last=Hasel |first=Michael G. |date=1 January 1994 |title=Israel in the Merneptah Stela |journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume=296 |issue=296 |pages=45–61 |doi=10.2307/1357179 |jstor=1357179 |s2cid=164052192}}
* {{Cite book |last=Bertman |first=Stephen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1C4NKp4zgIQC&q=ebla%20israel%20ishmael%20abraham&pg=PA317 |title=Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia |date=14 July 2005 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-518364-1}}
* {{cite book |author1=Meindert Dijkstra |title=Between Evidence and Ideology Essays on the History of Ancient Israel read at the Joint Meeting of the Society for Old Testament Study and the Oud Testamentisch Werkgezelschap Lincoln Nebraska, July 2009 |date=2010 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-18737-5 |editor1-last=Becking |editor1-first=Bob |page=47 |chapter=Origins of Israel between history and ideology |quote=As a West Semitic personal name it existed long before it became a tribal or a geographical name. This is not without significance, though is it rarely mentioned. We learn of a maryanu named ysr"il (*Yi¡sr—a"ilu) from Ugarit living in the same period, but the name was already used a thousand years before in Ebla. The word Israel originated as a West Semitic personal name. One of the many names that developed into the name of the ancestor of a clan, of a tribe and finally of a people and a nation. |editor2-last=Grabbe |editor2-first=Lester}}}}{{cite book |last1=Lemche |first1=Niels Peter |year=1998 |title=The Israelites in History and Tradition |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |url={{Google books |JIoY7PagAOAC |page=PA35 |keywords= |text= |plainurl=yes}} |page=35|isbn=978-0-664-22727-2}} Under the [British Mandate](/source/Mandate_for_Palestine) (1920–1948), the entire region was known as ''Palestine''.{{cite magazine |url=https://time.com/3445003/mandatory-palestine/ |title=Mandatory Palestine: What It Was and Why It Matters |author=Noah Rayman |magazine=[Time](/source/Time_(magazine)) |date=29 September 2014 |access-date=5 December 2015 |archive-date=18 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518140257/http://time.com/3445003/mandatory-palestine/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=The Avalon Project : The Palestine Mandate |url=https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/palmanda.asp |access-date=5 October 2025 |website=avalon.law.yale.edu}} Upon [establishment in 1948](/source/Israeli_Declaration_of_Independence), the country formally adopted the name ''State of Israel'' ({{langx|he|מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל}}, {{Audio|He-Medinat Israel.ogg|{{transliteration|engvar=gb|he|''Medīnat Yisrā'el''}}|help=no}} {{IPA|he|mediˈnat jisʁaˈʔel|}}; {{langx|ar|دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل}}, {{transliteration|engvar=gb|ar|ALA-LC|''Dawlat Isrāʼīl''}}, {{IPA|ar|dawlat ʔisraːˈʔiːl|}}) after other [proposed names](/source/Israeli_Declaration_of_Independence) including ''[Land of Israel](/source/Land_of_Israel)'' ({{lang|he-Latn|Eretz Israel}}), ''Ever'' (from ancestor [Eber](/source/Eber)), ''[Zion](/source/Zion)'', and ''[Judea](/source/Judea)'', were considered but rejected.{{cite news |work=[The Palestine Post](/source/The_Palestine_Post) |date=7 December 1947 |page=1 |title=Popular Opinion |url=http://www.jpress.org.il/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToSaveGifMSIE_TAUEN&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=PLS/1947/12/07&ChunkNum=-1&ID=Ar00105&PageLabel=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120815030044/http://www.jpress.org.il/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib%3ALowLevelEntityToSaveGifMSIE_TAUEN&Type=text%2Fhtml&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=PLS%2F1947%2F12%2F07&ChunkNum=-1&ID=Ar00105&PageLabel=1 |archive-date=15 August 2012}}{{Cite book |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.18254265 |title=Israel: The First Decade of Independence |date=1995 |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=978-0-7914-2260-1}} The name ''Israel'' was suggested by [David Ben-Gurion](/source/David_Ben-Gurion) and passed by a vote of 6–3.{{cite news |url=https://info.jpost.com/1998/Supplements/Jubilee/2.html |title=One Day that Shook the world |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112220409/http://info.jpost.com/1998/Supplements/Jubilee/2.html |archive-date=12 January 2012 |work=[The Jerusalem Post](/source/The_Jerusalem_Post) |date=30 April 1998 |author=Elli Wohlgelernter }}{{Cite web |last=Forman |first=Jacob |date=17 April 2023 |title=Jewish Word {{!}} Israel: What's in a Name? |url=https://momentmag.com/jewish-word-israel-whats-in-a-name/ |access-date=5 October 2025 |website=Moment Magazine |language=en-US}} In the early weeks after establishment, the government chose the term ''[Israeli](/source/Israelis)'' to denote a citizen of the state.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,798687-2,00.html |magazine=[Time](/source/Time_(magazine)) |date=31 May 1948 |title=On the Move |access-date=6 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016074447/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C798687-2%2C00.html |archive-date=16 October 2007}} ==History== {{Main|History of Israel}} {{Further|History of Israel (1948–present)}} {{For timeline|Timeline of Israeli history}} ===Prehistory=== {{further|Prehistory of the Levant}} The [Ubeidiya prehistoric site](/source/Ubeidiya_prehistoric_site) in northern Israel shows the [presence of archaic humans](/source/Early_expansions_of_hominins_out_of_Africa) around 1.5 million years ago.{{cite journal |last=Tchernov |first=Eitan |author-link=Eitan Tchernov |date=1988 |title=The Age of 'Ubeidiya Formation (Jordan Valley, Israel) and the Earliest Hominids in the Levant |journal=[Paléorient](/source/Pal%C3%A9orient) |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=63–65 |doi=10.3406/paleo.1988.4455 }} The second-oldest evidence of [anatomically modern human](/source/anatomically_modern_human)s [outside Africa](/source/Recent_African_origin_of_modern_humans) is a 200,000-year-old fossil from [Misliya Cave](/source/Misliya_Cave) on Mount Carmel.{{cite news |last=Wade |first=Lizzie |date=10 July 2019 |title=Skull fragment from Greek cave suggests modern humans were in Europe more than 200,000 years ago |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/skull-fragment-greek-cave-suggests-modern-humans-were-europe-more-200000-years-ago |journal=[Science](/source/Science_(journal)) |publisher=American Association for the Advancement of Science |doi=10.1126/science.aay6927 |access-date=21 April 2025}} The [Natufian culture](/source/Natufian_culture) ({{circa}} 10,000 BCE) may be linked to the [Proto-Afroasiatic language](/source/Proto-Afroasiatic_language){{cite book |author=Winfried Nöth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y4_It_sAuMYC&pg=PA293 |title=Origins of Semiosis: Sign Evolution in Nature and Culture |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |year=1994 |isbn=978-3-11-087750-2 |page=293}}{{cite book |author=Roger Blench, Matthew Spriggs |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NUvnqjutFmoC&pg=PT70 |title=Archaeology and Language IV: Language Change and Cultural Transformation |publisher=Routledge |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-134-81623-1 |page=70}} and is notable for adopting [sedentism](/source/sedentism) before the [advent of agriculture](/source/Origins_of_agriculture_in_West_Asia) and the [Neolithic Revolution](/source/Neolithic_Revolution).{{cite book |last1=Hershkovitz |first1=Israel |author-link1=Israel Hershkovitz |last2=Gopher |first2=Avi |author-link2=Avi Gopher |date=30 September 2008 |chapter=Demographic, Biological and Cultural Aspects of the Neolithic Revolution: A View from the Southern Levant |chapter-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225258426 |title=The Neolithic Demographic Transition and its Consequences |location= |editor-last1=Bocquet-Appel |editor-first1=Jean-Pierre |editor-last2=Bar-Yosef |editor-first2=Ofer |editor-link2=Ofer Bar-Yosef |publisher=Springer Science+Business Media |page=465 |doi=10.1007/978-1-4020-8539-0_17 |isbn= 978-1-4020-8538-3|access-date=20 April 2025}} ===Bronze and Iron Ages=== {{further|Ancient Israel and Judah}} [[File:Ruins atop Tel Megiddo with circular altar-like shrine and a series of temples on top of the other dating from the early bronze-age through the iron-age periods, Tel Meggido, Israel (19888642855).jpg|thumb|[Tel Megiddo](/source/Tel_Megiddo), the ruins of a [Canaan](/source/Canaan)ite and later [Israelite](/source/Israelites) city]] Early references to "[Canaan](/source/Canaan)" and "Canaanites" appear in ancient [Near Eastern](/source/Ancient_Near_East) and [Egyptian](/source/Ancient_Egypt) texts ({{Circa}} 2000 BCE); these populations were structured as politically independent [city-state](/source/city-state)s.{{Cite web |title=Canaanites |url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780195393361/obo-9780195393361-0216.xml |access-date=1 December 2023 |website=obo |language=en |archive-date=3 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403082451/https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780195393361/obo-9780195393361-0216.xml |url-status=live }}{{Citation |last=Glassman |first=Ronald M. |title=The Political Structure of the Canaanite City-States: Monarchy and Merchant Oligarchy |date=2017 |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51695-0_49 |work=The Origins of Democracy in Tribes, City-States and Nation-States |pages=473–477 |editor-last=Glassman |editor-first=Ronald M. |access-date=1 December 2023 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-51695-0_49 |isbn=978-3-319-51695-0 |archive-date=29 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240429061941/https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-51695-0_49 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }} During the [Late Bronze Age](/source/Late_Bronze_Age) (1550–1200 BCE), large parts of Canaan formed [vassal state](/source/vassal_state)s of the [New Kingdom of Egypt](/source/New_Kingdom_of_Egypt).{{Cite journal |last1=Braunstein |first1=Susan L. |year=2011 |title=The Meaning of Egyptian-Style Objects in the Late Bronze Cemeteries of Tell el-Farʿah (South) |journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume=364 |issue=364 |pages=1–36 |doi=10.5615/bullamerschoorie.364.0001 |jstor=10.5615/bullamerschoorie.364.0001 |s2cid=164054005}} As a result of the [Late Bronze Age collapse](/source/Late_Bronze_Age_collapse), Canaan fell into chaos, and Egyptian control over the region collapsed.Dever, William G. ''Beyond the Texts'', Society of Biblical Literature Press, 2017, pp. 89–93S. Richard, "Archaeological sources for the history of Palestine: The Early Bronze Age: The rise and collapse of urbanism", ''The Biblical Archaeologist'' (1987) Ancestors of the [Israelites](/source/Israelites) are thought to have included [ancient Semitic-speaking peoples](/source/ancient_Semitic-speaking_peoples) native to this area.{{Cite book |last1=Miller |first1=James Maxwell |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofancient00mill |title=A History of Ancient Israel and Judah |last2=Hayes |first2=John Haralson |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-664-21262-9}}{{rp|78–79}} Modern archaeological accounts suggest that the Israelites and their culture branched out of the Canaanite peoples through the development of a distinct [monolatristic](/source/Monolatry)—and later [monotheistic](/source/Monotheism)—religion centered on [Yahweh](/source/Yahweh).Rendsberg, Gary (2008). "Israel without the Bible". In Frederick E. Greenspahn. The Hebrew Bible: New Insights and Scholarship. NYU Press, pp. 3–5{{cite book |last1=Gnuse |first1=Robert Karl |title=No Other Gods: Emergent Monotheism in Israel |date=1997 |publisher=Sheffield Academic Press Ltd |isbn=978-1-85075-657-6 |pages=28, 31}} They spoke an archaic form of [Hebrew](/source/Hebrew_language), known as [Biblical Hebrew](/source/Biblical_Hebrew).Steiner, Richard C. (1997), "Ancient Hebrew", in Hetzron, Robert (ed.), ''The Semitic Languages'', Routledge, pp. 145–173, {{ISBN|978-0-415-05767-7}} Around the same time, the [Philistines](/source/Philistines) settled on the southern [coastal plain](/source/Israeli_coastal_plain).{{sfn|Killebrew|2005|p=230}}{{sfn|Shahin|2005|p=6}} [[File:Mesad Hashavyahu ostracon.jpg|thumb|The [Yavne-Yam ostracon](/source/Yavne-Yam_ostracon), a [Paleo-Hebrew](/source/Paleo-Hebrew_alphabet) inscription documenting administration in [Judah](/source/Kingdom_of_Judah)]] Most modern scholars agree that the [Exodus](/source/The_Exodus) narrative in the [Torah](/source/Torah) and [Old Testament](/source/Old_Testament) did not take place as depicted; however, some elements of these traditions do have [historical roots](/source/Historicity_of_the_Bible).{{harvnb|Faust|2015|p=476}}: "While there is a consensus among scholars that the Exodus did not take place in the manner described in the Bible, surprisingly most scholars agree that the narrative has a historical core, and that some of the highland settlers came, one way or another, from Egypt."{{harvnb|Redmount|2001|p=61}}: "A few authorities have concluded that the core events of the Exodus saga are entirely literary fabrications. But most biblical scholars still subscribe to some variation of the Documentary Hypothesis, and support the basic historicity of the biblical narrative." There is debate about the earliest existence of the [Kingdoms of Israel and Judah](/source/History_of_ancient_Israel_and_Judah) and their extent and power. While it is unclear if there was a [United Kingdom of Israel](/source/Kingdom_of_Israel_(united_monarchy)),{{cite book |last1=Lipschits |first1=Oded |title=The Jewish Study Bible |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-19-997846-5 |editor1-last=Berlin |editor1-first=Adele |edition=2nd |language=en |chapter=The History of Israel in the Biblical Period |editor2-last=Brettler |editor2-first=Marc Zvi |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yErYBAAAQBAJ |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=9 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409160917/https://books.google.com/books?id=yErYBAAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}{{cite book |last=Kuhrt |first=Amiele |url=https://archive.org/details/ancientneareastc00akuh/page/438 |title=The Ancient Near East |publisher=Routledge |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-415-16762-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/ancientneareastc00akuh/page/438 438]}} historians and archaeologists agree that the northern [Kingdom of Israel](/source/Kingdom_of_Israel_(Samaria)) existed by {{Abbr|ca.|circa}} 900 BCE{{cite book |last1=Finkelstein |first1=Israel |title=The Bible unearthed: archaeology's new vision of ancient Israel and the origin of its stories |last2=Silberman |first2=Neil Asher |date=2001 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=978-0-684-86912-4 |edition=1st Touchstone}}{{rp|169–195}} and the [Kingdom of Judah](/source/Kingdom_of_Judah) by {{Abbr|ca.|circa}} 850 BCE.Finkelstein, Israel, (2020). [https://books.google.com/books?id=wH3-DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA33 "Saul and Highlands of Benjamin Update: The Role of Jerusalem"], in Joachim J. Krause, Omer Sergi, and Kristin Weingart (eds.), ''Saul, Benjamin, and the Emergence of Monarchy in Israel: Biblical and Archaeological Perspectives'', SBL Press, Atlanta, GA, p. 48, footnote 57: "...They became territorial kingdoms later, Israel in the first half of the ninth century BCE and Judah in its second half..."[https://books.google.com/books?id=tu02muKUVJ0C&pg=PA229 The Pitcher Is Broken: Memorial Essays for Gosta W. Ahlstrom, Steven W. Holloway, Lowell K. Handy, Continuum, 1 May 1995] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409160404/https://books.google.com/books?id=tu02muKUVJ0C&pg=PA229 |date=9 April 2023 }} Quote: "For Israel, the description of the battle of Qarqar in the Kurkh Monolith of Shalmaneser III (mid-ninth century) and for Judah, a Tiglath-pileser III text mentioning (Jeho-) Ahaz of Judah (IIR67 = K. 3751), dated 734–733, are the earliest published to date." The Kingdom of Israel was the more prosperous of the two and soon developed into a regional power, with a capital at [Samaria](/source/Samaria_(ancient_city));{{harvnb|Finkelstein|Silberman|2002|pp=146–147}}: Put simply, while Judah was still economically marginal and backward, Israel was booming. ... In the next chapter we will see how the northern kingdom suddenly appeared on the ancient Near Eastern stage as a major regional power.{{Cite book |last=Finkelstein |first=Israel |title=The Forgotten Kingdom: the archaeology and history of Northern Israel |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-58983-911-3 |pages=65–66; 73; 74; 78; 87–94 |oclc=880456140}}{{Cite journal |last=Finkelstein |first=Israel |date=1 November 2011 |title=Observations on the Layout of Iron Age Samaria |journal=Tel Aviv |volume=38 |issue=2 |pages=194–207 |doi=10.1179/033443511x13099584885303 |issn=0334-4355 |s2cid=128814117}} during the [Omride dynasty](/source/Omrides), it controlled [Samaria](/source/Samaria), [Galilee](/source/Galilee), the upper [Jordan Valley](/source/Jordan_Valley), the [plain of Sharon](/source/Sharon_plain) and large parts of [Transjordan](/source/Transjordan_(region)). The Kingdom of Israel [was conquered](/source/Samerina) around 720 BCE by the [Neo-Assyrian Empire](/source/Neo-Assyrian_Empire).{{cite book |last=Broshi |first=Maguen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=etTUEorS1zMC&pg=PAPA174 |title=Bread, Wine, Walls and Scrolls |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |year=2001 |isbn=978-1-84127-201-6 |page=174 |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=10 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230210203455/https://books.google.com/books?id=etTUEorS1zMC&pg=PAPA174 |url-status=live }} The Kingdom of Judah, under [Davidic](/source/Davidic_line) rule with its capital in [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem), later became a [client state](/source/client_state) of first the Neo-Assyrian Empire and then the [Neo-Babylonian Empire](/source/Neo-Babylonian_Empire). It is estimated that [the region's population](/source/Demographic_history_of_Palestine_(region)) was around 400,000 in the [Iron Age II](/source/Iron_Age_II).Broshi, M., & Finkelstein, I. (1992). [https://www.academia.edu/40790691/M_Broshi_and_I_Finkelstein_The_Population_of_Palestine_in_Iron_Age_II_BASOR_287_1992_pp_47_60 "The Population of Palestine in Iron Age II"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230305224039/https://www.academia.edu/40790691/M_Broshi_and_I_Finkelstein_The_Population_of_Palestine_in_Iron_Age_II_BASOR_287_1992_pp_47_60 |date=5 March 2023 }}. ''Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research'', ''287''(1), 47–60. In 587/6 BCE, following a [revolt in Judah](/source/Judah's_revolts_against_Babylon), King [Nebuchadnezzar II](/source/Nebuchadnezzar_II) [besieged and destroyed Jerusalem](/source/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(587_BC)) and [Solomon's Temple](/source/Solomon's_Temple),{{harvnb|Finkelstein|Silberman|2002|p=307}}: "Intensive excavations throughout Jerusalem have shown that the city was indeed systematically destroyed by the Babylonians. The conflagration seems to have been general. When activity on the ridge of the City of David resumed in the Persian period, the-new suburbs on the western hill that had flourished since at least the time of Hezekiah were not reoccupied."{{Cite journal |last=Lipschits |first=Oded |date=1999 |title=The History of the Benjamin Region under Babylonian Rule |journal=Tel Aviv |volume=26 |issue=2 |pages=155–190 |doi=10.1179/tav.1999.1999.2.155 |issn=0334-4355}} dissolved the kingdom and [exiled much of the Judean elite to Babylon](/source/Babylonian_captivity).{{cite journal |last=Wheeler |first=P. |date=2017 |title=Review of the book Song of Exile: The Enduring Mystery of Psalm 137, by David W. Stowe |journal=The Catholic Biblical Quarterly |volume=79 |issue=4 |pages=696–697 |doi=10.1353/cbq.2017.0092 |s2cid=171830838}} === Classical antiquity === {{further|Second Temple period}} [[File:Monnaie - Prutah, bronze, Jérusalem, Judée, Mattathias Antigonos - btv1b8480202s (1 of 2).jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[Hasmonean coin](/source/Hasmonean_coinage) of [Antigonus II Mattathias](/source/Antigonus_II_Mattathias), depicting the [Temple menorah](/source/Temple_menorah)]] After [capturing Babylon](/source/Fall_of_Babylon) in 539 BCE, [Cyrus the Great](/source/Cyrus_the_Great), founder of the [Achaemenid Empire](/source/Achaemenid_Empire), issued [a proclamation](/source/Edict_of_Cyrus) allowing the exiled Judean population to return.{{cite web |title=Second Temple Period (538 BCE to 70 CE) Persian Rule |url=http://www.biu.ac.il/js/rennert/history_4.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990116222939/http://www.biu.ac.il/js/rennert/history_4.html |archive-date=16 January 1999 |access-date=15 March 2014 |publisher=Biu.ac.il}}''Harper's Bible Dictionary'', ed. by Achtemeier, etc., Harper & Row, San Francisco, 1985, p. 103 The construction of the [Second Temple](/source/Second_Temple) was completed {{Circa|520 BCE}}. The Achaemenids ruled the region as the province of [Yehud Medinata](/source/Yehud_Medinata).{{cite book |last=Grabbe |first=Lester L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-MnE5T_0RbMC&dq=%22gave%2Bthe%2BJews%2Bpermission%2Bto%2Breturn%2Bto%2BYehud%2Bprovince%2Band%2Bto%2Brebuild%2Bthe%22&pg=PAPA355 |title=A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period: Yehud – A History of the Persian Province of Judah v. 1 |publisher=T & T Clark |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-567-08998-4 |page=355 |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070639/https://books.google.com/books?id=-MnE5T_0RbMC&pg=PAPA355&dq=%22gave%2Bthe%2BJews%2Bpermission%2Bto%2Breturn%2Bto%2BYehud%2Bprovince%2Band%2Bto%2Brebuild%2Bthe%22 |url-status=live }} In 332 BCE, [Alexander the Great](/source/Alexander_the_Great) conquered the region as part of his [campaign against the Achaemenid Empire](/source/Wars_of_Alexander_the_Great). After his death, the area [was controlled](/source/Hellenistic_Palestine) by the [Ptolemaic](/source/Ptolemaic_Kingdom) and [Seleucid](/source/Seleucid_Empire) empires as a part of [Coele-Syria](/source/Coele-Syria). Under the Hellenistic kingdoms, ongoing [Hellenisation](/source/Hellenization) generated cultural tensions among the Jewish population that culminated under [Antiochus IV](/source/Antiochus_IV_Epiphanes), whose decrees outlawed Jewish practices and triggered the [Maccabean Revolt](/source/Maccabean_Revolt) in 167 BCE. The revolt weakened Seleucid control over Judea; by 142/141 BCE the [Hasmoneans](/source/Hasmonean_dynasty) had secured autonomy and soon established an [independent Jewish kingdom](/source/Hasmonean_Judea) that, in the late 2nd–early 1st century BCE, expanded into neighbouring territories.{{Cite book |last1=Helyer |first1=Larry R. |title=The World of the New Testament: Cultural, Social, and Historical Contexts |last2=McDonald |first2=Lee Martin |publisher=Baker Academic |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-8010-9861-1 |editor-last=Green |editor-first=Joel B. |pages=45–47 |chapter=The Hasmoneans and the Hasmonean Era |oclc=961153992 |quote=The ensuing power struggle left Hyrcanus with a free hand in Judea, and he quickly reasserted Jewish sovereignty... Hyrcanus then engaged in a series of military campaigns aimed at territorial expansion. He first conquered areas in the Transjordan. He then turned his attention to Samaria, which had long separated Judea from the northern Jewish settlements in Lower Galilee. In the south, Adora and Marisa were conquered; (Aristobulus') primary accomplishment was annexing and Judaizing the region of Iturea, located between the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountains |editor-last2=McDonald |editor-first2=Lee Martin}}{{Cite book |last=Ben-Sasson |first=H.H. |title=A History of the Jewish People |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=1976 |isbn=978-0-674-39731-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2kSovzudhFUC&pg=PA226 |page=226 |quote=The expansion of Hasmonean Judea took place gradually. Under Jonathan, Judea annexed southern Samaria and began to expand in the direction of the coast plain... The main ethnic changes were the work of John Hyrcanus... it was in his days and those of his son Aristobulus that the annexation of Idumea, Samaria and Galilee and the consolidation of Jewish settlement in Trans-Jordan was completed. Alexander Jannai, continuing the work of his predecessors, expanded Judean rule to the entire coastal plain, from the Carmel to the Egyptian border... and to additional areas in Trans-Jordan, including some of the Greek cities there.}}{{Cite book |last=Ben-Eliyahu |first=Eyal |title=Identity and Territory: Jewish Perceptions of Space in Antiquity |date=30 April 2019 |isbn=978-0-520-29360-1 |page=13 |publisher=Univ of California Press |oclc=1103519319 |quote=From the beginning of the Second Temple period until the Muslim conquest—the land was part of imperial space. This was true from the early Persian period, as well as the time of Ptolemy and the Seleucids. The only exception was the Hasmonean Kingdom, with its sovereign Jewish rule—first over Judah and later, in Alexander Jannaeus's prime, extending to the coast, the north, and the eastern banks of the Jordan. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZSyDDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA13 }} The [Hasmonean civil war](/source/Hasmonean_civil_war) ended with the [Roman](/source/Roman_Republic) [siege of Jerusalem](/source/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(63_BC)) in 63 BCE. [[File:Israel-2013-Aerial 21-Masada.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|View of the [Masada](/source/Masada) fortress overlooking the [Dead Sea](/source/Dead_Sea), which is the location of a [1st-century Roman siege](/source/Siege_of_Masada)]] In 37 BCE, [Herod the Great](/source/Herod_the_Great) was installed as a [dynastic vassal](/source/Herodian_dynasty) of [Rome](/source/Ancient_Rome) following the [Roman–Parthian Wars](/source/Roman%E2%80%93Parthian_Wars). In 6 CE, the area was annexed as the [Roman province of Judaea](/source/Judaea_(Roman_province)); tensions with Roman rule led to a series of [Jewish–Roman wars](/source/Jewish%E2%80%93Roman_wars), resulting in widespread destruction. The [First Jewish–Roman War](/source/First_Jewish%E2%80%93Roman_War) (66–73 CE) resulted in the [destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple](/source/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(70_CE)) and a sizable portion of the population being killed or displaced.{{Cite book |last=Schwartz |first=Seth |title=The ancient Jews from Alexander to Muhammad |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y6pkAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA85 |date=2014 |isbn=978-1-107-04127-1 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=85–86 |oclc=863044259 |quote=The year 70 ce marked transformations in demography, politics, Jewish civic status, Palestinian and more general Jewish economic and social structures, Jewish religious life beyond the sacrificial cult, and even Roman politics and the topography of the city of Rome itself. [...] The Revolt's failure had, to begin with, a demographic impact on the Jews of Palestine; many died in battle and as a result of siege conditions, not only in Jerusalem. [...] As indicated above, the figures for captives are conceivably more reliable. If 97,000 is roughly correct as a total for the war, it would mean that a huge percentage of the population was removed from the country, or at the very least displaced from their homes. |access-date=4 February 2024 |archive-date=3 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240403134300/https://books.google.com/books?id=Y6pkAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA85 |url-status=live }} A second uprising known as the [Bar Kokhba revolt](/source/Bar_Kokhba_revolt) (132–136 CE) initially allowed the Jews to form an independent state, but the Romans brutally crushed the rebellion, devastating and depopulating Judea's countryside.Werner Eck, "Sklaven und Freigelassene von Römern in Iudaea und den angrenzenden Provinzen", Novum Testamentum 55 (2013): 1–21{{Cite journal |last1=Raviv |first1=Dvir |last2=Ben David |first2=Chaim |date=2021 |title=Cassius Dio's figures for the demographic consequences of the Bar Kokhba War: Exaggeration or reliable account? |journal=Journal of Roman Archaeology |language=en |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=585–607 |doi=10.1017/S1047759421000271 |s2cid=245512193 |s2cid-access=free |issn=1047-7594 |quote=Scholars have long doubted the historical accuracy of Cassius Dio's account of the consequences of the Bar Kokhba War (Roman History 69.14). According to this text, considered the most reliable literary source for the Second Jewish Revolt, the war encompassed all of Judea: the Romans destroyed 985 villages and 50 fortresses, and killed 580,000 rebels. This article reassesses Cassius Dio's figures by drawing on new evidence from excavations and surveys in Judea, Transjordan, and the Galilee. Three research methods are combined: an ethno-archaeological comparison with the settlement picture in the Ottoman Period, comparison with similar settlement studies in the Galilee, and an evaluation of settled sites from the Middle Roman Period (70–136 CE). The study demonstrates the potential contribution of the archaeological record to this issue and supports the view of Cassius Dio's demographic data as a reliable account, which he based on contemporaneous documentation.|doi-access=free }}{{Cite book |last=Mor |first=Menahem |title=The Second Jewish Revolt |date=18 April 2016 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-31463-4 |pages=483–484 |doi=10.1163/9789004314634 |quote=Land confiscation in Judaea was part of the suppression of the revolt policy of the Romans and punishment for the rebels. But the very claim that the sikarikon laws were annulled for settlement purposes seems to indicate that Jews continued to reside in Judaea even after the Second Revolt. There is no doubt that this area suffered the severest damage from the suppression of the revolt. Settlements in Judaea, such as Herodion and Bethar, had already been destroyed during the course of the revolt, and Jews were expelled from the districts of Gophna, Herodion, and Aqraba. However, it should not be claimed that the region of Judaea was completely destroyed. Jews continued to live in areas such as Lod (Lydda), south of the Hebron Mountain, and the coastal regions. In other areas of the Land of Israel that did not have any direct connection with the Second Revolt, no settlement changes can be identified as resulting from it.}}Oppenheimer, A'haron and Oppenheimer, Nili. ''Between Rome and Babylon: Studies in Jewish Leadership and Society''. Mohr Siebeck, 2005, p. 2. Jerusalem was rebuilt as a [Roman colony](/source/Colonia_(Roman)) ([Aelia Capitolina](/source/Aelia_Capitolina)), and the province of Judea was renamed [Syria Palaestina](/source/Syria_Palaestina).H.H. Ben-Sasson, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=2kSovzudhFUC&pg=PA334 A History of the Jewish People]'', Harvard University Press, 1976, {{ISBN|978-0-674-39731-6}}, page 334: "In an effort to wipe out all memory of the bond between the Jews and the land, Hadrian changed the name of the province from Judaea to Syria-Palestina, a name that became common in non-Jewish literature."Ariel Lewin. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=zlToSqE0k_cC&pg=PA33 The archaeology of Ancient Judea and Palestine]''. Getty Publications, 2005 p. 33. "It seems clear that by choosing a seemingly neutral name – one juxtaposing that of a neighbouring province with the revived name of an ancient geographical entity (Palestine), already known from the writings of Herodotus – Hadrian was intending to suppress any connection between the Jewish people and that land." {{ISBN|978-0-89236-800-6}} Jews were expelled from the districts surrounding Jerusalem.Eusebius, ''Ecclesiastical History''. 4:6.3-4 Nevertheless, there was a continuous small Jewish presence, and Galilee became its religious center.{{cite book |last=Cohn-Sherbok |first=Dan |title=Atlas of Jewish History |publisher=Routledge |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-415-08800-8 |page=58}}{{cite web |last=Lehmann |first=Clayton Miles |date=18 January 2007 |title=Palestine |url=http://www.usd.edu/erp/Palestine/palestin.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071110054258/http://www.usd.edu/erp/Palestine/palestin.htm |archive-date=10 November 2007 |access-date=9 February 2013 |website=Encyclopedia of the Roman Provinces |publisher=University of South Dakota |url-status=live }} === Late antiquity and the medieval period === {{further|Byzantine Palestine|Bilad al-Sham|Kingdom of Jerusalem}} [[File:Ruins of the Ancient Synagogue at Bar'am.jpg|thumb|3rd-century [Kfar Bar'am synagogue](/source/Kfar_Bar'am_synagogue) in the GalileeJudaism in late antiquity, Jacob Neusner, Bertold Spuler, Hady R Idris, Brill, 2001, p. 155]] During the [Byzantine period](/source/Byzantine_Palestine), [Early Christianity](/source/Early_Christianity) displaced [Roman paganism](/source/Religion_in_ancient_Rome) in the 4th century CE, with [Constantine](/source/Constantine_the_Great) embracing and promoting the Christian religion and [Theodosius I](/source/Theodosius_I) making it [the state religion](/source/Christianity_as_the_Roman_state_religion). A series of laws were passed that discriminated against Jews and Judaism, and Jews were persecuted by both the church and the authorities.{{Cite book |last=הר |first=משה דוד |title=ארץ-ישראל בשלהי העת העתיקה: מבואות ומחקרים |publisher=יד יצחק בן-צבי |year=2022 |isbn=978-965-217-444-4 |editor-link=Moshe David Herr |volume=1 |publication-place=ירושלים |pages=210–212 |language=he |trans-title=Eretz Israel in Late Antiquity: Introductions and Studies |chapter=היהודים בארץ-ישראל בימי האימפריה הרומית הנוצרית |trans-chapter=The Jews in the Land of Israel in the Days of the Christian Roman Empire}} Many Jews had emigrated to flourishing [diaspora](/source/Jewish_diaspora) communities,{{Cite book |last=Ehrlich |first=Michael |title=The Islamization of the Holy Land, 634–1800 |publisher=Arc Humanities Press |year=2022 |isbn=978-1-64189-222-3 |pages=3–4 |oclc=1302180905 |quote=The Jewish community strove to recover from the catastrophic results of the Bar Kokhva revolt (132–135 CE). Although some of these attempts were relatively successful, the Jews never fully recovered. During the Late Roman and Byzantine periods, many Jews emigrated to thriving centres in the diaspora, especially Iraq, whereas some converted to Christianity and others continued to live in the Holy Land, especially in Galilee and the coastal plain. During the Byzantine period, the three provinces of Palestine included more than thirty cities, namely, settlements with a bishop see. After the Muslim conquest in the 630s, most of these cities declined and eventually disappeared. As a result, in many cases the local ecclesiastical administration weakened, while in others it simply ceased to exist. Consequently, many local Christians converted to Islam. Thus, almost twelve centuries later, when the army led by Napoleon Bonaparte arrived in the Holy Land, most of the local population was Muslim.}} while locally there was both Christian immigration and local conversion. By the middle of the 5th century, there was a Christian majority.{{cite book |author=David Goodblatt |title=The Cambridge History of Judaism |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-521-77248-8 |editor=Steven Katz |volume=IV |pages=404–430 |chapter=The Political and Social History of the Jewish Community in the Land of Israel, c. 235–638 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |quote=Few would disagree that, in the century and a half before our period begins, the Jewish population of Judah () suffered a serious blow from which it never recovered. The destruction of the Jewish metropolis of Jerusalem and its environs and the eventual refounding of the city... had lasting repercussions. [...] However, in other parts of Palestine the Jewish population remained strong [...] What does seem clear is a different kind of change. Immigration of Christians and the conversion of pagans, Samaritans and Jews eventually produced a Christian majority}}{{Cite journal |last=Bar |first=Doron |date=2003 |title=The Christianisation of Rural Palestine during Late Antiquity |journal=The Journal of Ecclesiastical History |volume=54 |issue=3 |pages=401–421 |doi=10.1017/s0022046903007309 |issn=0022-0469 |quote=The dominant view of the history of Palestine during the Byzantine period links the early phases of the consecration of the land during the fourth century and the substantial external financial investment that accompanied the building of churches on holy sites on the one hand with the Christianisation of the population on the other. Churches were erected primarily at the holy sites, 12 while at the same time Palestine's position and unique status as the Christian 'Holy Land' became more firmly rooted. All this, coupled with immigration and conversion, allegedly meant that the Christianisation of Palestine took place much more rapidly than that of other areas of the Roman empire, brought in its wake the annihilation of the pagan cults and meant that by the middle of the fifth century there was a clear Christian majority.}} Towards the end of the 5th century, [Samaritan revolts](/source/Samaritan_revolts) erupted, continuing until the late 6th century and resulting in a large decrease in the Samaritan population.{{cite book |last=Kohen |first=Elli |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r-9qJRP20MIC&pg=PA26 |title=History of the Byzantine Jews: A Microcosmos in the Thousand Year Empire |publisher=[University Press of America](/source/University_Press_of_America) |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7618-3623-0 |pages=26–31 |access-date=30 March 2023 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070638/https://books.google.com/books?id=r-9qJRP20MIC&pg=PA26#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }} After the [Sasanian conquest of Jerusalem](/source/Sasanian_conquest_of_Jerusalem) and the short-lived [Jewish revolt against Heraclius](/source/Jewish_revolt_against_Heraclius) in 614 CE, the Byzantine Empire [reconsolidated control of the area](/source/Byzantine%E2%80%93Sasanian_War_of_602%E2%80%93628) in 628.{{cite web |title=Roman Palestine |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Palestine/Roman-Palestine |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=30 March 2023 |archive-date=30 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030111546/https://www.britannica.com/place/Palestine/Roman-Palestine |url-status=live }} In 634–641 CE, the [Rashidun Caliphate](/source/Rashidun_Caliphate) [conquered the Levant](/source/Muslim_conquest_of_the_Levant).{{Cite journal |last1=לוי-רובין |first1=מילכה |last2=Levy-Rubin |first2=Milka |date=2006 |title=The Influence of the Muslim Conquest on the Settlement Pattern of Palestine during the Early Muslim Period / הכיבוש כמעצב מפת היישוב של ארץ-ישראל בתקופה המוסלמית הקדומה |journal=Cathedra: For the History of Eretz Israel and Its Yishuv / קתדרה: לתולדות ארץ ישראל ויישובה |issue=121 |pages=53–78 |jstor=23407269 |issn=0334-4657}}{{Cite book |last=Ellenblum |first=Ronnie |title=Frankish Rural Settlement in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. |date=2010 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-511-58534-0 |oclc=958547332 |quote=From the data given above it can be concluded that the Muslim population of Central Samaria, during the early Muslim period, was not an autochthonous population which had converted to Christianity. They arrived there either by way of migration or as a result of a process of sedentarization of the nomads who had filled the vacuum created by the departing Samaritans at the end of the Byzantine period [...] To sum up: in the only rural region in Palestine in which, according to all the written and archeological sources, the process of Islamization was completed already in the twelfth century, there occurred events consistent with the model propounded by Levtzion and Vryonis: the region was abandoned by its original sedentary population and the vacuum was apparently filled by nomads who, at a later stage, gradually became sedentarized}} Caliph [Umar ibn al-Khattab](/source/Umar_ibn_al-Khattab) ({{Reign|634|644}}) lifted the Christian ban on Jews entering [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem) and permitted them to worship there.{{cite book |last=Al-Fasi |first=D. |author-link=David ben Abraham al-Fasi |title=The Hebrew-Arabic Dictionary of the Bible, Known as 'Kitāb Jāmiʿ al-Alfāẓ' (Agron) |date=1936 |publisher=[Yale University Press](/source/Yale_University_Press) |editor=Solomon L. Skoss |volume=1 |location=New Haven |page=xxxix–xl (Introduction) |language=he}} Over the next six centuries, control of the region transferred between the [Umayyad](/source/Umayyad_Caliphate), [Abbasid](/source/Abbasid_Caliphate), and [Fatimid](/source/Fatimid_Caliphate) caliphates, and subsequently the [Seljuk](/source/Seljuk_dynasty) and [Ayyubid](/source/Ayyubid_dynasty) dynasties.{{cite book |last=Gil |first=Moshe |title=A History of Palestine, 634–1099 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-521-59984-9}} The population drastically decreased during the following several centuries, dropping from an estimated 1 million during Roman and Byzantine periods to about 300,000 by the early [Ottoman period](/source/Ottoman_Empire), and there was steady [Arabisation](/source/Arabization) and [Islamisation](/source/Islamization).{{cite book |last=Gil |first=Moshe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M0wUKoMJeccC&dq=history+of+palestine+two+people&pg=PR13 |title=A History of Palestine, 634–1099 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-521-59984-9 |page=14 |access-date=17 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240517102802/https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=M0wUKoMJeccC&oi=fnd&pg=PR13&dq=history+of+palestine+two+people&ots=CMV1-8kJav&sig=C1Eh2oIUdicDWgg_Clo6yJgumUQ#v=onepage&q=history%20of%20palestine%20two%20people&f=false |archive-date=17 May 2024 |url-status=live}}{{Cite journal |last=Broshi |first=Magen |date=1979 |title=The Population of Western Palestine in the Roman-Byzantine Period |journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research |volume=236 |issue=236 |pages=1–10 |doi=10.2307/1356664 |issn=0003-097X |jstor=1356664 |s2cid=24341643}} The end of the 11th century brought the [Crusades](/source/Crusades), [papally](/source/Pope)-sanctioned incursions of Christian crusaders intent on wresting Jerusalem and the [Holy Land](/source/Holy_Land) from Muslim control and establishing [crusader states](/source/crusader_states).{{OED|crusades}} The Ayyubids pushed back the crusaders before Muslim rule was fully restored by the [Mamluk sultans of Egypt](/source/Mamluk_Sultanate_(Cairo)) in 1291.{{cite book |last=Kramer |first=Gudrun |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofpalesti00krea/page/376 |title=A History of Palestine: From the Ottoman Conquest to the Founding of the State of Israel |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-691-11897-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofpalesti00krea/page/376 376]}} === Modern period and the emergence of Zionism === {{main|Ottoman Palestine|Old Yishuv|Zionism}} [[File:Jews at Western Wall by Felix Bonfils, 1870s.jpg|thumb|Jews at the [Western Wall](/source/Western_Wall) in the 1870s, a holy site in [Judaism](/source/Judaism)]] In 1516, the Ottoman Empire conquered the region and ruled it as part of [Ottoman Syria](/source/Ottoman_Syria).Joel Rappel, History of Eretz Israel from Prehistory up to 1882 (1980), vol. 2, p. 531. "In 1662 Sabbathai Sevi arrived to Jerusalem. It was the time when the Jewish settlements of Galilee were destroyed by the Druze: Tiberias was completely desolate and only a few of former Safed residents had returned...." Two violent incidents took place against Jews, the [1517 Safed attacks](/source/1517_Safed_attacks) and the [1517 Hebron attacks](/source/1517_Hebron_attacks), after the Turkish Ottomans ousted the [Mamluk](/source/Mamluk)s during the [Ottoman–Mamluk War](/source/Ottoman%E2%80%93Mamluk_War_(1516%E2%80%931517)).D. Tamar, "On the Jews of Safed in the Days of the Ottoman Conquest" Cathedra 11 (1979), cited Dan Ben Amos, Dov Noy (eds.),[https://books.google.com/books?id=aMI4DzpymSIC&pg=PA61 ''Folktales of the Jews, V. 3 (Tales from Arab Lands),''] Jewish Publication Society 2011 p.61, n.3: ''Tamar . .challenges David's conclusion concerning the severity of the riots against the Jews, arguing that the support of the Egyptian Jews saved the community of Safed from destruction'.''{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FZERAQAAIAAJ |title=The Solomon Goldman lectures |publisher=Spertus College of Judaica Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-935982-57-2 |page=56 |quote=The Turks' conquest of the city in 1517, was marked by a violent pogrom of murder, rape, and plunder of Jewish homes. The surviving Jews fled to the "[land of Beirut](/source/Ottoman_Syria)", not to return until 1533.}} Under the Ottoman Empire, the Levant was fairly cosmopolitan, with religious freedoms for [Christians, Muslims, and Jews](/source/People_of_the_Book). In 1561 the [Ottoman sultan](/source/Suleiman_the_Magnificent) invited [Sephardic Jews](/source/Sephardic_Jews) escaping the [Spanish Inquisition](/source/Spanish_Inquisition) to settle in and rebuild the city of [Tiberias](/source/Tiberias).Toby Green (2007). ''Inquisition; The Reign of Fear''. Macmillan Press {{ISBN|978-1-4050-8873-2}} pp. xv–xix.{{cite web |last= Alfassá |first= Shelomo |title= Sephardic Contributions to the Development of the State of Israel |date= 17 August 2007 |website= Alfassa.com |url= http://www.alfassa.com/contributions.pdf |access-date= 14 January 2015 |url-status= usurped |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071012042245/http://www.alfassa.com/contributions.pdf |archive-date= 12 October 2007}} Under the Ottoman Empire's [millet system](/source/Millet_(Ottoman_Empire)), Christians and Jews were considered ''[dhimmi](/source/dhimmi)'' ("protected") under [Ottoman law](/source/Ottoman_law) in exchange for loyalty to the state and payment of the ''[jizya](/source/jizya)'' tax.{{Cite book |last1=Cane |first1=Peter |title=Millet system – Oxford Reference |last2=Conaghan |first2=Joanne |author2-link=Joanne Conaghan |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-929054-3 |doi=10.1093/acref/9780199290543.001.0001}}{{Cite book |last=Kieser |first=Hans-Lukas |title=Turkey Beyond Nationalism: Towards Post-Nationalist Identities |date=27 October 2006 |publisher=I.B.Tauris |isbn=978-0-85771-757-3}} Non-Muslim Ottoman subjects faced geographic and lifestyle restrictions, though these were not always enforced.H. Inalcik; The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300–1600, Phoenix Press, (2001){{Cite web |title=EARLY MODERN JEWISH HISTORY: Overview » 5. Ottoman Empire |url=http://jewishhistory.research.wesleyan.edu/i-jewish-population/5-ottoman-empire/ |access-date=24 November 2018 |website=jewishhistory.research.wesleyan.edu |archive-date=28 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928204445/http://jewishhistory.research.wesleyan.edu/i-jewish-population/5-ottoman-empire/ |url-status=live }}{{Citation |last=Akbar |first=M. J. |title=The shade of swords: jihad and the conflict between Islam and Christianity |page=89 |year=2003}} The millet system organised non-Muslims into autonomous communities on the basis of religion.L. Stavrianos; The Balkans since 1453, NYU Press (2000) [[File:THEODOR HERZL AT THE FIRST ZIONIST CONGRESS IN BASEL ON 25.8.1897. תאודור הרצל בקונגרס הציוני הראשון - 1897.8.25.jpg|thumb|The [First Zionist Congress](/source/First_Zionist_Congress) (1897) in [Basel](/source/Basel), Switzerland]] The [concept of an eventual return to Zion](/source/Return_to_Zion) remained a symbol within religious Jewish belief which emphasised that their return should be determined by [Divine Providence](/source/Divine_providence_in_Judaism) rather than human action.{{sfn|Avineri|2017}} The Jewish population of Palestine from the Ottoman rule to the beginning of the Zionist movement, known as the [Old Yishuv](/source/Old_Yishuv), comprised a minority and fluctuated in size. During the 16th century, Jewish communities struck roots in the [Four Holy Cities](/source/Four_Holy_Cities)—Jerusalem, Tiberias, [Hebron](/source/Hebron), and [Safed](/source/Safed)—and in 1697, Rabbi Yehuda Hachasid led 1,500 Jews to Jerusalem.{{cite book |last=Eisen |first=Yosef |title=Miraculous journey: a complete history of the Jewish people from creation to the present |publisher=Targum Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-56871-323-6 |page=700}} A 1660 [Druze revolt](/source/Druze_power_struggle_(1658%E2%80%931667)) against the Ottomans destroyed [Safed](/source/1660_destruction_of_Safed) and [Tiberias](/source/1660_destruction_of_Tiberias). In the second half of the 18th century, Eastern European Jews who were [opponents](/source/Misnagdim) of [Hasidism](/source/Hasidic_Judaism), known as the [Perushim](/source/Perushim), settled in Palestine.{{cite book |last=Morgenstern |first=Arie |title=Hastening redemption: Messianism and the resettlement of the land of Israel |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-19-530578-4 |page=304}}{{cite book |last=Barnai |first=Jacob |title=The Jews in Palestine in the Eighteenth Century: Under the Patronage of the Istanbul committee of Officials for Palestine |publisher=University Alabama Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-8173-0572-7 |page=320}} In the late 18th century, local Arab Sheikh [Daher al-Umar](/source/Daher_al-Umar) created a de facto independent emirate in the Galilee. Ottoman attempts to subdue the sheikh failed. After Daher's death the Ottomans regained control of the area. In 1799, governor [Jazzar Pasha](/source/Jazzar_Pasha) repelled an [assault on Acre](/source/Siege_of_Acre_(1799)) by [Napoleon](/source/Napoleon)'s troops, prompting the French to abandon the Syrian campaign.{{cite web |title=Palestine – Ottoman rule |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Palestine#ref45065 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211204202215/https://www.britannica.com/place/Palestine#ref45065 |archive-date=4 December 2021 |access-date=27 November 2018 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica}} In 1834, a [revolt by Palestinian Arab peasants](/source/Peasants'_revolt_in_Palestine) against Egyptian conscription and taxation policies under [Muhammad Ali](/source/Muhammad_Ali_of_Egypt) was suppressed; Muhammad Ali's army retreated and Ottoman rule was restored with British support in 1840.{{cite journal |last1=Macalister |first1=R. A. Stewart |last2=Masterman |first2=E. W. G. |year=1906 |title=The Modern Inhabitants of Palestine |url=https://archive.org/stream/quarterlystateme38pale#page |journal=Quarterly Statement – Palestine Exploration Fund |page=[https://archive.org/stream/quarterlystateme38pale#page/40/mode/1up 40]}} The [Tanzimat](/source/Tanzimat) reforms were implemented across the Ottoman Empire. The first wave of modern Jewish migration to [Ottoman-ruled Palestine](/source/Southern_Syria), known as the [First Aliyah](/source/First_Aliyah), began in 1881, as Jews fled [pogrom](/source/pogrom)s in Eastern Europe.{{Cite book|last=Halpern|first=Ben|title=Zionism and the creation of a new society |url=https://archive.org/details/zionismcreationn00halp|url-access=limited|publisher=Oxford University Press|others=Reinharz, Jehuda |year=1998|isbn=978-0-585-18273-5|pages=[https://archive.org/details/zionismcreationn00halp/page/n61 53]–54|oclc=44960036}} The 1882 [May Laws](/source/May_Laws) increased economic discrimination against Jews, and restricted where they could live.{{Cite journal |last=Mandel |first=Neville J. |date=1974 |title=Ottoman Policy and Restrictions on Jewish Settlement in Palestine: 1881–1908: Part I |journal=Middle Eastern Studies |volume=10 |issue=3 |url=https://ismi.emory.edu/documents/Readings/Mandel,%20Neville%20J.%20Ottoman%20Policy.pdf |pages=312–332 |doi=10.1080/00263207408700278 |issn=0026-3206 |access-date=1 December 2023 |archive-date=3 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231203103201/https://ismi.emory.edu/documents/Readings/Mandel,%20Neville%20J.%20Ottoman%20Policy.pdf |url-status=live }}{{Cite book|last=Levine|first=Aaron|date=2014|title=Russian Jews and the 1917 Revolution|url=https://psource.sitehost.iu.edu/PDF/Archive%20Articles/Spring2014/2014%20-%20Spring%20-%203%20-%20Levine%20Aaron.pdf|page=14|access-date=7 December 2023|archive-date=8 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230308091831/https://psource.sitehost.iu.edu/PDF/Archive%20Articles/Spring2014/2014%20-%20Spring%20-%203%20-%20Levine%20Aaron.pdf|url-status=live}} In response, political [Zionism](/source/Zionism) took form, a movement that sought to establish a [Jewish state](/source/Jewish_state) in Palestine, thus offering a solution to the [Jewish question](/source/Jewish_question) of the European states.{{sfn|Herzl|1946|p=11}}{{better source needed|date=September 2024}} Antisemitism, pogroms and official policies in tsarist Russia led to the emigration of three million Jews in the years between 1882 and 1914, only 1% of whom went to Palestine. Those who went to Palestine were driven primarily by ideas of self-determination and Jewish identity, rather than as a response to pogroms or economic insecurity.{{sfn|Avineri|2017}} The [Second Aliyah](/source/Second_Aliyah) (1904–1914) began after the [Kishinev pogrom](/source/Kishinev_pogrom); some 40,000 Jews settled in Palestine, although nearly half left eventually. Both the first and second waves of migrants were mainly [Orthodox Jews](/source/Orthodox_Judaism).{{harvnb|Stein|2003|p=88}}. "As with the First Aliyah, most Second Aliyah migrants were non-Zionist orthodox Jews ..." The Second Aliyah included [Zionist socialist](/source/Labor_Zionism) groups who established the ''[kibbutz](/source/kibbutz)'' movement based on the idea of establishing a separate Jewish economy based exclusively on Jewish labour.{{cite book |last1=Moris |first1=Beni |title=Righteous victims: a history of the Zionist-Arab conflict, 1881 – 2001 |date=2001 |publisher=Vintage Books |location=New York, NY |isbn=978-0-679-74475-7 |edition=1. Vintage Books |quote=Many of these newcomers possessed a mixture of socialist and nationalist values, and they eventually succeeded in setting up a separate Jewish economy, based wholly on Jewish labor.}}{{sfn|Romano|2003|p=30}} Those of the Second Aliyah who became leaders of the [Yishuv](/source/Yishuv) in the coming decades believed that the Jewish settler economy should not depend on Arab labour. This would be a dominant source of antagonism with the Arab population, with the new Yishuv's nationalist ideology overpowering its socialist one.{{cite book |last1=Moris |first1=Beni |title=Righteous victims: a history of the Zionist-Arab conflict, 1881 – 2001 |date=2001 |publisher=Vintage Books |location=New York, NY |isbn=978-0-679-74475-7 |edition=1. Vintage Books |quote=Another major cause of antagonism was the labor controversy. The hard core of Second Aliyah socialists, who were to become the Yishuv's leaders in the 1920s and 1930s, believed that the settler economy must not depend on or exploit Arab labor... But, in reality, rather than "meshing," the nationalist ethos had simply overpowered and driven out the socialist ethos... There were other reasons for the "conquest of labor." The socialists of the Second Aliyah used the term to denote three things: overcoming the Jews' traditional remove from agricultural labor and helping them transform into the "new Jews"; struggling against employers for better conditions; and replacing Arabs with Jews in manual jobs.}} Though the immigrants of the Second Aliyah largely sought to create communal Jewish agricultural settlements, [Tel Aviv](/source/Tel_Aviv) was established as the first planned Jewish town in 1909. Jewish armed militias emerged during this period, the first being [Bar-Giora](/source/Bar-Giora_(organization)) in 1907. Two years later, the larger [Hashomer](/source/Hashomer) organisation was founded as its replacement.'''Goldstein, Yossi.''' ''Bar Giora and Ha’S̄homer, 1907-1918''. Jerusalem, 1994. === British Mandate for Palestine === {{main|Mandatory Palestine}} {{further|Yishuv|Intercommunal conflict in Mandatory Palestine|1948 Palestine war}} {{see also|Jewish land purchase in Palestine}} [Chaim Weizmann](/source/Chaim_Weizmann)'s efforts to garner British support for the Zionist movement eventually secured the [Balfour Declaration](/source/Balfour_Declaration) of 1917,{{Cite book |first=James |last=Gelvin |author-link=James L. Gelvin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wfIFVze1MqQC&pg=PA81 |title=The Israel-Palestine Conflict: One Hundred Years of War |publisher=[Cambridge University Press](/source/Cambridge_University_Press) |orig-year=2002 |edition=3 |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-521-85289-0 |access-date=9 November 2020 |archive-date=9 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231009012922/https://books.google.com/books?id=wfIFVze1MqQC&pg=PA81#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }} stating Britain's support for the creation of a Jewish "[national home](/source/Homeland_for_the_Jewish_people)" in Palestine.{{cite news |last=Macintyre |first=Donald |title=The birth of modern Israel: A scrap of paper that changed history |work=The Independent |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=26 May 2005 |url=http://maof.rjews.net/english/37-english/19351-the-birth-of-modern-israel-a-scrap-of-paper-that-changed-history |archive-date=14 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114031304/http://maof.rjews.net/english/37-english/19351-the-birth-of-modern-israel-a-scrap-of-paper-that-changed-history |url-status=live }}{{cite book|title=The Making of the Modern Near East 1792–1923 |last=Yapp |first=M.E. |author-link=Malcolm Yapp |year=1987 |publisher=Longman |isbn=978-0-582-49380-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/makingofmodern00yapp/page/290 290] |url=https://archive.org/details/makingofmodern00yapp/page/290 }} Weizmann's interpretation of the declaration was that negotiations on the future of the country were to happen directly between Britain and the Jews, excluding Arabs. [Jewish-Arab relations](/source/Islamic%E2%80%93Jewish_relations) in Palestine deteriorated dramatically in the following years.{{cite book |author=Avi Shlaim |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HBBbY9rMxSAC&pg=PA |title=The Iron Wall |publisher=W.W. Norton |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-393-32112-8 |page= |chapter=PROLOGUE: THE ZIONIST FOUNDATIONS |access-date=4 February 2024 |archive-date=3 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240403134300/https://books.google.com/books?id=HBBbY9rMxSAC&pg=PA |url-status=live }} thumb|right|Tel Aviv in the 1930s In 1918, the [Jewish Legion](/source/Jewish_Legion), primarily Zionist volunteers, assisted in the British [conquest of Palestine](/source/Sinai_and_Palestine_campaign).{{Cite encyclopedia|title = Jewish Legion|encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Judaica|url = http://go.galegroup.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CCX2587510141|year = 2007|publisher = Macmillan Reference|access-date = 6 August 2014|first = Joseph B.|last = Schechtman|page = 304|volume = 11|archive-date = 8 March 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210308102952/https://go.galegroup.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CCX2587510141|url-status = live}} In 1920, the territory was divided between Britain and [France](/source/France) under the [mandate system](/source/League_of_Nations_mandate), and the British-administered area (including modern Israel) was named [Mandatory Palestine](/source/Mandatory_Palestine).{{cite web |url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/leagcov.asp#art22 |title=The Covenant of the League of Nations |website=Article 22 |access-date=18 October 2012 |archive-date=26 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726080156/http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/leagcov.asp#art22 |url-status=live }}"Mandate for Palestine," ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'', Vol. 11, p. 862, Keter Publishing House, Jerusalem, 1972 Arab opposition to British rule and Jewish immigration led to the [1920 Palestine riots](/source/1920_Nebi_Musa_riots) and the formation of a Jewish militia known as the [Haganah](/source/Haganah) as an outgrowth of Hashomer, from which the [Irgun](/source/Irgun) and [Lehi](/source/Lehi_(group)) paramilitaries later split.{{harvnb|Scharfstein|1996|p=269}}. "During the First and Second Aliyot, there were many Arab attacks against Jewish settlements ... In 1920, [Hashomer](/source/Hashomer) was disbanded and [Haganah](/source/Haganah) ("The Defense") was established." In 1922, the [League of Nations](/source/League_of_Nations) granted Britain the [Mandate for Palestine](/source/Mandate_for_Palestine) under terms which included the Balfour Declaration with its promise to the Jews and with similar provisions regarding the Arab Palestinians.{{cite journal |url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1922mandate.html |title=League of Nations: The Mandate for Palestine, July 24, 1922 |journal=Modern History Sourcebook |date=24 July 1922 |access-date=27 August 2007 |archive-date=4 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110804221156/http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1922mandate.html |url-status=dead }} The [population of the area](/source/Demographic_history_of_Palestine_(region)) was predominantly Arab and Muslim, with Jews accounting for about 11%{{cite book |last1=Shaw |first1=J. V. W. |title=A Survey of Palestine: Prepared in December 1945 and January 1946 for the information of the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry |edition=Reprint |volume=I |year=1991 |orig-date=1946 |publisher=Institute for Palestine Studies |isbn=978-0-88728-213-3 |oclc=311797790 |page=148 |chapter=Chapter VI: Population |url=http://www.palestine-studies.org/books.aspx?id=543&href=details |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827011258/http://www.palestine-studies.org/books.aspx?id=543&href=details |archive-date=27 August 2013}} and Arab Christians about 9.5% of the population.{{cite web|title=Report to the League of Nations on Palestine and Transjordan, 1937 |publisher=British Government |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/7BDD2C11C15B54C2052565D10057251E |access-date=14 July 2013 |year=1937 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130923061547/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/7BDD2C11C15B54C2052565D10057251E |archive-date=23 September 2013}} The [Third](/source/Third_Aliyah) (1919–1923) and [Fourth Aliyah](/source/Fourth_Aliyah)s (1924–1929) brought an additional 100,000 Jews to Palestine. The [rise of Nazism](/source/Adolf_Hitler's_rise_to_power) and the increasing persecution of Jews in 1930s Europe led to the [Fifth Aliyah](/source/Fifth_Aliyah), with an influx of a quarter of a million Jews. This was a major cause of the [Arab revolt of 1936–39](/source/1936%E2%80%931939_Arab_revolt_in_Palestine), which was suppressed by British security forces and Zionist militias. Several hundred British security personnel and Jews were killed; 5,032 Arabs were killed, 14,760 wounded, and 12,622 detained.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hEt5PWCTMJMC&q=irgun%2520and%2520haganah%2520in%2520the%25201936+riots&pg=PAPA374|title=A History of Zionism: From the French Revolution to the Establishment of the State of Israel|access-date=15 October 2015|publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group|author=Walter Laqueur|year=2009|isbn=978-0-307-53085-1|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070659/https://books.google.com/books?id=hEt5PWCTMJMC&pg=PAPA374&dq=%22irgun%2Band%2Bhaganah%2Bin%2Bthe%2B1936%2Briots%22&q=irgun%2520and%2520haganah%2520in%2520the%25201936+riots#v=onepage&q=irgun%2520and%2520haganah%2520in%2520the%25201936%20riots&f=false|url-status=live}}{{cite journal |last1=Hughes |first1=M |year=2009 |title=The banality of brutality: British armed forces and the repression of the Arab Revolt in Palestine, 1936–39 |url=http://v-scheiner.brunel.ac.uk/bitstream/2438/7251/4/The%20banality%20of%20brutality.pdf |journal=English Historical Review |volume=CXXIV |issue=507 |pages=314–354 |doi=10.1093/ehr/cep002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160221163210/http://v-scheiner.brunel.ac.uk/bitstream/2438/7251/4/The%20banality%20of%20brutality.pdf |archive-date=21 February 2016}}Levenberg, Haim (1993). ''Military Preparations of the Arab Community in Palestine: 1945–1948.'' Routledge. ISBN 978-0-7146-3439-5, pp. 74–76 An estimated ten per cent of the adult male [Palestinian Arab](/source/Palestinian_people) population was killed, wounded, imprisoned, or exiled.[Khalidi, Walid](/source/Walid_Khalidi) (1987). ''From Haven to Conquest: Readings in Zionism and the Palestine Problem Until 1948''. Institute for Palestine Studies. {{ISBN|978-0-88728-155-6}} thumb|right|"Jews and Arabs in Grim Struggle for Holy Land", article from 1938 The British introduced restrictions on Jewish immigration to Palestine with the [White Paper of 1939](/source/White_Paper_of_1939). With countries around the world turning away Jewish refugees fleeing [the Holocaust](/source/the_Holocaust), a clandestine movement known as [Aliyah Bet](/source/Aliyah_Bet) was organised to bring Jews to Palestine. During [World War II](/source/World_War_II), Palestine was [repeatedly bombed](/source/Italian_bombing_of_Mandatory_Palestine_in_World_War_II) by Axis aircraft, causing casualties among both Jews and Arabs. About 30,000 Jews from Palestine served in the British military during the war, of whom around 700 were killed.{{Cite web|url=https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/jewish-brigade-group|title=Jewish Brigade Group | Holocaust Encyclopedia}} Some 12,000 Palestinian Arabs also served in the British military during the war.{{Cite web|url=https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/when-palestinian-arabs-and-jews-fought-the-nazis-side-by-side-593052|title=When Palestinian Arabs and Jews fought the Nazis side by side | The Jerusalem Post|date=19 June 2019|website=The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com}} At the end of the war, about 31% of the population of Palestine was Jewish.Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics, Village Statistics, 1945. The UK found itself facing a [Jewish insurgency](/source/Jewish_insurgency_in_Mandatory_Palestine) over immigration restrictions from 1944, which intensified following the end of the war, and continued conflict with the Arab community over limit levels. The Haganah joined Irgun and Lehi in an armed struggle against British rule.{{sfn|Fraser|2004|p=27}} The Haganah attempted to bring tens of thousands of Jewish refugees and [Holocaust survivors](/source/Holocaust_survivors) to Palestine by ship. Most of the ships were intercepted by the [Royal Navy](/source/Royal_Navy) and the refugees placed in detention camps in [Atlit](/source/Atlit_detainee_camp) and [Cyprus](/source/Cyprus_internment_camps).{{cite book |author=Motti Golani |title=Palestine Between Politics and Terror, 1945–1947 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mp7BAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPA130 |year=2013 |publisher=UPNE |isbn=978-1-61168-388-2 |page=130 |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219073858/https://books.google.com/books?id=Mp7BAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPA130#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}{{cite book |last1=Cohen |first1=Michael J |title=Britain's Moment in Palestine:Retrospect and Perspectives, 1917–1948 |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-72985-7 |page=474 |edition=1st |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DLPpAgAAQBAJ&q=British%2520detention%2520camps%2520at%2520atlit%2520and+cyprus&pg=PAPA474 |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070640/https://books.google.com/books?id=DLPpAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPA474&dq=%22British%2Bdetention%2Bcamps%2Bat%2Batlit%2Band%2Bcyprus%22&q=British%2520detention%2520camps%2520at%2520atlit%2520and+cyprus#v=onepage&q=British%2520detention%2520camps%2520at%2520atlit%2520and%20cyprus&f=false |url-status=live }} On 22 July 1946, Irgun [bombed the British administrative headquarters](/source/King_David_Hotel_bombing) for Palestine, killing 91.{{bulleted list| |{{cite book |last=Smith |first=Paul J. |date=2007 |title=The Terrorism Ahead: Confronting Transnational Violence in the Twenty-First |publisher=[M. E. Sharpe](/source/M._E._Sharpe) |page=27}} |{{cite book |last=Louis |first=William Roger |date=1986 |title=The British Empire in the Middle East, 1945–1951: Arab Nationalism, the United States, and Postwar Imperialism |publisher=[Oxford University Press](/source/Oxford_University_Press) |page=430}} |{{cite book |last=Kushner |first=Harvey W. |author-link=Harvey W. Kushner |date=2003 |title=Encyclopedia of Terrorism |publisher=[SAGE Publications](/source/SAGE_Publications) |page=181}} }}[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/293947/Irgun-Zvai-Leumi#ref112521 Encyclopædia Britannica] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417201023/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/293947/Irgun-Zvai-Leumi#ref112521 |date=17 April 2015 }} article on the Irgun Zvai Leumi[Clarke, Thurston](/source/Thurston_Clarke). ''By Blood and Fire'', G.P. Puttnam's Sons, 1981{{Cite book|first=Nicholas|last=Bethell|title=The Palestine Triangle|publisher=Andre Deutsch|year=1979}} The attack was a response to [Operation Agatha](/source/Operation_Agatha) (a series of raids, including one on the [Jewish Agency](/source/Jewish_Agency_for_Israel), by the British) and was the deadliest directed at the British during the Mandate era. The Jewish insurgency continued throughout 1946 and 1947 despite concerted efforts by the British military and [Palestine Police Force](/source/Palestine_Police_Force) to suppress it. British efforts to mediate with Jewish and Arab representatives were not successful as the Jews were unwilling to accept any solution that did not involve a Jewish state and suggested a partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states, while the Arabs were adamant that a Jewish state in any part of Palestine was unacceptable and that the only solution was a unified Palestine under Arab rule. In February 1947, the British referred the Palestine issue to the newly formed [United Nations](/source/United_Nations). On 15 May 1947, the [UN General Assembly](/source/General_Assembly_of_the_United_Nations) resolved that a [Special Committee](/source/United_Nations_Special_Committee_on_Palestine) be created "to prepare ... a report on the question of Palestine".{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/F5A49E57095C35B685256BCF0075D9C2 |title=A/RES/106 (S-1) |date=15 May 1947 |website=General Assembly resolution |publisher=United Nations |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120806072438/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/F5A49E57095C35B685256BCF0075D9C2 |archive-date=6 August 2012 }} The Report of the Committee{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/07175DE9FA2DE563852568D3006E10F3 |title=A/364 |date=3 September 1947 |website=Special Committee on Palestine |publisher=United Nations |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120610173759/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/07175DE9FA2DE563852568D3006E10F3 |archive-date=10 June 2012 }} [proposed a plan](/source/United_Nations_Partition_Plan_for_Palestine) to replace the British Mandate with "an independent Arab State, an independent Jewish State, and the City of Jerusalem [...] the last to be under an International Trusteeship System".{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/2248AF9A92B498718525694B007239C6 |publisher=United Nations |date=20 April 1949 |access-date=31 July 2007 |title=Background Paper No. 47 (ST/DPI/SER.A/47) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110103014616/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/2248AF9A92B498718525694B007239C6 |archive-date=3 January 2011 }} Meanwhile, the Jewish insurgency continued and peaked in July 1947, with a series of widespread guerrilla raids culminating in [the Sergeants affair](/source/the_Sergeants_affair), in which the Irgun took two British sergeants hostage as attempted leverage against the planned execution of three Irgun operatives. After the executions were carried out, the Irgun killed the two British soldiers, hanged their bodies from trees, and left a booby trap at the scene which injured a British soldier. The incident caused widespread outrage in the UK.Hoffman, Bruce: ''Anonymous Soldiers'' (2015) In September 1947, the British cabinet decided to evacuate Palestine as the Mandate was no longer tenable.{{Cite web |title=British Colonial Office Statement upon Termination of the Mandate for Palestine – English (1948) |url=https://ecf.org.il/media_items/943 |access-date=20 June 2024 |website=ecf.org.il |page=10 |language=en}} [[File:UN Palestine Partition Versions 1947.jpg|thumb|upright|[1947 partition plan](/source/United_Nations_Partition_Plan_for_Palestine) of Palestine between Israel and the [State of Palestine](/source/State_of_Palestine), as proposed by the [United Nations](/source/United_Nations)]] On 29 November 1947, the General Assembly adopted [Resolution 181 (II)](/source/United_Nations_Partition_Plan_for_Palestine).{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/0/7F0AF2BD897689B785256C330061D253 |title=Resolution 181 (II). Future government of Palestine |date=29 November 1947 |publisher=United Nations |access-date=21 March 2017 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010090147/https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/0/7F0AF2BD897689B785256C330061D253 }} The plan attached to the resolution was essentially that proposed in the report of 3 September. The Jewish Agency, the recognised representative of the Jewish community, accepted the plan, which assigned 55–56% of Mandatory Palestine to the Jews. At the time, the Jews were about a third of the population and owned around 6–7% of the land. Arabs constituted the majority and owned about 20% of the land, with the remainder held by the Mandate authorities or foreign landowners.{{bulleted list| |Avneri, Aryeh L. (1984). ''The Claim of Dispossession: Jewish Land-Settlement and the Arabs, 1878–1948.'' Transaction Publishers. ISBN 978-0-87855-964-0. Retrieved 2 May 2009, p. 224. |Stein, Kenneth W. (1987) [Original in 1984]. The Land Question in Palestine, 1917–1939. University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0-8078-4178-5. pp. 3–4, 247 |[Nathan Thrall](/source/Nathan_Thrall), [https://books.google.com/books?id=1oXZDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA227 ''The Only Language They Understand: Forcing Compromise in Israel and Palestine''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070639/https://books.google.com/books?id=1oXZDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA227#v=onepage&q&f=false |date=19 December 2023 }}, [Henry Holt and Company](/source/Henry_Holt_and_Company) 2017 {{isbn|978-1-627-79710-8}} pp. 41,227 n.9. |{{harvnb|Imseis|2021|pp=13–14}}: "As to territorial boundaries, under the plan the Jewish State was allotted approximately 57 per cent of the total area of Palestine even though the Jewish population comprised only 33 per cent of the country. In addition, according to British records relied upon by the ad hoc committee, the Jewish population possessed registered ownership of only 5.6 per cent of Palestine, and was eclipsed by the Arabs in land ownership in every one of Palestine's 16 sub-districts. Moreover, the quality of the land granted to the proposed Jewish state was highly skewed in its favour. UNSCOP reported that under its majority plan "[t]he Jews will have the more economically developed part of the country embracing practically the whole of the citrus-producing area"—Palestine's staple export crop—even though approximately half of the citrus-bearing land was owned by the Arabs. In addition, according to updated British records submitted to the ad hoc committee's two sub-committees, "of the irrigated, cultivable areas" of the country, 84 per cent would be in the Jewish State and 16 per cent would be in the Arab State"." |{{harvnb|Morris|2008|p=75}}: "The night of 29–30 November passed in the Yishuv's settlements in noisy public rejoicing. Most had sat glued to their radio sets broadcasting live from Flushing Meadow. A collective cry of joy went up when the two-thirds mark was achieved: a state had been sanctioned by the international community." }}{{harvnb|Morris|2008|p=396}}: "The immediate trigger of the 1948 War was the November 1947 UN partition resolution. The Zionist movement, except for its fringes, accepted the proposal."Matthews, John: [http://booksand-ebooks.com/political-commentary/israel-palestine-land-division Israel-Palestine land division] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231005145922/http://booksand-ebooks.com/political-commentary/israel-palestine-land-division |date=5 October 2023 }} The [Arab League](/source/Arab_League) and [Arab Higher Committee](/source/Arab_Higher_Committee) of Palestine rejected the partition plan on the basis that the partition plan privileged European interests over those of the Palestinians,{{harvnb|Imseis|2021|pp=14–15}}: "Although the Zionists had coveted the whole of Palestine, the Jewish Agency leadership pragmatically, if grudgingly, accepted Resolution 181(II). Although they were of the view that the Jewish national home promised in the Mandate was equivalent to a Jewish state, they well understood that such a claim could not be maintained under prevailing international law. [...] Based on its own terms, it is impossible to escape the conclusion that the partition plan privileged European interests over those of Palestine's indigenous people and, as such, was an embodiment of the Eurocentricity of the international system that was allegedly a thing of the past. For this reason, the Arabs took a more principled position in line with prevailing international law, rejecting partition outright. This rejection has disingenuously been presented in some of the literature as indicative of political intransigence,69 and even hostility towards the Jews as Jews." and indicated that they would reject any other plan of partition.{{harvnb|Morris|2008}}, p. 66: at 1946 "The League demanded independence for Palestine as a "unitary" state, with an Arab majority and minority rights for the Jews.", p. 67: at 1947 "The League's Political Committee met in Sofar, Lebanon, on 16–19 September, and urged the Palestine Arabs to fight partition, which it called "aggression," "without mercy." The League promised them, in line with Bludan, assistance "in manpower, money and equipment" should the United Nations endorse partition.", p. 72: at December 1947 "The League vowed, in very general language, "to try to stymie the partition plan and prevent the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine.""{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=40–41}} On 1 December 1947, the Arab Higher Committee proclaimed a three-day strike, and [riots broke out in Jerusalem](/source/1947_Jerusalem_riots).{{cite book |title=Palestine 1948 |last=Gelber |first=Yoav |year=2006 |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-902210-67-4 |page=17}} The situation spiralled into [a civil war](/source/1947%E2%80%931948_civil_war_in_Mandatory_Palestine). Colonial Secretary [Arthur Creech Jones](/source/Arthur_Creech_Jones) announced that the British Mandate would end on 15 May 1948, at which point the British would evacuate. As Arab militias and gangs attacked Jewish areas, they were faced mainly by the Haganah as well as the smaller Irgun and Lehi. In April 1948, the Haganah moved onto the offensive.{{sfn|Morris|2008|p=77–78}}{{cite book |title=War in Palestine, 1948: Israeli and Arab Strategy and Diplomacy |last=Tal |first=David |year=2003 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-7146-5275-7 |page=471}} === Independence and early years === {{further|Israeli Declaration of Independence}} [[File:Declaration of State of Israel 1948.jpg|thumb|right|[David Ben-Gurion](/source/David_Ben-Gurion) declaring the [establishment of Israel](/source/Israeli_Declaration_of_Independence) on 14 May 1948]] On 14 May 1948, the day before the expiration of the British Mandate, [David Ben-Gurion](/source/David_Ben-Gurion), the head of the Jewish Agency, [declared "the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz-Israel"](/source/Israeli_Declaration_of_Independence).Clifford, Clark, "Counsel to the President: A Memoir", 1991, p. 20. The following day, the armies of four Arab countries—Egypt, Syria, Transjordan, and Iraq—entered what had been Mandatory Palestine, launching the [1948 Arab–Israeli War](/source/1948_Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_War);{{sfn|Ben-Sasson|1985|p=1058}} contingents from [Yemen](/source/Mutawakkilite_Kingdom_of_Yemen), [Morocco](/source/Morocco), [Saudi Arabia](/source/Saudi_Arabia), and [Sudan](/source/Sudan) joined the war.{{sfn|Morris|2008|p=205}}{{cite book |title=Israel in the Middle East: Documents and Readings on Society, Politics, and Foreign Relations, Pre-1948 to the Present |last=Rabinovich |first=Itamar |author2=Reinharz, Jehuda |year=2007 |publisher=Brandeis |isbn=978-0-87451-962-4 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780874519624/page/74 74] |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780874519624/page/74}} The purpose of the invasion was to prevent the establishment of the Jewish state.{{cite book |title=War in Palestine, 1948: Israeli and Arab Strategy and Diplomacy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vs2PAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPR4 |author=David Tal |year=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-77513-1 |page=469 |quote=some of the Arab armies invaded Palestine in order to prevent the establishment of a Jewish state, Transjordan... |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070640/https://books.google.com/books?id=Vs2PAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPR4#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}{{harvnb|Morris|2008|p=187}}: "A week before the armies marched, Azzam told Kirkbride: "It does not matter how many [Jews] there are. We will sweep them into the sea." ... Ahmed Shukeiry, one of Haj [Amin al-Husseini](/source/Amin_al-Husseini)'s aides (and, later, the founding chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization), simply described the aim as "the elimination of the Jewish state." ... al-Quwwatli told his people: "Our army has entered ... we shall win and we shall eradicate Zionism"" The Arab League stated the invasion was to restore order and prevent further bloodshed.{{cite web |url=https://undocs.org/S/745 |title=PDF copy of Cablegram from the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States to the Secretary-General of the United Nations: S/745: 15 May 1948 |publisher=un.org |date=9 September 2002 |access-date=15 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112030519/https://undocs.org/S/745 |archive-date=12 November 2020}} [[File:Raising the Ink Flag at Umm Rashrash (Eilat) (3x4).jpg|thumb|right|Raising of the [Ink Flag](/source/Ink_Flag) on 10 March 1949, marking the end of the [1948 war](/source/1948_Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_War)]] After a year of fighting, a [ceasefire was declared](/source/1949_Armistice_Agreements) and temporary borders, known as the [Green Line](/source/Green_Line_(Israel)), were established.{{cite book |title=The Arab–Israeli conflict: The Palestine War 1948 |last=Karsh |first=Efraim |year=2002 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84176-372-9}} [Jordan annexed](/source/Jordanian_annexation_of_the_West_Bank) what became known as the [West Bank](/source/West_Bank), including [East Jerusalem](/source/East_Jerusalem), and [Egypt occupied](/source/Occupation_of_the_Gaza_Strip_by_the_United_Arab_Republic) the [Gaza Strip](/source/Gaza_Strip). Over 700,000 Palestinians [fled or were expelled](/source/1948_Palestinian_expulsion_and_flight) by [Zionist militias](/source/Zionist_political_violence) and the [Israeli military](/source/Israel_Defence_Forces)—what would become known in Arabic as the {{lang|ar-Latn|[Nakba](/source/Nakba)}} ('catastrophe').{{cite book |last=Morris|first=Benny|author-link=Benny Morris|title=The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited|isbn=978-0-521-00967-6 |publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=602 |year=2004}} The events also led to the destruction of most of Palestine's Arab [culture](/source/Culture_of_Palestine), [identity](/source/Palestinian_identity), and [national aspirations](/source/Palestinian_nationalism). Some 156,000 Arabs remained and became [Arab citizens of Israel](/source/Arab_citizens_of_Israel).{{cite web|url=https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/item.asp?item=13336|title=עיצוב יחסי יהודים – ערבים בעשור הראשון |website=lib.cet.ac.il |access-date=2 September 2021|archive-date=8 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221008065301/https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/item.asp?item=13336|url-status=live}} By [United Nations General Assembly Resolution 273](/source/United_Nations_General_Assembly_Resolution_273), Israel was admitted as a member of the UN on 11 May 1949.{{cite web |url=http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/1ce874ab1832a53e852570bb006dfaf6/0b3ab8d2a7c0273d8525694b00726d1b |publisher=The United Nations |title=Two Hundred and Seventh Plenary Meeting |date=11 May 1949 |access-date=13 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070912101430/http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/1ce874ab1832a53e852570bb006dfaf6/0b3ab8d2a7c0273d8525694b00726d1b |archive-date=12 September 2007 }} In the early years of the state, the [Labour Zionist](/source/Labor_Zionism) movement led by Prime Minister Ben-Gurion dominated [Israeli politics](/source/Politics_of_Israel).{{sfn|Lustick|1988|pp=37–39}}{{Cite book |last=Lewis |first=Mark A. |url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcmassbookdig.israelcountrystu00metz_0/ |title=Israel: A Country Study |date=1990 |publisher=Federal Research Division, Library of Congress |editor-last=Metz |editor-first=Helen Chapin |edition=3rd |series= |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=28-29 |language=english |chapter=Labor Zionism}} Immigration to Israel during the late 1940s and early 1950s was aided by the Israeli Immigration Department and the non-government sponsored [Mossad LeAliyah Bet](/source/Mossad_LeAliyah_Bet) ({{Abbr|lit.|literally|class=small}} "Institute for [Immigration B](/source/Aliyah_Bet)").{{cite book | author = Anita Shapira | title = Land and Power | pages = 416, 419 | publisher = Stanford University Press | year = 1992}} The latter engaged in clandestine operations in countries, particularly in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, where the lives of Jews were in danger and exit was difficult. Mossad LeAliyah Bet was disbanded in 1953.Segev, Tom. 1949: The First Israelis. "The First Million". Trans. Arlen N. Weinstein. New York: The Free Press, 1986. Print. pp. 105–107 The immigration was in accordance with the [One Million Plan](/source/One_Million_Plan). Some immigrants held Zionist beliefs or came for the promise of a better life, while others moved to escape persecution or were expelled from their homes.{{cite book |title=The Forgotten Millions: The Modern Jewish Exodus from Arab Lands |last=Shulewitz |first=Malka Hillel |year=2001 |publisher=Continuum |isbn=978-0-8264-4764-7}}Laskier, Michael "Egyptian Jewry under the Nasser Regime, 1956–70" pp. 573–619 from ''Middle Eastern Studies'', Volume 31, Issue #3, July 1995 p. 579. An [influx of Holocaust survivors](/source/Aliyah) and [Jews from Arab and Muslim countries](/source/Jewish_exodus_from_the_Muslim_world) to Israel during the first three years increased the number of Jews from 700,000 to 1,400,000. By 1958, the population had risen to two million.{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_02&CYear=2016 |title=Population, by Religion |date=2016 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=4 September 2016 |archive-date=18 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160918223343/http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_02&CYear=2016 |url-status=live }} Between 1948 and 1970, approximately 1,150,000 Jewish refugees relocated to Israel.{{cite book |last=Bard |first=Mitchell |title=The Founding of the State of Israel |year=2003 |publisher=Greenhaven Press |page=15}} Some immigrants arrived as refugees and were housed in temporary camps known as ''[ma'abarot](/source/ma'abarot)''; by 1952, over 200,000 people were living in these tent cities.{{cite book |title=Immigrants in Turmoil: Mass Immigration to Israel and Its Repercussions in the 1950s and After |last=Hakohen |first=Devorah |year=2003 |publisher=Syracuse University Press|isbn=978-0-8156-2969-6}}; for ma'abarot population, see p. 269. [Jews of European background](/source/Ashkenazi_Jews) were often treated more favourably than Jews from [Middle Eastern](/source/Mizrahi_Jews) and [North African](/source/Sephardi_Jews) countries—housing units reserved for the latter were often re-designated for the former, so Jews newly arrived from Arab lands generally ended up staying longer in transit camps.Clive Jones, Emma Murphy, [https://books.google.com/books?id=A144y7qwRJMC&pg=PA37 ''Israel: Challenges to Identity, Democracy, and the State,''] [Routledge](/source/Routledge) 2002 p. 37: "Housing units earmarked for the Oriental Jews were often reallocated to European Jewish immigrants; Consigning Oriental Jews to the privations of ''ma'aborot'' (transit camps) for longer periods."{{sfn|Segev|2007|pp=155–157}} During this period, food, clothes and furniture were rationed in what became known as the [austerity period](/source/Austerity_in_Israel). The need to solve the crisis led Ben-Gurion to sign a [reparations agreement with West Germany](/source/Reparations_Agreement_between_Israel_and_the_Federal_Republic_of_Germany) that triggered mass protests by Jews angered at the idea that Israel could accept monetary compensation for the Holocaust.{{sfn|Shindler|2002|pp=49–50}} === Arab–Israeli conflict === {{Main|Arab–Israeli conflict}} There were [further expulsions of Palestinians](/source/1949%E2%80%931956_Palestinian_expulsions) after the establishment of Israel. During the 1950s, Israel was [frequently attacked](/source/List_of_attacks_against_Israeli_civilians_before_1967) by [Palestinian fedayeen](/source/Palestinian_fedayeen), nearly always against civilians,{{cite book |author=Kameel B. Nasr|title=Arab and Israeli Terrorism: The Causes and Effects of Political Violence, 1936–1993|url={{Google books|QRXURzwdXS4C|page=PA40|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|year=1996|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-3105-2|pages=40– |quote=Fedayeen to attack...almost always against civilians}} mainly from the Egyptian-occupied Gaza Strip,{{sfn|Gilbert|2005|p=58}} leading to several Israeli [reprisal operations](/source/reprisal_operations). In 1956, the UK and France aimed at regaining control of the [Suez Canal](/source/Suez_Canal), which Egypt had nationalised. The continued blockade of the Suez Canal and [Straits of Tiran](/source/Straits_of_Tiran) to Israeli shipping, together with increasing fedayeen attacks against Israel's southern population and recent Arab threatening statements, prompted Israel to attack Egypt.{{cite book|author=Isaac Alteras|title=Eisenhower and Israel: U.S.-Israeli Relations, 1953–1960|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ydRHCPWngioC&pg=PAPA192|year=1993|publisher=University Press of Florida|isbn=978-0-8130-1205-6|pages=192–|quote=the removal of the Egyptian blockade of the Straits of Tiran at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba. The blockade closed Israel's sea lane to East Africa and the Far East, hindering the development of Israel's southern port of Eilat and its hinterland, the Nege. Another important objective of the Israeli war plan was the elimination of the terrorist bases in the Gaza Strip, from which daily fedayeen incursions into Israel made life unbearable for its southern population. And last but not least, the concentration of the Egyptian forces in the Sinai Peninsula, armed with the newly acquired weapons from the Soviet bloc, prepared for an attack on Israel. Here, Ben-Gurion believed, was a time bomb that had to be defused before it was too late. Reaching the Suez Canal did not figure at all in Israel's war objectives.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071150/https://books.google.com/books?id=ydRHCPWngioC&pg=PAPA192|url-status=live}}{{cite book|author=Dominic Joseph Caraccilo|title=Beyond Guns and Steel: A War Termination Strategy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FDA8dQyaQ9MC&pg=PAPA113|date=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-39149-1|pages=113–|quote=The escalation continued with the Egyptian blockade of the Straits of Tiran, and Nasser's nationalization of the Suez Canal in July 1956. On October 14, Nasser made clear his intent:"I am not solely fighting against Israel itself. My task is to deliver the Arab world from destruction through Israel's intrigue, which has its roots abroad. Our hatred is very strong. There is no sense in talking about peace with Israel. There is not even the smallest place for negotiations." Less than two weeks later, on October 25, Egypt signed a tripartite agreement with Syria and Jordan placing Nasser in command of all three armies. The continued blockade of the Suez Canal and Gulf of Aqaba to Israeli shipping, combined with the increased fedayeen attacks and the bellicosity of recent Arab statements, prompted Israel, with the backing of Britain and France, to attack Egypt on October 29, 1956.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071150/https://books.google.com/books?id=FDA8dQyaQ9MC&pg=PAPA113|url-status=live}}{{cite book|author=Alan Dowty|title=Israel/Palestine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9iFxq6NPPgEC&pg=PAPA102|year=2005|publisher=Polity|isbn=978-0-7456-3202-5|pages=102–|quote=Gamal Abdel Nasser, who declared in one speech that "Egypt has decided to dispatch her heroes, the disciples of Pharaoh and the sons of Islam and they will cleanse the land of Palestine....There will be no peace on Israel's border because we demand vengeance, and vengeance is Israel's death."...The level of violence against Israelis, soldiers and civilians alike, seemed to be rising inexorably.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071150/https://books.google.com/books?id=9iFxq6NPPgEC&pg=PAPA102#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}} Israel joined [a secret alliance](/source/Protocol_of_S%C3%A8vres) with the UK and France and overran the [Sinai Peninsula](/source/Sinai_Peninsula) in the [Suez Crisis](/source/Suez_Crisis) but was pressured to withdraw by the UN in return for guarantees of Israeli shipping rights.{{Cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5195582.stm|title=Suez Crisis: Key players|date=21 July 2006|access-date=19 July 2018|language=en-GB|archive-date=26 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026234223/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/5195582.stm|url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=http://sunnycv.com/steve/20th/suez.html |title=The Suez Crisis |last=Schoenherr |first=Steven |date=15 December 2005 |access-date=31 May 2013 |archive-date=30 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140430091614/http://sunnycv.com/steve/20th/suez.html |url-status=live }}{{cite book |title=The Suez Crisis |last=Gorst |first=Anthony |author2=Johnman, Lewis |year=1997 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-11449-3}} The war resulted in significant reduction of Israeli border infiltration.{{cite book|author=Benny Morris|title=Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict, 1881–1998|url={{Google books|jGtVsBne7PgC|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|date=25 May 2011|publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-307-78805-4|pages=300, 301|quote=[p. 300] In exchange (for Israeli withdrawal) the United states had indirectly promised to guarantee Israel's right of passage through the straits (to the Red sea) and its right to self defense if the Egyptian closed them....(p 301) The 1956 war resulted in a significant reduction of...Israeli border tension. Egypt refrained from reactivating the Fedaeen, and...Egypt and Jordan made great effort to curb infiltration}} [[File:1961-04-13 Tale Of Century - Eichmann Tried For War Crimes.ogv|thumb|U.S. newsreel on the trial of [Adolf Eichmann](/source/Adolf_Eichmann)]] In the early 1960s, Israel captured Nazi war criminal [Adolf Eichmann](/source/Adolf_Eichmann) in Argentina and brought him to Israel [for trial](/source/Eichmann_trial).{{sfn|Bascomb|2009|p=219–229}}{{Cite web |title=Operation Eichmann. Adolf Eichmann was captured in Argentina on May 11, 1960 |url=https://wwv.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/eichmann/operation-eichmann.asp |access-date=30 September 2025 |website=wwv.yadvashem.org |language=en}} Eichmann remains the only person executed in Israel by conviction in an Israeli civilian court.{{cite journal |author=Shlomo Shpiro |title=No place to hide: Intelligence and civil liberties in Israel |journal=Cambridge Review of International Affairs |volume=19 |issue=44 |pages=629–648 |year=2006 |s2cid=144734253 |doi=10.1080/09557570601003361}} In 1963, Israel was engaged in a diplomatic standoff with the United States in relation to the Israeli [nuclear programme](/source/Nuclear_weapons_and_Israel).{{Cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2019-05-03/ty-article-magazine/.premium/how-a-standoff-with-the-u-s-almost-blew-up-israels-nuclear-program/0000017f-e2f7-df7c-a5ff-e2ffc00d0000|title=How a Standoff with the U.S. Almost Blew up Israel's Nuclear Program|newspaper=Haaretz|date=3 May 2019|last1=Cohen|first1=Avner|access-date=11 November 2019|archive-date=2 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202173023/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.MAGAZINE-how-a-standoff-with-the-u-s-almost-blew-up-israel-s-nuclear-program-1.7193419|url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/nuclear-vault/2019-05-02/battle-letters-1963-john-f-kennedy-david-ben-gurion-levi-eshkol-us-inspections-dimona |title=The Battle of the Letters, 1963: John F. Kennedy, David Ben-Gurion, Levi Eshkol, and the U.S. Inspections of Dimona {{pipe}} National Security Archive |date=29 April 2019 |access-date=11 November 2019 |archive-date=11 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111141328/https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/nuclear-vault/2019-05-02/battle-letters-1963-john-f-kennedy-david-ben-gurion-levi-eshkol-us-inspections-dimona |url-status=live }} Since 1964 Arab countries, concerned over Israeli plans to divert waters of the [Jordan River](/source/Jordan_River) into the [coastal plain](/source/Israeli_coastal_plain),"The Politics of Miscalculation in the Middle East", by Richard B. Parker (1993 Indiana University Press) p. 38 had been trying to divert the headwaters to deprive Israel of water resources, [provoking tensions](/source/War_over_Water_(Jordan_River)) between Israel on the one hand, and Syria and Lebanon on the other. [Arab nationalist](/source/Arab_nationalist)s led by Egyptian President [Gamal Abdel Nasser](/source/Gamal_Abdel_Nasser) refused to recognise Israel and called for its destruction.{{Harvnb|Gilbert|2005|p=1}}{{cite book |title=Syria and Israel: From War to Peacemaking |last=Maoz |first=Moshe |year=1995 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-828018-7 |page=70 }}{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/5/newsid_2654000/2654251.stm |title=On This Day 5 Jun |date=5 June 1967 |publisher=BBC |access-date=26 December 2011 |archive-date=14 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070714044705/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/5/newsid_2654000/2654251.stm |url-status=live }} By 1966, Israeli-Arab relations had deteriorated to the point of battles taking place between Israeli and Arab forces.{{sfn|Segev|2007|p=178}} In May 1967, Egypt massed its army near the border with Israel, expelled [UN peacekeepers stationed in the Sinai Peninsula](/source/United_Nations_Emergency_Force) since 1957, and blocked Israel's access to the Red Sea.{{cite book |last=Gat |first=Moshe |title=Britain and the Conflict in the Middle East, 1964–1967: The Coming of the Six-Day War |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntLdA8QIgXIC&q=On+the+night+of+May+22-23,+Nasser+declared+the+Gulf+of+Aqaba+closed+to+Israeli+shipping&pg=PA202 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=2003 |page=202 |isbn=978-0-275-97514-2 |access-date=4 October 2020 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071151/https://books.google.com/books?id=ntLdA8QIgXIC&q=On+the+night+of+May+22-23,+Nasser+declared+the+Gulf+of+Aqaba+closed+to+Israeli+shipping&pg=PA202 |url-status=live }}[John Quigley](/source/John_Quigley_(academic)), [https://books.google.com/books?id=0zEi3qGWLFIC&pg=PA32 ''The Six-Day War and Israeli Self-Defense: Questioning the Legal Basis for Preventive War''], Cambridge University Press, 2013, p. 32.{{cite book|author=Samir A. Mutawi|title=Jordan in the 1967 War|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g9bBJusRJIMC|year=2002|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-52858-0|page=93|quote=Although Eshkol denounced the Egyptians, his response to this development was a model of moderation. His speech on 21 May demanded that Nasser withdraw his forces from Sinai but made no mention of the removal of UNEF from the Straits nor of what Israel would do if they were closed to Israeli shipping. The next day Nasser announced to an astonished world that henceforth the Straits were, indeed, closed to all Israeli ships|access-date=17 September 2021|archive-date=31 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231031043157/https://books.google.com/books?id=g9bBJusRJIMC|url-status=live}} Other Arab states mobilised their forces.{{sfn|Segev|2007|p=289}} Israel reiterated that these actions were a ''[casus belli](/source/casus_belli)'' and launched a pre-emptive strike ([Operation Focus](/source/Operation_Focus)) against Egypt in June. Jordan, Syria and Iraq attacked Israel. [[File:Six Day War Territories.svg|thumb|Territory held by Israel: {{legend|#ffffd0|before the [Six-Day War](/source/Six-Day_War)}} {{legend|#f7d3aa|after the war}} The [Sinai Peninsula](/source/Sinai_Peninsula) was returned to Egypt in 1982.]] In the ensuing [Six-Day War](/source/Six-Day_War), Israel captured and occupied the West Bank from Jordan, the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, and the Golan Heights from Syria.{{harvnb|Smith|2006|p=126}}. "Nasser, the Egyptian president, decided to mass troops in the Sinai{{nbsp}}... ''casus belli'' by Israel." Israeli forces [expelled ~300,000 Palestinians](/source/Naksa) from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Jerusalem's boundaries were enlarged, incorporating [East Jerusalem](/source/East_Jerusalem). The 1949 Green Line became the administrative boundary between Israel and the [occupied territories](/source/Israeli-occupied_territories).{{sfn|Shlay|Rosen|2010|pp=362–363}} Following the 1967 war and the "[Three Nos](/source/Khartoum_Resolution)" resolution of the Arab League, Israel faced attacks from the Egyptians in the Sinai Peninsula during the 1967–1970 [War of Attrition](/source/War_of_Attrition), and from Palestinian groups targeting Israelis in the occupied territories, globally, and in Israel. Most important among the Palestinian and Arab groups was the [Palestine Liberation Organisation](/source/Palestine_Liberation_Organisation) (PLO), established in 1964, which initially committed itself to "armed struggle as the only way to liberate the homeland".{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/13/magazine/13PALESTINIANS.html |title=The Interregnum |last=Bennet |first=James |date=13 March 2005 |work=The New York Times Magazine |access-date=11 February 2010 |archive-date=16 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416021652/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/13/magazine/13PALESTINIANS.html |url-status=live }} In the late 1960s and early 1970s, [Palestinian groups launched attacks](/source/Palestinian_political_violence){{cite book |title=Research on Terrorism: Trends, Achievements and Failures |last=Silke |first=Andrew |year=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-7146-8273-0 |page=149 (256 pp.) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rSpfNJQ4CbAC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA149 |access-date=8 March 2010 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071201/https://books.google.com/books?id=rSpfNJQ4CbAC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA149#v=snippet&q=palestinian%20terror%201970s&f=false |url-status=live }}{{cite book |title=The Routledge Atlas of the Arab–Israeli Conflict: The Complete History of the Struggle and the Efforts to Resolve It |last=Gilbert |first=Martin |year=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-28116-4 |page=82 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UNvJ1FOwiAwC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA82 |access-date=8 March 2010 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071251/https://books.google.com/books?id=UNvJ1FOwiAwC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA82#v=onepage&q=palestinian%20terror%201970s&f=false |url-status=live }} against Israeli and Jewish targets around the world,{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/world/middleeast/27habash.html |title=George Habash, Palestinian Terrorism Tactician, Dies at 82 |first1=Edmund |last1=Andrews |author-link=Edmund Andrews (reporter) |first2=John |last2=Kifner |author-link2=John Kifner |newspaper=The New York Times |date=27 January 2008 |access-date=29 March 2012 |archive-date=13 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313121747/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/world/middleeast/27habash.html |url-status=live }} including [a massacre of Israeli athletes](/source/Munich_massacre) at the [1972 Summer Olympics](/source/1972_Summer_Olympics) in Munich. The Israeli government responded with an [assassination campaign](/source/Mossad_assassinations_following_the_Munich_massacre) against the organisers of the massacre, [a bombing](/source/1972_Israeli_air_raid_in_Syria_and_Lebanon) and a [raid on the PLO headquarters in Lebanon](/source/1973_Israeli_raid_in_Lebanon). On 6 October 1973, the Egyptian and Syrian armies launched [a surprise attack](/source/Operation_Badr_(1973)) against Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights, opening the [Yom Kippur War](/source/Yom_Kippur_War). The war ended on 25 October with Israel repelling Egyptian and Syrian forces but suffering great losses.{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/6/newsid_2514000/2514317.stm |title=1973: Arab states attack Israeli forces |work=On This Day |publisher=BBC News |access-date=15 July 2007 |date=6 October 1973 |archive-date=2 March 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260302064003/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/6/newsid_2514000/2514317.stm |url-status=live }} An [internal inquiry](/source/Agranat_Commission) exonerated [the government](/source/Fifteenth_government_of_Israel) of responsibility for failures before and during the war, but public anger forced Prime Minister [Golda Meir](/source/Golda_Meir) to resign.{{cite web |url=https://www.knesset.gov.il/lexicon/eng/agranat_eng.htm |title=Agranat Commission |publisher=Knesset |year=2008 |access-date=8 April 2010 |archive-date=29 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229175926/http://knesset.gov.il/lexicon/eng/agranat_eng.htm |url-status=live }}{{better source needed|date=February 2023}} On 27 June 1976, [Air France Flight 139](/source/Air_France_Flight_139) was hijacked in flight from Israel to France by Palestinian guerrillas; Israeli commandos rescued 102 of 106 Israeli hostages days later.{{Cite web |title=Editorial Content for Operation Thunderbolt: Flight 139 and the Raid on Entebbe Airport, the Most Audacious Hostage Rescue Mission in History {{!}} Bookreporter.com |url=https://www.bookreporter.com/content/editorial-content-for-operation-thunderbolt-flight-139-and-the-raid-on-entebbe-airport-the-m |access-date=2025-12-05 |website=www.bookreporter.com |language=en}} === Peace process === {{main|Israeli–Palestinian peace process}} The [1977 Knesset elections](/source/1977_Israeli_legislative_election) marked a major turning point in Israeli political history as [Menachem Begin](/source/Menachem_Begin)'s [Likud](/source/Likud) party took control from the [Labor Party](/source/Israeli_Labor_Party).{{harvnb|Bregman|2002|pp=169–170}}: "In hindsight we can say that 1977 was a turning point ..." Later that year, Egyptian President [Anwar El Sadat](/source/Anwar_El_Sadat) made a trip to Israel and spoke before the [Knesset](/source/Knesset) in what was the first recognition of Israel by an Arab head of state.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=171–174}} Sadat and Begin signed the [Camp David Accords](/source/Camp_David_Accords) (1978) and the [Egypt–Israel peace treaty](/source/Egypt%E2%80%93Israel_peace_treaty) (1979).{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=186–187}} In return, Israel withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula and agreed to enter negotiations over autonomy for Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=186–187}} On 11 March 1978, a PLO guerilla raid from Lebanon led to the [Coastal Road massacre](/source/Coastal_Road_massacre). Israel responded by launching an [invasion of southern Lebanon](/source/1978_South_Lebanon_conflict) to destroy PLO bases. Begin's government meanwhile provided incentives for [Israelis to settle](/source/Israeli_settlement) in the [occupied West Bank](/source/Israeli_occupation_of_the_West_Bank), increasing friction with the Palestinians there.{{cite book|title=A history of the modern Middle East |last=Cleveland |first=William L. |year=1999 |publisher=Westview Press |isbn=978-0-8133-3489-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/356 356] |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/356 }} The 1980 [Jerusalem Law](/source/Jerusalem_Law) was believed by some to reaffirm Israel's 1967 annexation of Jerusalem by government decree and [reignited international controversy](/source/UN_Security_Council_Resolution_478) over the [status of the city](/source/Status_of_Jerusalem). No Israeli legislation has defined the territory of Israel, and no act specifically included East Jerusalem therein.{{cite journal |last=Lustick |first=Ian |year=1997 |title=Has Israel Annexed East Jerusalem? |journal=Middle East Policy |volume=V |issue=1 |pages=34–45 |issn=1061-1924 |oclc=4651987544 |doi=10.1111/j.1475-4967.1997.tb00247.x |url=https://www.sas.upenn.edu/polisci/sites/www.sas.upenn.edu.polisci/files/Lustick_Has%20Israel%20Annexed%20Jerusalem_1997.pdf |access-date=1 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091120090306/http://www.mepc.org/journal_vol5/9701_lustick.asp |archive-date=20 November 2009 }} In 1981 Israel [effectively annexed](/source/Golan_Heights_Law) the Golan Heights.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14724842 |title=Golan Heights profile |date=27 November 2015 |work=BBC News |access-date=6 January 2017 |archive-date=17 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617170912/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14724842 |url-status=live }} The international community largely rejected these moves, with the UN Security Council declaring both the Jerusalem Law and the Golan Heights Law null and void.{{cite book | last=Hillier | first=T. | title=Sourcebook on Public International Law | publisher=Routledge | year=1998 | isbn=978-1-135-35366-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DmuPAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA242 | access-date=12 October 2021 | archive-date=19 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071301/https://books.google.com/books?id=DmuPAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA242#v=onepage&q&f=false | url-status=live }}{{cite book | last1=Monacella | first1=R. | last2=Ware | first2=S.A. | title=Fluctuating Borders: Speculations about Memory and Emergence | publisher=RMIT University Press | year=2007 | isbn=978-1-921166-48-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q7r4wd57FqIC&pg=RA1-PA62 | access-date=12 October 2021 | archive-date=19 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071154/https://books.google.com/books?id=q7r4wd57FqIC&pg=RA1-PA62#v=onepage&q&f=false | url-status=live }} Several waves of [Ethiopian Jews](/source/Beta_Israel) [immigrated to Israel](/source/Aliyah_from_Ethiopia) since the 1980s, while between 1990 and 1994, [immigration from the post-Soviet states](/source/1990s_post-Soviet_aliyah) increased Israel's population by twelve per cent.{{cite journal |url=https://www.brown.edu/Departments/Economics/Papers/1996/pdfs/96-28.pdf |journal=The Quarterly Journal of Economics |date=November 2001 |title=The Impact of Mass Migration on the Israeli Labor Market |last=Friedberg |first=Rachel M. |pages=1373–1408 |issue=4 |doi=10.1162/003355301753265606 |volume=116 |hdl=10419/102605 |citeseerx=10.1.1.385.2596 |access-date=14 August 2012 |archive-date=23 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120923025501/http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Economics/Papers/1996/pdfs/96-28.pdf |url-status=live }} On 7 June 1981, during the [Iran–Iraq War](/source/Iran%E2%80%93Iraq_War), the [Israeli air force destroyed](/source/Operation_Opera) Iraq's sole nuclear reactor, then under construction, in order to impede the Iraqi nuclear weapons programme.{{Cite news |date=7 June 1981 |title=1981: Israel bombs Baghdad nuclear reactor |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/7/newsid_3014000/3014623.stm |access-date=20 June 2024 |language=en-GB}} Following a series of PLO attacks in 1982, Israel [invaded Lebanon](/source/1982_Lebanon_War) to destroy the PLO bases.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|p=199}} In the first six days, Israel destroyed the military forces of the PLO in Lebanon and decisively defeated the Syrians. An Israeli government inquiry (the [Kahan Commission](/source/Kahan_Commission)) held Begin and several Israeli generals indirectly responsible for the [Sabra and Shatila massacre](/source/Sabra_and_Shatila_massacre) and held [defence minister](/source/Ministry_of_Defence_(Israel)) [Ariel Sharon](/source/Ariel_Sharon) as bearing "personal responsibility".{{cite book |last1=Schiff |first1=Ze'ev |author-link=Ze'ev Schiff |last2=Ehud |first2=Yaari |author-link2=Ehud Yaari |title=Israel's Lebanon War |year=1984 |page=[https://archive.org/details/israelslebanonwa0000schi/page/284 284] |publisher=[Simon & Schuster](/source/Simon_%26_Schuster) |isbn=978-0-671-47991-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/israelslebanonwa0000schi}} Sharon was forced to resign.{{cite book |last=Silver |first=Eric |title=Begin: The Haunted Prophet |publisher=[Random House](/source/Random_House) |year=1984 |page=[https://archive.org/details/beginhauntedprop00silv/page/239 239] |isbn=978-0-394-52826-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/beginhauntedprop00silv}} In 1985, Israel responded to a Palestinian [terrorist attack in Cyprus](/source/Larnaca_yacht_killings) by [bombing the PLO headquarters](/source/Operation_Wooden_Leg) in Tunisia. Israel withdrew from most of Lebanon in 1986 but continued to [occupy a borderland buffer zone](/source/Israeli_occupation_of_Southern_Lebanon) in southern Lebanon until 2000, from where Israeli forces [engaged in conflict](/source/South_Lebanon_conflict_(1985%E2%80%932000)) with [Hezbollah](/source/Hezbollah). The [First Intifada](/source/First_Intifada), a Palestinian uprising against Israeli rule,{{cite book|title=A History of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict |last=Tessler |first=Mark A. |year=2009 |orig-year=1994 |edition=2nd |publisher=[Indiana University Press](/source/Indiana_University_Press) |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofisraeli00tess_0/page/677 677] |isbn=978-0-253-20873-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofisraeli00tess_0 |ref={{harvid|Tessler|2009}}}} broke out in 1987, with waves of uncoordinated demonstrations and violence in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. Over the following six years, the intifada became more organised and included economic and cultural measures aimed at disrupting the Israeli occupation. Over 1,000 people were killed.{{harvnb|Stone|Zenner|1994|p=246}}. "Toward the end of 1991 ... were the result of internal Palestinian terror." During the 1991 [Gulf War](/source/Gulf_War), the PLO supported [Saddam Hussein](/source/Saddam_Hussein) and Iraqi missile [attacks against Israel](/source/Iraqi_rocket_attacks_on_Israel). Despite public outrage, Israel heeded American calls to refrain from hitting back.{{cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE7DB173EF93AA35751C1A967958260 |title=After 4 Years, Intifada Still Smolders |work=The New York Times |date=9 December 1991 |access-date=28 March 2008 |last=Haberman |first=Clyde |archive-date=1 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090601184429/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/09/world/after-4-years-intifada-still-smolders.html |url-status=live }}{{sfn |Mowlana |Gerbner |Schiller |1992 |p=111}} [[File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - Foreign Min. Peres and King Hussein.jpg|thumb|[Shimon Peres](/source/Shimon_Peres) (left) with [Yitzhak Rabin](/source/Yitzhak_Rabin) (center) and King [Hussein of Jordan](/source/Hussein_of_Jordan) (right), prior to signing the [Israel–Jordan peace treaty](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Jordan_peace_treaty) in 1994]] In 1992, [Yitzhak Rabin](/source/Yitzhak_Rabin) became prime minister following [an election](/source/1992_Israeli_legislative_election) in which his party called for compromise with Israel's neighbours.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|p=236}}{{cite web |url=http://www.bc.edu/dam/files/research_sites/cjl/texts/cjrelations/resources/education/Israel_Palestine/cold_war_ends.htm |publisher=[Boston College](/source/Boston_College) |title=From the End of the Cold War to 2001 |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827235024/http://www.bc.edu/dam/files/research_sites/cjl/texts/cjrelations/resources/education/Israel_Palestine/cold_war_ends.htm |archive-date=27 August 2013 }} The following year, [Shimon Peres](/source/Shimon_Peres) on behalf of Israel and [Yasser Arafat](/source/Yasser_Arafat) for the PLO signed the [Oslo Accords](/source/Oslo_Accords), which gave the [Palestinian National Authority](/source/Palestinian_Authority) (PNA) the right to govern [parts of the West Bank](/source/West_Bank_areas_in_the_Oslo_II_Accord) and the Gaza Strip.{{cite web |url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1990-2000/Oslo |publisher=U.S. Department of State |title=The Oslo Accords, 1993 |access-date=30 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100122102530/http://history.state.gov/milestones/1990-2000/Oslo |archive-date=22 January 2010 }} The PLO also [recognised Israel's right to exist](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Palestine_Liberation_Organization_letters_of_recognition) and pledged an end to terrorism.{{sfn|Tessler|2009|p=729}} In 1994, the [Israel–Jordan peace treaty](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Jordan_peace_treaty) was signed, making Jordan the second Arab country to normalise relations with Israel.{{harvnb|Harkavy|Neuman|2001|p=270}}. "Even though Jordan in 1994 became the second country, after Egypt to sign a peace treaty with Israel ..." Arab public support for the Accords was damaged by the continuation of Israeli settlements{{cite web |url=http://www.fmep.org/settlement_info/settlement-info-and-tables/stats-data/sources-of-population-growth-total-israeli-population-and-settler-population-1991-2003 |title=Sources of Population Growth: Total Israeli Population and Settler Population, 1991–2003 |access-date=20 March 2012 |publisher=Foundation for Middle East Peace |website=Settlements information |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130826051148/http://www.fmep.org/settlement_info/settlement-info-and-tables/stats-data/sources-of-population-growth-total-israeli-population-and-settler-population-1991-2003 |archive-date=26 August 2013 }} and [checkpoints](/source/Israeli_checkpoint), and the deterioration of economic conditions.{{cite book|title=Negotiating Arab-Israeli peace: American leadership in the Middle East |last=Kurtzer |first=Daniel |author2=Lasensky, Scott |year=2008 |publisher=United States Institute of Peace Press |isbn=978-1-60127-030-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/negotiatingarabi0000kurt/page/44 44] |url=https://archive.org/details/negotiatingarabi0000kurt/page/44 }} Israeli public support for the Accords waned after [Palestinian suicide attacks](/source/List_of_Palestinian_suicide_attacks).{{cite book|title=A history of the modern Middle East |last=Cleveland |first=William L. |year=1999 |publisher=Westview Press |isbn=978-0-8133-3489-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/494 494] |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/494 }} In November 1995, Rabin [was assassinated](/source/assassination_of_Yitzhak_Rabin) by [Yigal Amir](/source/Yigal_Amir), a far-right Jew who opposed the Accords.{{cite news |title=Israel marks Rabin assassination |publisher=BBC News |date=12 November 2005 |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4431728.stm |access-date=12 May 2010 |archive-date=17 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100117220054/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4431728.stm |url-status=live }} During [Benjamin Netanyahu](/source/Benjamin_Netanyahu)'s premiership at the end of the 1990s, Israel [agreed to withdraw](/source/Protocol_Concerning_the_Redeployment_in_Hebron) from [Hebron](/source/Hebron),{{sfn|Bregman|2002|p=257}} though this was never ratified or implemented,[https://web.archive.org/web/20151002002611/http://www.ijcv.org/index.php/ijcv/article/view/14/14 Hanne Eggen Røislien, "Living with Contradiction: Examining the Worldview of the Jewish Settlers in Hebron"], 2 October 2015 ''[International Journal of Conflict and Violence](/source/International_Journal_of_Conflict_and_Violence)'', Vol.1 (2) 2007, pp.169–184 and he signed the [Wye River Memorandum](/source/Wye_River_Memorandum). The agreement dealt with further redeployments in the West Bank and security issues. The memorandum was criticised by major international human rights organisations for its "encouragement" of human rights abuses.Human Rights Watch, An Analysis of the Wye River MemorandumAmnesty International, The United States, Israel and the Palestinian Authority: Human Rights Neglected in the Theory and Practice by All Involved in "Peacemaking" [Ehud Barak](/source/Ehud_Barak), [elected](/source/1999_Israeli_general_election) prime minister in 1999, withdrew forces from southern Lebanon and conducted negotiations with PNA Chairman Yasser Arafat and U.S. President [Bill Clinton](/source/Bill_Clinton) at the [2000 Camp David Summit](/source/2000_Camp_David_Summit). Barak offered a plan for the establishment of a [Palestinian state](/source/Palestinian_state), including the entirety of the Gaza Strip and over 90% of the West Bank with Jerusalem as a shared capital.{{sfn|Gelvin|2005|p=240}} Each side blamed the other for the failure of the talks. === 21st century === {{further|Iran–Israel proxy conflict|Gaza–Israel conflict|Middle Eastern crisis (2023–present)}} In late 2000, after a controversial visit by Sharon to the [Temple Mount](/source/Temple_Mount), the [Second Intifada](/source/Second_Intifada) began. The popular uprising faced disproportionate repression from the Israeli state.{{harvnb|Ben-Ami|2007}}: "Israel's disproportionate response to what had started as a popular uprising with young, unarmed men confronting Israeli soldiers armed with lethal weapons fuelled the Intifada beyond control and turned it into an all-out war" [Palestinian suicide bombings](/source/Palestinian_suicide_attacks) eventually developed into a recurrent feature of the intifada.Sela-Shayovitz, R. (2007). Suicide bombers in Israel: Their motivations, characteristics, and prior activity in terrorist organizations. ''International Journal of Conflict and Violence (IJCV)'', ''1''(2), 163. "The period of the second Intifada significantly differs from other historical periods in Israeli history, because it has been characterised by intensive and numerous suicide attacks that have made civilian life into a battlefront." Some commentators contend that the intifada was pre-planned by Arafat after the collapse of peace talks.{{cite web |url=http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/114827/the-big-myth-he-caused-second-intifada |title=The big myth: that he caused the Second Intifada |last=Gross |first=Tom |author-link=Tom Gross|date=16 January 2014 |newspaper=The Jewish Chronicle |access-date=22 April 2016 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304193513/http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/114827/the-big-myth-he-caused-second-intifada |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |last=Hong |first=Nicole |date=23 February 2015 |title=Jury Finds Palestinian Authority, PLO Liable for Terrorist Attacks in Israel a Decade Ago |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/jury-finds-palestinian-authority-plo-liable-for-terrorist-attacks-in-israel-a-decade-ago-1424715529 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=22 April 2016 |archive-date=14 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160414204555/http://www.wsj.com/articles/jury-finds-palestinian-authority-plo-liable-for-terrorist-attacks-in-israel-a-decade-ago-1424715529 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=http://jewishweek.org/news/newscontent.php3?artid=3846 |title=PA: Intifada Was Planned |last=Ain |first=Stewart |date=20 December 2000 |newspaper=The Jewish Week |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013083338/http://jewishweek.org/news/newscontent.php3?artid=3846 |archive-date=13 October 2007}}{{cite news |title=In a Ruined Country |first=David |last=Samuels |date=1 September 2005 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2005/09/in-a-ruined-country/304167/ |newspaper=The Atlantic |access-date=27 March 2013 |archive-date=30 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830024459/http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/prem/200509/samuels |url-status=live }} Sharon became prime minister in a [2001 election](/source/2001_Israeli_prime_ministerial_election); he carried out his plan to [unilaterally withdraw](/source/Israeli_disengagement_from_the_Gaza_Strip) from the Gaza Strip and spearheaded the construction of the [West Bank barrier](/source/West_Bank_barrier),{{cite news|title=West Bank barrier route disputed, Israeli missile kills 2 |newspaper=USA Today |date=29 July 2004 |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2004-07-29-west-bank_x.htm |access-date=1 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020225835/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2004-07-29-west-bank_x.htm |archive-date=20 October 2012}} ending the intifada.See for example:
* {{cite news |title=Years of rage |first1=Amos |last1=Harel |first2=Avi |last2=Issacharoff |date=1 October 2010 |url=https://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/years-of-rage-1.316603 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=2 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702094014/http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/years-of-rage-1.316603 |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite news |title=Losing Faith in the Intifada |first=Laura |last=King |date=28 September 2004 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-sep-28-fg-intifada28-story.html |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=21 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120921132644/http://articles.latimes.com/2004/sep/28/world/fg-intifada28 |url-status=live }}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52801-2004Sep26.html |title=From Jenin To Fallujah? |last=Diehl |first=Jackson |date=27 September 2004 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=3 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203212546/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52801-2004Sep26.html |url-status=live }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.jcpa.org/text/Amidror-perspectives-2.pdf |title=Winning Counterinsurgency War: The Israeli Experience |last=Amidror |first=Yaakov |website=Strategic Perspectives |publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=11 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811130134/http://www.jcpa.org/text/Amidror-perspectives-2.pdf |url-status=live }}
* {{cite web |last=Frisch |first=Hillel |url=http://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/perspectives57.html |title=The Need for a Decisive Israeli Victory Over Hamas |date=12 January 2009 |website=Perspectives Papers on Current Affairs |publisher=Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614054502/http://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/perspectives57.html |archive-date=14 June 2012 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA449421 |title=The "Defensive Shield" Operation as a Turning Point in Israel's National Security Strategy |last=Buchris |first=Ofek |date=9 March 2006 |website=Strategy Research Project |publisher=United States Army War College |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=7 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121007044643/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA449421 |url-status=live }}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50910-2004Jun17.html |title=Israel's Intifada Victory |last=Krauthammer |first=Charles |date=18 June 2004 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170919235122/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50910-2004Jun17.html |url-status=live }}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3558676,00.html |title=2nd Intifada forgotten |last=Plocker |first=Sever |date=22 June 2008 |work=Ynetnews |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=19 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819220413/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3558676,00.html |url-status=live }}
* {{cite web |last=Ya'alon |first=Moshe |date=January 2007 |url=http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/uploads/Documents/pubs/PolicyFocus64.pdf |title=Lessons from the Palestinian 'War' against Israel |website=Policy Focus |publisher=Washington Institute for Near East Policy |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811130133/http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/uploads/Documents/pubs/PolicyFocus64.pdf |archive-date=11 August 2012 }}
* {{cite news |date=20 September 2010 |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/1,7340,L-3957131,00.html |title=Letting the IDF win |last=Hendel |first=Yoaz |work=Ynetnews |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=24 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924144858/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/1,7340,L-3957131,00.html |url-status=live }}
* {{cite book |author1=Zvi Shtauber |author2=Yiftah Shapir |title=The Middle East strategic balance, 2004–2005 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t7C-ZDXrfOgC&pg=PAPA7 |access-date=12 February 2012 |year=2006 |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-84519-108-5 |page=7 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219072213/https://books.google.com/books?id=t7C-ZDXrfOgC&pg=PAPA7 |url-status=live }} Between 2000 and 2008, 1,063 Israelis, 5,517 Palestinians and 64 foreign citizens were killed.{{cite web |url=http://www.btselem.org/statistics/fatalities/before-cast-lead/by-date-of-event |title=Fatalities before Operation "Cast Lead" |publisher=B'Tselem |access-date=14 January 2017 |archive-date=20 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180120010413/https://www.btselem.org/statistics/fatalities/before-cast-lead/by-date-of-event |url-status=live }} In July 2006, a Hezbollah artillery assault on Israel's northern border communities and a [cross-border abduction](/source/2006_Hezbollah_cross-border_raid) of two Israeli soldiers precipitated the month-long [Second Lebanon War](/source/2006_Lebanon_War), including an Israeli invasion of Lebanon.{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sc8808.doc.htm |title=Security Council Calls for End to Hostilities between Hizbollah, Israel, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 1701 (2006) |website=[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701](/source/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1701) |date=11 August 2006 |access-date=28 June 2017 |archive-date=30 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130025538/http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sc8808.doc.htm |url-status=live|quote=Escalation of hostilities in Lebanon and in Israel since Hizbollah's attack on Israel on 12 July 2006}}{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hezbollah-kills-8-soldiers-kidnaps-two-in-offensive-on-northern-border-1.192965 |title=Hezbollah kills 8 soldiers, kidnaps two in offensive on northern border |access-date=20 March 2012 |last=Harel |first=Amos |date=13 July 2006 |newspaper=Haaretz |archive-date=13 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513084315/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hezbollah-kills-8-soldiers-kidnaps-two-in-offensive-on-northern-border-1.192965 |url-status=dead }} The war wound down in August 2006 after the passage of [United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701](/source/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1701); Israeli forces mostly withdrew from Lebanon by October 2006 but continued to occupy the Lebanese portion of [Ghajar](/source/Ghajar) village.{{cite news |title=UN peacekeepers: Israeli troops still in Lebanon |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/10/01/lebanon.withdrawal/index.html |access-date=21 May 2025 |work=CNN |date=1 October 2006}}{{cite news |last1=Mroue |first1=Bassem |title=Moves at a small border village hike Israel-Hezbollah tensions at a time of regional jitters |url=https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-israel-ghajar-tents-hezbollah-96932004b52a728ac1a848dc7f484e7a |access-date=21 May 2025 |work=Associated Press |date=14 July 2023}} In 2007 the Israeli Air Force [destroyed a nuclear reactor](/source/Operation_Outside_the_Box) in Syria. In 2008, [a ceasefire](/source/2008_Israel%E2%80%93Hamas_ceasefire) between [Hamas](/source/Hamas) and Israel collapsed, resulting in the three-week [Gaza War](/source/Gaza_War_(2008%E2%80%932009)).{{cite news |first = Jason |last = Koutsoukis |title = Battleground Gaza: Israeli ground forces invade the strip |url = http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/battleground-gaza/2009/01/04/1231003847085.html |work = Sydney Morning Herald |date = 5 January 2009 |access-date = 5 January 2009 |archive-date = 8 January 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090108013919/http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/battleground-gaza/2009/01/04/1231003847085.html |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last=Ravid |first=Barak |title=IDF begins Gaza troop withdrawal, hours after ending 3-week offensive |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=18 January 2009 |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-begins-gaza-troop-withdrawal-hours-after-ending-3-week-offensive-1.268326 |archive-date=17 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140817072019/http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-begins-gaza-troop-withdrawal-hours-after-ending-3-week-offensive-1.268326 |url-status=dead }} In what Israel described as a response to [over a hundred Palestinian rocket attacks](/source/List_of_Palestinian_rocket_attacks_on_Israel_in_2012) on southern Israeli cities,{{cite news |title=Gaza groups pound Israel with over 100 rockets |first1=Yaakov |last1=Lappin |first2=Tovah |last2=Lazaroff |url=https://www.jpost.com/Defense/Gaza-groups-pound-Israel-with-over-100-rockets |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=12 November 2012 |access-date=27 March 2013 |archive-date=14 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414151101/https://www.jpost.com/Defense/Gaza-groups-pound-Israel-with-over-100-rockets |url-status=live }} Israel began [an operation in the Gaza Strip](/source/2012_Gaza_War) in 2012, lasting eight days.{{cite news |author=Stephanie Nebehay |date=20 November 2012 |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/palestinians-israel-humanitarian-idUSL5E8MK6MG20121120 |title=UN rights boss, Red Cross urge Israel, Hamas to spare civilians |work=Reuters |access-date=20 November 2012 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305052435/http://www.reuters.com/article/palestinians-israel-humanitarian-idUSL5E8MK6MG20121120 |url-status=live }}
* {{cite news |title=Hamas leader defiant as Israel eases Gaza curbs |first=Nidal |last=al-Mughrabi |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-israel-hamas-idUSBRE8AD0WP20121124 |publisher=Reuters |date=24 November 2012 |access-date=8 February 2013 |archive-date=14 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160114184249/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-israel-hamas-idUSBRE8AD0WP20121124 |url-status=live }}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291779 |title=Israeli air strike kills top Hamas commander Jabari |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=14 November 2012 |archive-date=14 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114141727/http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291779 |url-status=live }} Israel started another [operation in Gaza](/source/2014_Gaza_War) following an escalation of rocket attacks by Hamas in July 2014.{{cite news|title=Israel and Hamas Trade Attacks as Tension Rises|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/09/world/middleeast/israel-steps-up-offensive-against-hamas-in-gaza.html|work=The New York Times|date=8 July 2014|access-date=16 February 2017|archive-date=22 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222154524/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/09/world/middleeast/israel-steps-up-offensive-against-hamas-in-gaza.html|url-status=live}} In May 2021, another [round of fighting](/source/2021_Israel%E2%80%93Palestine_crisis) took place in Gaza and Israel, lasting eleven days.{{cite news |title=Israel and Hamas agree Gaza truce, Biden pledges assistance |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/hamas-official-predicts-ceasefire-soon-israel-gaza-fight-goes-2021-05-19/ |publisher=Reuters |date=21 May 2021 |access-date=26 May 2021 |archive-date=31 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531014137/https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/hamas-official-predicts-ceasefire-soon-israel-gaza-fight-goes-2021-05-19/ |url-status=live }} By the 2010s, [increasing regional cooperation](/source/Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_alliance) between Israel and [Arab League](/source/Arab_League) countries have been established, culminating in the signing of the [Abraham Accords](/source/Abraham_Accords). The Israeli security situation shifted from the traditional [Arab–Israeli conflict](/source/Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_conflict) towards the [Iran–Israel proxy conflict](/source/Iran%E2%80%93Israel_proxy_conflict) and [direct confrontation with Iran during the Syrian civil war](/source/Iran%E2%80%93Israel_conflict_during_the_Syrian_civil_war). [[File:Fires in Israel and the Gaza strip - 7 October 2023 (53245908850).jpg|thumb|Satellite view of fires in the [Gaza envelope](/source/Gaza_envelope) on 7 October 2023]] On 7 October 2023, Palestinian militant groups from [Gaza](/source/Gaza_Strip), led by Hamas, launched [a series of coordinated attacks](/source/October_7_attacks) on Israel, leading to the start of the [Gaza war](/source/Gaza_war).{{cite news |last1=Martínez |first1=Andrés R. |last2=Bubola |first2=Emma |title=What We Know About the Hamas Attack and Israel's Response |url=https://www.nytimes.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-what-we-know.html |access-date=10 October 2023 |work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |date=10 October 2023 |archive-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008143358/https://www.nytimes.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-what-we-know.html |url-status=live }} On that day, approximately 1,300 Israelis, predominantly civilians, were killed in communities near the Gaza Strip border and [during a music festival](/source/Re'im_music_festival_massacre). [Over 200 hostages](/source/Gaza_war_hostage_crisis) were kidnapped and taken to the Gaza Strip.{{cite news |last1=Gillett |first1=Francesca |date=8 October 2023 |title=How an Israel music festival turned into a nightmare after Hamas attack |agency=[BBC News](/source/BBC_News) |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67047034 |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008143208/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67047034 |archive-date=8 October 2023}}{{cite news |last1=Tabachnick |first1=Cara |date=8 October 2023 |title=Israelis search for loved ones with posts and pleas on social media |publisher=[CBS News](/source/CBS_News) |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israelis-search-loved-ones-posts-pleas-social-media-hamas-attack/ |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008061931/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israelis-search-loved-ones-posts-pleas-social-media-hamas-attack/ |archive-date=8 October 2023}}{{cite news |author=Amanda Borschel-Dan |date=7 October 2023 |title=Thousands flee rocket and gunfire at all-night desert 'Nature Party'; dozens missing |work=[The Times of Israel](/source/The_Times_of_Israel) |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/thousands-flee-rocket-and-gunfire-at-all-night-desert-nature-party-dozens-missing/ |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007231525/https://www.timesofisrael.com/thousands-flee-rocket-and-gunfire-at-all-night-desert-nature-party-dozens-missing/ |archive-date=7 October 2023}} Studies modeling trauma exposure and assessing mental health outcomes estimated that approximately 5.3% of Israelis may develop [PTSD](/source/PTSD),Katsoty, D., Greidinger, M., Neria, Y. et al. [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13584-024-00644-6 A prediction model of PTSD in the Israeli population in the aftermath of october 7th, 2023, terrorist attack and the Israel–Hamas war.] ''Isr J Health Policy'' Res 13, 63 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13584-024-00644-6 with national data showing that probable PTSD nearly doubled from 16.2% to 29.8% and rates of anxiety and depression also rising sharply.Levi-Belz, Yossi et al. [https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(23)00595-3/fulltext "PTSD, depression, and anxiety after the October 7, 2023 attack in Israel: a nationwide prospective study."] ''eClinicalMedicine'', Volume 68, 102418. After clearing militants from its territory, Israel launched [one of the most destructive bombing campaigns in modern history](/source/Israeli_bombing_of_the_Gaza_Strip){{cite web |last=Frankel |first=Julia |title=Israel's military campaign in Gaza is among the most destructive in history, experts say |website=PBS NewsHour |agency=Associated Press |date=21 December 2023 |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/israels-military-campaign-in-gaza-is-among-the-most-destructive-in-history-experts-say |access-date=22 April 2024 |archive-date=22 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422042427/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/israels-military-campaign-in-gaza-is-among-the-most-destructive-in-history-experts-say |url-status=live}}{{cite news |title=Israeli bombardment destroyed over 70% of Gaza homes: Report |work=[Al Jazeera](/source/Al_Jazeera_English) |date=31 December 2023 |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/31/israeli-bombardment-destroyed-over-70-of-gaza-homes-media-office |access-date=22 April 2024 |archive-date=23 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240423191214/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/31/israeli-bombardment-destroyed-over-70-of-gaza-homes-media-office |url-status=live}} and [invaded Gaza](/source/Israeli_invasion_of_the_Gaza_Strip) on 27 October with the stated objectives of destroying Hamas and freeing hostages.{{cite news |title=Can Israel achieve its war goals in Gaza? |url=https://www.ft.com/content/282ffdcd-70c0-4da5-9a7e-5a31d7677fe5 |access-date=6 May 2024 |work=[Financial Times](/source/Financial_Times) |archive-date=7 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240407032619/https://www.ft.com/content/282ffdcd-70c0-4da5-9a7e-5a31d7677fe5 |url-status=live}}{{cite news |title=Netanyahu says IDF will control Gaza after war, rejects notion of international force |work=[The Times of Israel](/source/The_Times_of_Israel) |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-says-idf-will-control-gaza-after-war-rejects-notion-of-international-force/ |url-status=live |access-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231112163219/https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-says-idf-will-control-gaza-after-war-rejects-notion-of-international-force/ |archive-date=12 November 2023}} The fifth war of the [Gaza–Israel conflict](/source/Gaza%E2%80%93Israel_conflict) since 2008, it has been the deadliest for Palestinians in the entire [Israeli–Palestinian conflict](/source/Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian_conflict){{Cite web |last=Krauss |first=Joseph |date=14 May 2024 |title=Palestinians mark 76 years of dispossession as a potentially even larger catastrophe unfolds in Gaza |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-nakba-history-b5cea9556e516655c25598d5dbe54192 |access-date=14 June 2024 |website=AP News |quote=The war in Gaza, which was triggered by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack into Israel, has killed over 35,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, making it by far the deadliest round of fighting in the history of the conflict. |archive-date=13 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240613150349/https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-nakba-history-b5cea9556e516655c25598d5dbe54192 |url-status=live }} and the most significant military engagement in the region since the [Yom Kippur War](/source/Yom_Kippur_War) in 1973.{{cite news|last=El Deeb|first=Sarah|date=9 October 2023|title=What is Hamas? The group that rules the Gaza Strip has fought several rounds of war with Israel|url=https://apnews.com/article/hamas-gaza-palestinian-authority-israel-war-ed7018dbaae09b81513daf3bda38109a|access-date=5 December 2023|work=[AP News](/source/AP_News)|archive-date=23 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231023140259/https://apnews.com/article/hamas-gaza-palestinian-authority-israel-war-ed7018dbaae09b81513daf3bda38109a|url-status=live}} A [United Nations Special Committee](/source/Special_Committee_to_Investigate_Israeli_Practices_Affecting_the_Human_Rights_of_the_Palestinian_People), [multiple governments](/source/South_Africa's_genocide_case_against_Israel), and various experts and human rights organisations have concluded that Israel is committing [genocide against the Palestinian people](/source/Gaza_genocide) due to the harm and loss of life inflicted on civilians during the [Gaza War](/source/Gaza_war).{{bulleted list | {{harvnb|Dumper|Badran|2024|p=2}}: "In this context we should not overlook the latest turning point in the history of Palestine – the attack by Hamas on 7th October 2023 on Israeli settlements adjacent to Gaza and the subsequent genocidal war that the state of Israel has carried out in the Gaza strip" | {{cite news |last=Speri |first=Alice |date=20 December 2024 |title=Defining genocide: how a rift over Gaza sparked a crisis among scholars |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/20/genocide-definition-mass-violence-scholars-gaza |work=Guardian |access-date=23 December 2024 }} | {{cite news |last1=Narea |first1=Nicole |date=25 October 2024 |title=Is Israel committing genocide? Reexamining the question, a year later. |url=https://www.vox.com/politics/378913/israel-gaza-genocide-icj |work=[Vox](/source/Vox_(website)) |access-date=28 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241026082612/https://www.vox.com/politics/378913/israel-gaza-genocide-icj |archive-date=26 October 2024 |url-status=live }} | {{cite report |last1=Albanese |first1=Francesca |title=Anatomy of a Genocide: Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese |url=https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/g24/046/11/pdf/g2404611.pdf |date=25 March 2024 |publisher=[United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories](/source/United_Nations_Special_Rapporteur_on_the_occupied_Palestinian_territories) |author-link1=Francesca Albanese |page=1 |quote=By analysing the patterns of violence and Israeli policies in its onslaught on Gaza, the present report concludes that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold indicating that Israel has committed genocide has been met }} | {{cite report |author=Amnesty International |author-link=Amnesty International |year=2024 |title='You Feel Like You Are Subhuman': Israel's Genocide Against Palestinians In Gaza |url=https://amnesty.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Amnesty-International-Gaza-Genocide-Report-December-4-2024.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241205121850/https://amnesty.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Amnesty-International-Gaza-Genocide-Report-December-4-2024.pdf |archive-date=5 December 2024 |url-status=live |page=13 |quote=This report focuses on the Israeli authorities' policies and actions in Gaza as part of the military offensive they launched in the wake of the Hamas-led attacks on 7 October 2023 while situating them within the broader context of Israel's unlawful occupation, and system of apartheid against Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Israel. It assesses allegations of violations and crimes under international law by Israel in Gaza within the framework of genocide under international law, concluding that there is sufficient evidence to believe that Israel's conduct in Gaza following 7 October 2023 amounts to genocide. }} | {{cite book |last1=Traverso |first1=Enzo |author-link=Enzo Traverso |year=2024 |title=Gaza Faces History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7-8PEQAAQBAJ |isbn=978-1-63542-555-0 |publisher=Other Press |page=8 |quote=The only normative definition we have, codified at the United Nations Genocide Convention of 1948, accurately describes the current situation in Palestine ... describes exactly what is happening in Gaza today }} | {{cite web |author= |date=12 December 2024 |title=One year of denouncing the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza |url=https://www.fidh.org/en/region/north-africa-middle-east/israel-palestine/one-year-of-denouncing-the-genocide-of-palestinians-in-gaza |website=[International Federation for Human Rights](/source/International_Federation_for_Human_Rights) |access-date=4 June 2025 |quote=One year ago, the FIDH International Board, its governing body elected by all its member organisations, recognised, after extensive debate and examination, that Israel was carrying out genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza }} | {{harvnb|B'Tselem|2025|p=86}}: "The review presented in this report leaves no room for doubt: since October 2023, the Israeli regime has been responsible for carrying out genocide against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Killing tens of thousands of people; causing bodily or mental harm to hundreds of thousands more; destroying homes and civilian infrastructure on a massive scale; starvation, displacement, and denying humanitarian aid — all this is being perpetrated systematically, as part of a coordinated attack aimed at annihilating all facets of life in the Gaza Strip."}}{{cite web |author= |date=16 November 2023 |title=Gaza: UN experts call on international community to prevent genocide against the Palestinian people |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/11/gaza-un-experts-call-international-community-prevent-genocide-against |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231224050530/https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/11/gaza-un-experts-call-international-community-prevent-genocide-against |archive-date=24 December 2023 |access-date=22 December 2023 |website=[OHCHR](/source/OHCHR) |quote=Grave violations committed by Israel against Palestinians in the aftermath of 7 October, particularly in Gaza, point to a genocide in the making, UN experts said today. They illustrated evidence of increasing genocidal incitement, overt intent to "destroy the Palestinian people under occupation", loud calls for a 'second Nakba' in Gaza and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory, and the use of powerful weaponry with inherently indiscriminate impacts, resulting in a colossal death toll and destruction of life-sustaining infrastructure.}}{{cite magazine |last=Burga |first=Solcyré |date=13 November 2023 |title=Is What's Happening in Gaza a Genocide? Experts Weigh In |url=https://time.com/6334409/is-whats-happening-gaza-genocide-experts |magazine=[Time](/source/Time_(magazine)) |access-date=24 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231125022352/https://time.com/6334409/is-whats-happening-gaza-genocide-experts/ |archive-date=25 November 2023}}; {{cite news |last=Corder |first=Mike |date=2 January 2024 |title=South Africa's genocide case against Israel sets up a high-stakes legal battle at the UN's top court |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/south-africas-genocide-case-israel-sets-high-stakes-106055104 |access-date=3 January 2024 |work=[ABC News](/source/ABC_News_(United_States)) |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240107013809/https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/south-africas-genocide-case-israel-sets-high-stakes-106055104 |archive-date=7 January 2024}};{{Cite web |last=Quigley |first=John |date=3 July 2024 |title=The Lancet and Genocide By "Slow Death" in Gaza |url=https://arabcenterdc.org/resource/the-lancet-and-genocide-by-slow-death-in-gaza/ |access-date=13 July 2024 |website=Arab Center Washington DC |language=en-US |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240713161805/https://arabcenterdc.org/resource/the-lancet-and-genocide-by-slow-death-in-gaza/ |archive-date=13 July 2024}} In April 2024, Israel initiated a wave of airstrikes on Iran, after Iranian strikes targeted Israel, marking the [2024 Iran–Israel conflict](/source/2024_Iran%E2%80%93Israel_conflict) the first time in which the two countries have ever directly exchanged fire. In October 2024, Israel [invaded Lebanon](/source/2024_Israeli_invasion_of_Lebanon){{cite news |last1=Federman |first1=Josef |last2=Lee |first2=Matthew |last3=Sewell |first3=Abby |date=1 October 2024 |title=Israel begins ground offensive against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-lebanon-hezbollah-gaza-news-09-30-2024-83ea5f243688f309754ec74850de4238 |access-date=21 May 2025 |work=Associated Press}} and exchanged missile barrages with Iran three weeks later, in response of Iranian strikes earlier in that month.{{Cite web |date=26 October 2024 |title=Israel's first open attack on Iran targets missile sites and apparently spares oil and nuclear ones |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-lebanon-hezbollah-iran-news-10-26-2024-9c9f366c71c508e6dd0ee74cff8400d2 |access-date=20 June 2025 |website=AP News |language=en}} After nearly a year of the [Israel–Hezbollah conflict](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Hezbollah_conflict_(2023%E2%80%93present)) from October 2023 due to Hezbollah shooting rockets at Israel to support Hamas in Gaza, Israel [assassinated](/source/2024_Hezbollah_headquarters_strike) Hezbollah secretary general [Hassan Nasrallah](/source/Hassan_Nasrallah) in September 2024.{{cite news |last1=Gunter |first1=Joel |date=1 December 2024 |title=Thousands visit site of Hassan Nasrallah's assassination |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9x94zj5d1o |access-date=21 May 2025 |work=BBC News}} A November 2024 [ceasefire agreement](/source/2024_Israel%E2%80%93Lebanon_ceasefire_agreement) instructed Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, which Israel mostly did by February 2025, but against the agreement, Israeli forces stayed in five military outposts on highlands in Southern Lebanon.{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Fabian |first1=Emanuel |title=In Lebanon, Katz says troops to stay 'without time limit' to defend border communities |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-to-remain-in-five-strategic-posts-in-south-lebanon-after-tuesday-withdrawal/ |access-date=20 May 2025 |work=The Times of Israel |date=17 February 2025}}{{#invoke:cite|news|last1=Krauss |first1=Joseph |title=Why Israel is expanding its frontiers into Gaza, Lebanon and Syria |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-gaza-lebanon-syria-land-buffer-zones-bed41f9762fd5481170119f3a8d0fba7 |access-date=20 May 2025 |work=Associated Press |date=17 April 2025}} In June 2025, Israel launched a renewed series of airstrikes on Iran, targeting Iran's air defence systems, missile launchers, their military leadership, and their [nuclear programme](/source/Nuclear_programme_of_Iran), which escalated into a [full-scale war](/source/Twelve-Day_War).{{Cite web |last=Gordon |first=Michael R. |title=In Twist, U.S. Diplomacy Served as Cover for Israeli Surprise Attack |url=https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/in-twist-u-s-diplomacy-served-as-cover-for-israeli-surprise-attack-c79b2206 |access-date=20 June 2025 |website=WSJ |date=13 June 2025 |language=en-US}} In February 2026, Israel and the United States launched extensive airstrikes on Iran, [assassinating](/source/Assassination_of_Ali_Khamenei) Iranian Supreme Leader [Ali Khamenei](/source/Ali_Khamenei) and sparking the [2026 Iran war](/source/2026_Iran_war) and the [2026 Lebanon war](/source/2026_Lebanon_war). The strikes aimed to destroy the Iranian military, nuclear programme, and [achieve regime change](/source/Regime_change_efforts_in_the_2026_Iran_war).{{Cite news |last=Jackson |first=Lauren |last2=McCoy |first2=Lara |date=2026-02-28 |title=The United States and Israel Attack Iran |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/28/briefing/us-israel-strike-iran.html |access-date=2026-05-05 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} ==Geography== {{Main|Geography of Israel}} {{see also|Agriculture in Israel|Wildlife of Israel|List of forests in Israel|Yatir Forest}} {{Israel Geographical Map}} {{multiple image | caption_align = center | total_width = 220 | image1 = Satellite image of Israel in January 2003.jpg | width1 = 727 | height1 = 1731 | image2 = Israel at night.jpg | width2 = 425 | height2 = 934 | footer = [Satellite images](/source/Satellite_imagery) of Israel and neighbouring territories during the day and night }} Israel is located in the [Levant](/source/Levant) area of the [Fertile Crescent](/source/Fertile_Crescent). At the [eastern end](/source/Eastern_Mediterranean) of the [Mediterranean Sea](/source/Mediterranean_Sea), it is bounded by Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan and the West Bank to the east, and Egypt and the Gaza Strip to the south-west. It lies between latitudes [29°](/source/29th_parallel_north) and [34° N](/source/34th_parallel_north), and longitudes [34°](/source/34th_meridian_east) and [36° E](/source/36th_meridian_east). The sovereign territory of Israel (according to the demarcation lines of the [1949 Armistice Agreements](/source/1949_Armistice_Agreements) and excluding all territories captured by Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War) is approximately {{convert|20770|km2|sqmi|0}}, of which two per cent is water.{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/israel/ |title=Israel |website=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |access-date=5 January 2017 |archive-date=10 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110072816/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/israel |url-status=dead }} However Israel is so narrow (100 km at its widest, compared to 400 km from north to south) that the [exclusive economic zone](/source/exclusive_economic_zone) in the Mediterranean is double the land area of the country.{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israel-navy-to-devote-majority-of-missile-boats-to-secure-offshore-drilling-rafts-1.406203 |title=Israel Navy to devote majority of missile boats to secure offshore drilling rafts |first=Gili |last=Cohen |date=9 January 2012 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=9 January 2012 |archive-date=22 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200522081921/https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israel-navy-to-devote-majority-of-missile-boats-to-secure-offshore-drilling-rafts-1.406203 |url-status=dead }} The total area under Israeli law, including East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, is {{convert|22072|km2|sqmi|0}},{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st01_01&CYear=2012 |title=Area of Districts, Sub-Districts, Natural Regions and Lakes |date=11 September 2012 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=13 June 2013 |archive-date=4 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181004120711/http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st01_01&CYear=2012 |url-status=live }} and the total area under Israeli control, including the military-controlled and partially Palestinian-governed territory of the West Bank, is {{convert|27799|km2|sqmi|0}}.{{Cite book |last=Avruch |first=Kevin |url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcmassbookdig.israelcountrystu00metz_0/ |title=Israel: A Country Study |date=1990 |publisher=Federal Research Division, Library of Congress |editor-last=Metz |editor-first=Helen Chapin |edition=3rd |series= |location=Washington, D.C. |page=85 |language=english |chapter=Geography}} Despite its small size, Israel is home to a variety of geographic features, from the [Negev](/source/Negev) desert in the south to the inland fertile [Jezreel Valley](/source/Jezreel_Valley), with mountain ranges of the [Galilee](/source/Galilee), [Carmel](/source/Mount_Carmel) and towards the [Golan](/source/Golan_Heights) in the north. The [Israeli coastal plain](/source/Israeli_coastal_plain) on the shores of the Mediterranean is home to most of the population.{{cite web |url=http://goisrael.com/Tourism_Eng/Tourist%20Information/Discover%20Israel/Geographic%20Regions/pages/The%20coastal%20plain.aspx |title=The Coastal Plain |publisher=Israel Ministry of Tourism |access-date=6 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170107171405/http://goisrael.com/Tourism_Eng/Tourist%20Information/Discover%20Israel/Geographic%20Regions/pages/The%20coastal%20plain.aspx |archive-date=7 January 2017 }} East of the central highlands lies the [Jordan Rift Valley](/source/Jordan_Rift_Valley), a small part of the {{convert|6500|km|mi|0|adj=on}} [Great Rift Valley](/source/Great_Rift_Valley). The [Jordan River](/source/Jordan_River) runs along the Jordan Rift Valley, from [Mount Hermon](/source/Mount_Hermon) through the [Hulah Valley](/source/Hulah_Valley) and the [Sea of Galilee](/source/Sea_of_Galilee) to the [Dead Sea](/source/Dead_Sea), the [lowest point](/source/Extreme_points_of_Earth) on the surface of the Earth.{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/livingwatersmyth0000krei |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=20 July 2007 |year=1999 |title=The Living Dead Sea |isbn=978-0-8264-0406-0 |url-access=registration}} Further south is the [Arabah](/source/Arabah), ending with the [Gulf of Eilat](/source/Gulf_of_Aqaba), part of the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea). [Makhtesh](/source/Makhtesh), or "erosion cirques" are unique to the Negev and the [Sinai Peninsula](/source/Sinai_Peninsula), the largest being the [Makhtesh Ramon](/source/Makhtesh_Ramon) at 38 km in length.{{cite book |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/1486/ |publisher=UNESCO |title=Makhteshim Country |access-date=19 September 2007 |isbn=978-954-642-135-7 |year=2001 |archive-date=10 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510053055/http://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/1486/ |url-status=live }} Israel has the largest number of plant species per square metre of the countries in the Mediterranean Basin{{cite news |last=Rinat |first=Zafrir |title=More endangered than rain forests? |newspaper=Haaretz |date=29 May 2008 |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/more-endangered-than-rain-forests-1.246839 |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010225743/https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/more-endangered-than-rain-forests-1.246839 |url-status=dead }} and contains four terrestrial ecoregions: [Eastern Mediterranean conifer–sclerophyllous–broadleaf forests](/source/Eastern_Mediterranean_conifer%E2%80%93sclerophyllous%E2%80%93broadleaf_forests), [Southern Anatolian montane conifer and deciduous forests](/source/Southern_Anatolian_montane_conifer_and_deciduous_forests), [Arabian Desert](/source/Arabian_Desert), and [Mesopotamian shrub desert](/source/Mesopotamian_shrub_desert).{{cite journal |last1=Dinerstein |first1=Eric |last2=Olson |first2=David |last3=Joshi |first3=Anup |last4=Vynne |first4=Carly |last5=Burgess |first5=Neil D. |last6=Wikramanayake |first6=Eric |last7=Hahn |first7=Nathan |last8=Palminteri |first8=Suzanne |last9=Hedao |first9=Prashant |last10=Noss |first10=Reed |last11=Hansen |first11=Matt |last12=Locke |first12=Harvey |last13=Ellis |first13=Erle C |last14=Jones |first14=Benjamin |last15=Barber |first15=Charles Victor |last16=Hayes |first16=Randy |last17=Kormos |first17=Cyril |last18=Martin |first18=Vance |last19=Crist |first19=Eileen |last20=Sechrest |first20=Wes |last21=Price |first21=Lori |last22=Baillie |first22=Jonathan E. M. |last23=Weeden |first23=Don |last24=Suckling |first24=Kierán |last25=Davis |first25=Crystal |last26=Sizer |first26=Nigel |last27=Moore |first27=Rebecca |last28=Thau |first28=David |last29=Birch |first29=Tanya |last30=Potapov |first30=Peter |last31=Turubanova |first31=Svetlana |last32=Tyukavina |first32=Alexandra |last33=de Souza |first33=Nadia |last34=Pintea |first34=Lilian |last35=Brito |first35=José C. |last36=Llewellyn |first36=Othman A. |last37=Miller |first37=Anthony G. |last38=Patzelt |first38=Annette |last39=Ghazanfar |first39=Shahina A. |last40=Timberlake |first40=Jonathan |last41=Klöser |first41=Heinz |last42=Shennan-Farpón |first42=Yara |last43=Kindt |first43=Roeland |last44=Lillesø |first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow |last45=van Breugel |first45=Paulo |last46=Graudal |first46=Lars |last47=Voge |first47=Maianna |last48=Al-Shammari |first48=Khalaf F. |last49=Saleem |first49=Muhammad |title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm |journal=BioScience |volume=67 |issue=6 |year=2017 |pages=534–545 |issn=0006-3568 |doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014 |pmid=28608869 |pmc=5451287 |doi-access=free}} Forests accounted for 8.5% of the area in 2016, up from 2% in 1948, as the result of a large-scale forest planting programme by the [Jewish National Fund](/source/Jewish_National_Fund).{{cite book |last1=Tal |first1=Alon |title=All the Trees of the Forest |date=2013 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-18950-6 |pages=5, 66}}{{Cite web |title=Forestry and Green Innovations |url=https://www.jnf.org/our-work/forestry-green-innovations |access-date=13 November 2023 |publisher=Jewish National Fund |language=en |archive-date=16 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016185242/https://www.jnf.org/our-work/forestry-green-innovations |url-status=live }} ===Tectonics and seismicity=== {{Further|List of earthquakes in the Levant}} The Jordan Rift Valley is the result of tectonic movements within the [Dead Sea Transform](/source/Dead_Sea_Transform) (DST) fault system. The DST forms the [transform boundary](/source/transform_fault) between the [African Plate](/source/African_Plate) to the west and the [Arabian Plate](/source/Arabian_Plate) to the east. The Golan Heights and all of Jordan are part of the Arabian Plate, while the Galilee, West Bank, Coastal Plain, and Negev along with the Sinai Peninsula are on the African Plate. This tectonic disposition leads to a relatively high seismic activity. The entire Jordan Valley segment is thought to have ruptured repeatedly, for instance during the last two major earthquakes along this structure in [749](/source/749_Galilee_earthquake) and [1033](/source/1033_Jordan_Valley_earthquake). The deficit in [slip](/source/Fault_(geology)) that has built up since 1033 is sufficient to cause an earthquake of {{M|w}}~7.4.{{cite journal |title= A 48-kyr-long slip rate history for the Jordan Valley segment of the Dead Sea Fault |author1=Ferry M. |author2=Meghraoui M. |author3=Karaki A.A. |author4=Al-Taj M. |author5=Amoush H. |author6=Al-Dhaisat S. |author7=Barjous M. |journal= Earth and Planetary Science Letters |year=2008 |volume=260 |issue=3–4 |pages=394–406 |doi=10.1016/j.epsl.2007.05.049 |bibcode=2007E&PSL.260..394F }} The most catastrophic known earthquakes occurred in 31 BCE, [363](/source/363_Galilee_earthquake), 749, and 1033 CE, that is every {{Abbr|ca.|circa}} 400 years on average.American Friends of the Tel Aviv University, ''Earthquake Experts at Tel Aviv University Turn to History for Guidance'' (4 October 2007). Quote: The major ones were recorded along the Jordan Valley in the years 31 B.C.E., 363 C.E., 749 C.E., and 1033 C.E. "So roughly, we are talking about an interval of every 400 years. If we follow the patterns of nature, a major quake should be expected any time because almost a whole millennium has passed since the last strong earthquake of 1033." (Tel Aviv University Associate Professor Dr. Shmuel (Shmulik) Marco). [http://www.aftau.org/news-page-environment--ecology?storyid4703=2015&ncs4703=3] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200811164733/https://www.aftau.org/news-page-environment--ecology?storyid4703=2015&ncs4703=3|date=11 August 2020}} Destructive earthquakes strike about every 80 years, leading to serious loss of life .Zafrir Renat, ''Israel Is Due, and Ill Prepared, for Major Earthquake'', Haaretz, 15 January 2010. "On average, a destructive earthquake takes place in Israel once every 80 years, causing serious casualties and damage." [https://www.haaretz.com/israel-is-due-and-ill-prepared-for-a-major-earthquake-1.261497] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315233829/http://www.haaretz.com/israel-is-due-and-ill-prepared-for-a-major-earthquake-1.261497|date=15 March 2016}} While stringent construction regulations are in place and recently built structures are earthquake resistant, {{As of|2007|lc=y}} many public buildings as well as 50,000 residential buildings did not meet the new standards and were "expected to collapse" if exposed to a strong earthquake. ===Climate=== {{Further|Climate change in Israel}} [[File:Soil moisture and climate change.svg|thumb|upright=1.55|The projections of the [IPCC Sixth Assessment Report](/source/IPCC_Sixth_Assessment_Report) show clearly the impacts of climate change on Israel even at 2 degrees of warming.]] Temperatures vary widely, especially during the winter. Coastal areas, such as those of Tel Aviv and Haifa, have a typical [Mediterranean climate](/source/Mediterranean_climate) with cool, rainy winters and long, hot summers. The area of Beersheba and the northern Negev have a [semi-arid climate](/source/semi-arid_climate) with hot summers, cool winters, and fewer rainy days. The southern Negev and the Arabah areas have a [desert climate](/source/desert_climate) with very hot, dry summers, and mild winters with few days of rain. The highest temperature of 54 °C (129 °F) was recorded in 1942 in the [Tirat Zvi](/source/Tirat_Zvi) kibbutz.{{cite news |last=Watzman |first=Haim |title=Left for dead |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=8 February 1997 |newspaper=New Scientist |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg15320684.400-left-for-dead.html |archive-date=14 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114031306/http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg15320684.400-left-for-dead.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=WMO Region 6: Highest Temperature |url=https://wmo.asu.edu/content/wmo-region-vi-europe-highest-temperature|website=World Meteorological Organization's World Weather & Climate Extremes Archive|publisher=Arizona State University|url-status=live|access-date=14 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210913230418/https://wmo.asu.edu/content/wmo-region-vi-europe-highest-temperature |archive-date=13 September 2021}} Mountainous regions can be windy and cold, and areas at elevation of {{Convert|750|m|}} or more (same elevation as Jerusalem) usually receive at least one [snowfall](/source/Snow_in_Israel) each year.{{sfn|Goldreich|2003|p=85}} From May to September, rain is rare.{{cite web |url=http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/ISXX0026 |publisher=[The Weather Channel](/source/The_Weather_Channel) |access-date=11 July 2007 |title=Average Weather for Tel Aviv-Yafo |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120111750/http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/ISXX0026 |archive-date=20 January 2013 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.weather.com/outlook/events/weddings/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/ISXX0010 |publisher=[The Weather Channel](/source/The_Weather_Channel) |access-date=11 July 2007 |title=Average Weather for Jerusalem |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120111740/http://www.weather.com/outlook/events/weddings/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/ISXX0010 |archive-date=20 January 2013 }} There are four different [phytogeographic](/source/Phytogeography) regions, due to its location between the temperate and tropical zones. For this reason, the flora and fauna are extremely diverse. There are 2,867 known [species of plants in Israel](/source/List_of_endemic_flora_of_Israel). Of these, at least 253 species are [introduced and non-native](/source/List_of_adventive_wild_plants_in_Israel).{{cite web |url=http://flora.huji.ac.il/browse.asp?action=browse&name=1070 |title=Flora of Israel Online |publisher=Flora.huji.ac.il |access-date=29 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140430091717/http://flora.huji.ac.il/browse.asp?action=browse&name=1070 |archive-date=30 April 2014 }} There are 380 [Israeli nature reserves](/source/National_parks_and_nature_reserves_of_Israel).{{cite web |url=http://www.goisrael.com/Tourism_Eng/Articles/Attractions/Pages/National%20Parks%20and%20Nature%20Reserves.aspx |title=National Parks and Nature Reserves, Israel |publisher=Israel Ministry of Tourism |access-date=18 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019042219/http://www.goisrael.com/Tourism_Eng/Articles/Attractions/Pages/National%20Parks%20and%20Nature%20Reserves.aspx |archive-date=19 October 2012 }} thumb|Israel was the thirteenth most water-stressed country in the world in 2022. With scarce water resources, Israel has developed various water-saving technologies, including [drip irrigation](/source/drip_irrigation).{{Cite news |last=Degani |first=Corin |date=14 August 2023 |title=How Israel achieved one of the most secure water economies, drip by drip |url=https://www.haaretz.com/science-and-health/nature-environment/2023-08-14/ty-article-magazine/.premium/as-the-world-struggles-to-prepare-for-water-shortages-israel-is-sitting-pretty/00000189-f3f1-d975-a9cf-fbf3eb930000 |access-date=17 June 2024 |work=Haaretz |language=en}}{{cite web |url=http://www.gardenguides.com/79735-history-drip-irrigation.html|title=The History of Drip Irrigation|date=21 September 2017 }} The considerable sunlight available for [solar energy](/source/solar_energy) makes [Israel the leading nation in solar energy](/source/Solar_power_in_Israel) use per capita—practically every house uses solar panels for water heating. The [Ministry of Environmental Protection](/source/Ministry_of_Environmental_Protection_(Israel)) has reported that [climate change](/source/Climate_change_in_Israel) "will have a decisive impact on all areas of life", particularly for vulnerable populations.{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.il/en/departments/guides/climate_trends_and_impact_in_israel |title=Climate Change Trends and Impact in Israel |newspaper=Gov.il |publisher=[Ministry of Environmental Protection](/source/Ministry_of_Environmental_Protection_(Israel)) |date=2 November 2020 |access-date=29 June 2021 |archive-date=6 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210806015845/https://www.gov.il/en/departments/guides/climate_trends_and_impact_in_israel |url-status=live }} ==Government and politics== {{Main|Israeli system of government|Politics of Israel}} {{multiple image | total_width = 300 | caption_align = center | image1 = Isaac Herzog, July 2021 (D1233-049).JPG | caption1 = [Isaac Herzog](/source/Isaac_Herzog)
[President](/source/President_of_Israel) | image2 = Benjamin Netanyahu, February 2023.jpg | caption2 = [Benjamin Netanyahu](/source/Benjamin_Netanyahu)
[Prime Minister](/source/Prime_Minister_of_Israel) }} [[File:PikiWiki Israel 7260 Knesset-Room.jpg|thumb|The [Knesset](/source/Knesset) chamber, home to the Israeli parliament]] Israel has a [parliamentary system](/source/parliamentary_system), [proportional representation](/source/proportional_representation) and [universal suffrage](/source/universal_suffrage). A member of parliament supported by a parliamentary majority becomes the [prime minister](/source/Prime_Minister_of_Israel)—usually this is the chair of the largest party. The prime minister is the [head of government](/source/head_of_government) and of [cabinet](/source/Cabinet_of_Israel).In 1996, direct elections for the prime minister were inaugurated, but the system was declared unsatisfactory and the old one reinstated. See {{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2683259.stm |publisher=BBC News |title=Israel's election process explained |access-date=31 March 2010 |date=23 January 2003}} The [president](/source/president_of_Israel) is [head of state](/source/head_of_state), with largely ceremonial duties.{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2077.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613004001/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2077.html |archive-date=13 June 2007 |work=The World Factbook |title=Field Listing — Executive Branch |access-date=20 July 2007 |date=19 June 2007 }} Israel is governed by a 120-member parliament, known as the [Knesset](/source/Knesset). Membership of the Knesset is based on proportional representation of [political parties](/source/List_of_political_parties_in_Israel),{{cite web |url=https://www.knesset.gov.il/description/eng/eng_mimshal_beh.htm |publisher=The Knesset |access-date=8 August 2007 |title=The Electoral System in Israel }}{{Cite book |last=סגל |first=עמית |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AuvVzgEACAAJ |title=סיפורה של הפוליטיקה הישראלית: מבן גוריון ועד בנט |date=2021 |publisher=Hotsaʼat ʻAmit Segal |isbn=978-965-599-597-8 |language=he}} with a 3.25% electoral threshold, which in practice has resulted in coalition governments. Residents of Israeli settlements in the West Bank are eligible to vote,[https://www.foxnews.com/world/jewish-settlers-can-vote-in-israeli-elections-though-west-bank-is-officially-not-israel Jewish settlers can vote in Israeli elections, though West Bank is officially not Israel], Fox News, February 2015: "When Israelis go to the polls next month, tens of thousands of Jewish settlers in the West Bank will also be casting votes, even though they do not live on what is sovereign Israeli territory. This exception in a country that doesn't allow absentee voting for citizens living abroad is a telling reflection of Israel's somewhat ambiguous and highly contentious claim to the territory, which has been under military occupation for almost a half century." and after the [2015 election](/source/2015_Israeli_legislative_election), 10 of the 120 members of the Knesset ({{percent|10|120}}) were settlers.[https://en.idi.org.il/articles/5199 The Social Composition of the 20th Knesset], Israeli Democracy Institute, 30 March 2015 Parliamentary [elections](/source/Elections_in_Israel) are scheduled every four years, but unstable coalitions or a [no-confidence vote](/source/motion_of_no_confidence) can dissolve a government earlier.{{cite web |title=How Israel's electoral system works |website=CNN.com |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/02/05/israel.elections.explainer/index.html |access-date=14 October 2021 |publisher=[CNN International](/source/CNN_International)}} The first Arab-led party was established in 1988,{{Cite news |last1=Halbfinger |first1=David M. |last2=McCann |first2=Allison |date=28 February 2020 |title=As Israel Votes Again (and Again), Arabs See an Opportunity |language=en-US |work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/28/world/middleeast/israel-arabs-election-vote.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228100633/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/28/world/middleeast/israel-arabs-election-vote.html |archive-date=28 February 2020 |access-date=30 April 2022 }} and as of 2022, Arab-led parties hold about 10% of seats.{{Cite web |last=Abu Much |first=Afif |date=7 November 2022 |title=Arab Israeli parties trade blame for election fiasco |website=Al-Monitor |url=https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/11/arab-israeli-parties-trade-blame-election-fiasco |access-date=12 May 2023 |language=en}} A party cannot run for election to the Knesset if its objectives or actions include the "negation of the existence of the State of Israel as the state of the Jewish people". The [Basic Laws of Israel](/source/Basic_Laws_of_Israel) function as an [uncodified constitution](/source/uncodified_constitution). These define Israel as a [Jewish and democratic state](/source/Jewish_and_democratic_state) and the nation-state of exclusively the Jewish people.{{cite web |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/israel/freedom-world/2020 |access-date=13 October 2020 |year=2020 |title=Israel |website=[Freedom in the World](/source/Freedom_in_the_World) |publisher=Freedom House}} In 2003, the Knesset began to draft an official constitution based on these laws.{{sfn|Mazie|2006|p=34}} Israel has no official religion,{{cite book | title=Secularism on the Edge: Rethinking Church-State Relations in the United States, France, and Israel |last=Charbit |first=Denis | editor1-last=Berlinerblau | editor1-first=Jacques | editor2-last=Fainberg | editor2-first=Sarah | editor3-last=Nou | editor3-first=Aurora | chapter=Israel's Self-Restrained Secularism from the 1947 Status Quo Letter to the Present | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-137-38115-6 | pages=167–169 |chapter-url={{Google books|gThvBAAAQBAJ|page=PA167|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |quote=The compromise, therefore, was to choose constructive ambiguity: as surprising as it may seem, there is no law that declares Judaism the official religion of Israel. However, there is no other law that declares Israel's neutrality toward all confessions. Judaism is not recognized as the official religion of the state, and even though the Jewish, Muslim and Christian clergy receive their salaries from the state, this fact does not make Israel a neutral state. This apparent pluralism cannot dissimulate the fact that Israel displays a clear and undoubtedly hierarchical pluralism in religious matters. ... It is important to note that from a multicultural point of view, this self-restrained secularism allows Muslim law to be practiced in Israel for personal matters of the Muslim community. As surprising as it seems, if not paradoxical for a state in war, Israel is the only Western democratic country in which Sharia enjoys such an official status.}}{{cite book | title=The Sage Handbook of the Sociology of Religion |last=Sharot |first=Stephen | editor1-last=Beckford | editor1-first=James A. | editor2-last=Demerath | editor2-first=Jay | chapter=Judaism in Israel: Public Religion, Neo-Traditionalism, Messianism, and Ethno-Religious Conflict | publisher=Sage Publications |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-4129-1195-5 | pages=671–672 |chapter-url={{Google books|vA8edg7bv0kC|page=PA671|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |quote=It is true that Jewish Israelis, and secular Israelis in particular, conceive of religion as shaped by a state-sponsored religious establishment. There is no formal state religion in Israel, but the state gives its official recognition and financial support to particular religious communities, Jewish, Islamic and Christian, whose religious authorities and courts are empowered to deal with matters of personal status and family law, such as marriage, divorce, and alimony, that are binding on all members of the communities.}}{{cite book | title=Women in Zones of Conflict: Power and Resistance in Israel |last=Jacoby |first=Tami Amanda | publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7735-2993-9 | pages=53–54|url={{Google books|pr1LJNrlmuIC|page=PA53|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |quote=Although there is no official religion in Israel, there is also no clear separation between religion and state. In Israeli public life, tensions frequently arise among different streams of Judaism: Ultra-Orthodox, National-Religious, ''Mesorati'' (Conservative), Reconstructionist Progressive (Reform), and varying combinations of traditionalism and non-observance. Despite this variety in religious observances in society, Orthodox Judaism prevails institutionally over the other streams. This boundary is an historical consequence of the unique evolution of the relationship between Israel nationalism and state building. ... Since the founding period, in order to defuse religious tensions, the State of Israel has adopted what is known as the 'status quo,' an unwritten agreement stipulating that no further changes would be made in the status of religion, and that conflict between the observant and non-observant sectors would be handled circumstantially. The 'status quo' has since pertained to the legal status of both religious and secular Jews in Israel. This situation was designed to appease the religious sector, and has been upheld indefinitely through the disproportionate power of religious political parties in all subsequent coalition governments. ... On one hand, the Declaration of Independence adopted in 1948 explicitly guarantees freedom of religion. On the other, it simultaneously prevents the separation of religion and state in Israel.}} but the definition of the state as "Jewish and democratic" creates a strong connection with [Judaism](/source/Judaism). On 19 July 2018, the Knesset passed a Basic Law that characterises Israel as principally a "[Nation State of the Jewish People](/source/Basic_Law%3A_Israel_as_the_Nation-State_of_the_Jewish_People)" and Hebrew as its official language. The bill ascribes an undefined "special status" to the Arabic language.{{cite web |title=Israel's Jewish Nation-State Law – Adalah |url=https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/9569 |website=adalah.org |language=en}} The same bill gives Jews a unique right to national self-determination and views the developing of Jewish settlement in the country as "a national interest", empowering the government to "take steps to encourage, advance and implement this interest".{{cite news |title=Jewish nation state: Israel approves controversial bill |publisher=BBC |date=19 July 2018 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-44881554 |access-date=20 July 2018 }} ===Administrative divisions=== {{Main|Districts of Israel}} {{Israel Labelled Map}} The State of Israel is divided into six main administrative districts, known as ''mehozot'' ({{Langx|he|מחוזות|link=no}}; {{singular}}: ''mahoz'')—[Center](/source/Central_District_(Israel)), [Haifa](/source/Haifa_District), [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem_District), [North](/source/Northern_District_(Israel)), [South](/source/Southern_District_(Israel)), and [Tel Aviv](/source/Tel_Aviv_District), as well as the [Judea and Samaria Area](/source/Judea_and_Samaria_Area) in the West Bank. All of the Judea and Samaria Area and parts of the Jerusalem and Northern districts are not recognised internationally as part of Israel. Districts are divided into 15 sub-districts known as ''nafot'' ({{Langx|he|נפות|link=no}}; {{singular}}: ''nafa''), which are partitioned into 50 natural regions.{{cite web |publisher=Central Bureau of Statistics |title=Introduction to the Tables: Geophysical Characteristics |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton53/download/st_eng01.doc |format=doc |access-date=4 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110221195435/http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton53/download/st_eng01.doc |archive-date=21 February 2011 }} {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" |- ! rowspan="2"| District ! rowspan="2"| Capital ! rowspan="2"| Largest city ! colspan="4"| Population, 2021{{cite web |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/doclib/2022/2.shnatonpopulation/st02_17.pdf |title=Localities and Population, by Population Group, District, Sub-District and Natural Region |date=15 September 2022 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=21 February 2023}} |- ! Jews ! Arabs ! Total ! class="unsortable"| note |- ! [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem_District) | colspan="2"| [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|802400|1209700}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|389000|1209700}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|1209700|1,209,700}} | {{ref|jerusalemdistrict|a}} |- ! [North](/source/Northern_District_(Israel)) | [Nof HaGalil](/source/Nof_HaGalil) | [Nazareth](/source/Nazareth) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|641500|1513600}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|811700|1513600}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|1513600|1,513,600}} | |- ! [Haifa](/source/Haifa_District) | colspan="2"| [Haifa](/source/Haifa) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|735200|1092700}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|277600|1092700}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|1092700|1,092,700}} | |- ! [Center](/source/Central_District_(Israel)) | [Ramla](/source/Ramla) | [Rishon LeZion](/source/Rishon_LeZion) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|2002100|2304300}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|190300|2304300}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|2304300|2,304,300}} | |- ! [Tel Aviv](/source/Tel_Aviv_District) | colspan="2"| [Tel Aviv](/source/Tel_Aviv) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|1362900|1481400}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|25200|1481400}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|1481400|1,481,400}} | |- ! [South](/source/Southern_District_(Israel)) | [Beersheba](/source/Beersheba) | [Ashdod](/source/Ashdod) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|982800|1386000}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|303100|1386000}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|1386000|1,386,000}} | |- ! [Judea and Samaria Area](/source/Judea_and_Samaria_Area) | [Ariel](/source/Ariel_(city)) | [Modi'in Illit](/source/Modi'in_Illit) | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|455700|465400}} | style="text-align:right"| {{percentage|900|465400}} | style="text-align:right"| {{sort|0465400|465,400}} | {{ref|judeaandsamaria|b}} |} :{{note|jerusalemdistrict|a}} Including 361,700 Arabs and 233,900 Jews in [East Jerusalem](/source/East_Jerusalem), {{as of|2020|lc=y}}.{{cite report |last1=Yaniv |first1=Omer |last2=Haddad |first2=Netta |last3=Assaf-Shapira |first3=Yair |date=2022 |title=Jerusalem Facts and Trends 2022 |url=https://jerusaleminstitute.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/2022-על-נתונייך-אנגלית-דיגיטל-1.pdf |publisher=Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research |page=25 |access-date=21 February 2023}} :{{note|judeaandsamaria|b}} Israeli citizens only. ===Israeli citizenship law=== {{Main|Israeli citizenship law}} The 1950 [Law of Return](/source/Law_of_Return) grants Jews the unrestricted [right to immigrate](/source/Jus_soli) to Israel and obtain Israeli citizenship. Individuals born within the country receive [birthright citizenship](/source/Jus_sanguinis) if at least one parent is a citizen.{{cite report |last1=Harpaz |first1=Yossi |last2=Herzog |first2=Ben |title=Report on Citizenship Law: Israel |publisher=[European University Institute](/source/European_University_Institute) |date=June 2018 |hdl=1814/56024 |hdl-access=free }} Israeli law defines Jewish nationality as distinct from Israeli nationality, and the [Supreme Court of Israel](/source/Supreme_Court_of_Israel) has ruled that an Israeli nationality does not exist.{{cite journal |last=Tekiner |first=Roselle |year=1991 |title=Race and the Issue of National Identity in Israel |journal=International Journal of Middle East Studies |volume=23 |issue=1 |pages=39–55 |publisher=[Cambridge University Press](/source/Cambridge_University_Press) |jstor=163931 |doi=10.1017/S0020743800034541 |s2cid=163043582 }}{{cite news |last=Goldenberg |first=Tia |date=4 October 2013 |title=Supreme Court rejects 'Israeli' nationality status |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/supreme-court-rejects-israeli-nationality-status/ |work=[The Times of Israel](/source/The_Times_of_Israel) |access-date=6 November 2018 |archive-date=13 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213205459/https://www.timesofisrael.com/supreme-court-rejects-israeli-nationality-status/ |url-status=live }} A Jewish national is defined as any person practicing Judaism and their descendants. ===Israeli-occupied territories=== {{Main|Israeli-occupied territories|Israeli occupation of the West Bank|Golan Heights}} {{Administration in the Palestine region}} {{Israeli occupations navbox}} thumb|upright=1.35|Map of Israel showing the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and the Golan Heights In 1967, as a result of the Six-Day War, Israel captured and occupied the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), the Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights. Israel also captured the Sinai Peninsula but returned it to Egypt as part of the 1979 Egypt–Israel peace treaty.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=186–187}} Between 1982 and 2000, Israel occupied [part of southern Lebanon](/source/Israeli_occupation_of_Southern_Lebanon), in what was known as the [Security Belt](/source/South_Lebanon_security_belt_administration). Since capture of these territories, Israeli settlements and military installations have been built within each of them, except Lebanon. The Golan Heights and East Jerusalem have been fully incorporated under Israeli law but not under international law. Israel has applied civilian law to both areas and granted their inhabitants permanent residency status and the ability to apply for citizenship. The UN Security Council has declared the annexation of the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem to be "null and void" and continues to view the territories as occupied.{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/73D6B4C70D1A92B7852560DF0064F101 |title=Resolution 497 (1981) |year=1981 |publisher=United Nations |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120612120152/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/73D6B4C70D1A92B7852560DF0064F101 |archive-date=12 June 2012 }}{{cite web |url=http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/dde590c6ff232007852560df0065fddb?OpenDocument |title=East Jerusalem: UNSC Res. 478 |year=1980 |publisher=UN |access-date=10 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101231090053/http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/dde590c6ff232007852560df0065fddb?OpenDocument |archive-date=31 December 2010 }} The status of East Jerusalem in any future peace settlement has at times been a difficult issue in negotiations between Israeli governments and representatives of the Palestinians. [[File:West_Bank_Fence_South_Hebron.JPG|thumb|The [Israeli West Bank barrier](/source/Israeli_West_Bank_barrier) is a separation barrier built by Israel along the Green Line and inside parts of the West Bank.]] The West Bank area, excluding East Jerusalem, is known as [the Judea and Samaria Area.](/source/Judea_and_Samaria_Area){{Citation needed|reason=actually, the removed source didnt say anything about the area exclusing east jeruselum|date=March 2026}}The almost 400,000 Israeli settlers residing in the area are considered part of Israel's population, have Knesset representation, are subject to a [large part of Israel's civil and criminal laws](/source/Enclave_law), and their output is considered part of Israel's economy.Gilead Sher, [http://www.inss.org.il/publication/the-application-of-israeli-law-to-the-west-bank-de-facto-annexation/ The Application of Israeli Law to the West Bank: De Facto Annexation?], INSS Insight No. 638, 4 December 2014{{refn|group=fn|name=oecd|Israeli population and economic data covers the economic territory of Israel, including the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and Israeli settlements in the West Bank.{{sfn|OECD|2011}}[http://mas.ps/files/server/20141911093442-1.pdf ''Quarterly Economic and Social Monitor''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009161737/http://mas.ps/files/server/20141911093442-1.pdf |date=9 October 2021 }}, Volume 26, October 2011, p. 57: "When Israel bid in March 2010 for membership in the 'Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development'... some members questioned the accuracy of Israeli statistics, as the Israeli figures (relating to gross domestic product, spending and number of the population) cover geographical areas that the Organization does not recognize as part of the Israeli territory. These areas include East Jerusalem, Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the Golan Heights."}} The land is not considered part of Israel under Israeli law, as Israel has consciously refrained from annexing the territory, without ever relinquishing its legal claim to the land or defining a border. Israeli political opposition to annexation primarily stems from the perceived "demographic threat" of incorporating the West Bank's Palestinian population into Israel. Outside of the Israeli settlements, the West Bank remains under direct Israeli military rule, and Palestinians in the area cannot become Israeli citizens. The international community maintains that Israel does not have sovereignty in the West Bank and considers Israel's control of the area to be the longest military occupation in modern history.See for example:
* {{cite book |title=Courting Conflict: The Israeli Military Court System in the West Bank and Gaza |last=Hajjar |first=Lisa |publisher=University of California Press |date=2005 |isbn=978-0-520-24194-7 |page=96 |url={{Google books|mcjoHq2wqdUC|page=PA96|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |quote=The Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza is the longest military occupation in modern times.}}
* {{cite journal |first=Perry |last=Anderson |author-link=Perry Anderson |title=Editorial: Scurrying Towards Bethlehem |date=July–August 2001 |journal=New Left Review|volume=10 |url=https://newleftreview.org/article/download_pdf?id=2330 |quote=longest official military occupation of modern history—currently entering its thirty-fifth year|access-date=9 January 2015|archive-date=1 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181001124430/https://newleftreview.org/article/download_pdf?id=2330}}
* {{cite book |first=Saree |last=Makdisi|author-link=Saree Makdisi|url={{Google books|2dBM3Ago2BAC|page=PA299|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |quote=longest-lasting military occupation of the modern age|title=Palestine Inside Out: An Everyday Occupation |publisher=W.W. Norton & Company|date=2010 |isbn=978-0-393-33844-7}}
* {{cite journal |volume=94|issue=885|date=Spring 2012|journal=International Review of the Red Cross|title=The law of belligerent occupation in the Supreme Court of Israel |first=David|last=Kretzmer|author-link=David Kretzmer |doi=10.1017/S1816383112000446|url=https://www.icrc.org/eng/assets/files/review/2012/irrc-885-kretzmer.pdf |quote=This is probably the longest occupation in modern international relations, and it holds a central place in all literature on the law of belligerent occupation since the early 1970s|pages=207–236|ssrn=2657530 |s2cid=32105258}}
* {{cite news|title=The Justice of Occupation|quote=Israel is the only modern state that has held territories under military occupation for over four decades|type=opinion|first=Ra'anan |last=Alexandrowicz|date=24 January 2012|work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/25/opinion/the-justice-of-occupation.html}}
* {{cite book|title=The Role of National Courts in Applying International Humanitarian Law |first=Sharon |last=Weill |url={{Google books|bDnnAgAAQBAJ|page=PA22|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |page=22 |date=2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-968542-4 |quote=Although the basic philosophy behind the law of military occupation is that it is a temporary situation modem occupations have well demonstrated that ''rien ne dure comme le provisoire'' A significant number of post-1945 occupations have lasted more than two decades such as the occupations of Namibia by South Africa and of East Timor by Indonesia as well as the ongoing occupations of Northern Cyprus by Turkey and of Western Sahara by Morocco. The Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, {{underline|which is the longest in all occupation's history}} has already entered its fifth decade.}}
* Azarova, Valentina. 2017, [http://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/israels_unlawfully_prolonged_occupation_7294 Israel's Unlawfully Prolonged Occupation: Consequences under an Integrated Legal Framework], European Council on Foreign Affairs Policy Brief: "June 2017 marks 50 years of Israel's belligerent occupation of Palestinian territory, making it the longest occupation in modern history." The West Bank was occupied and annexed by Jordan in 1950, following the 1949 Armistice Agreements. Only Britain recognised this annexation, and Jordan has since [ceded its claim](/source/Jordanian_disengagement_from_the_West_Bank) to the territory to the PLO. The population is mainly Palestinians, including refugees of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.{{cite web |title=UNRWA in Figures: Figures as of 30 June 2009 |publisher=United Nations |date=June 2009 |url=http://www.unrwa.org/userfiles/uif-june09.pdf |access-date=27 September 2007 }} From their occupation in 1967 until 1993, the Palestinians living in these territories were under [Israeli military administration](/source/Coordinator_of_Government_Activities_in_the_Territories). Since the [Israel–PLO letters of recognition](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Palestine_Liberation_Organization_letters_of_recognition), most of the Palestinian population and [cities](/source/List_of_cities_administered_by_the_State_of_Palestine) have been under the internal jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority, and only partial Israeli military control, although Israel has redeployed its troops and reinstated full military administration during periods of unrest. Israel's claim of universal suffrage has been questioned due to its blurred territorial boundaries, its simultaneous extension of voting rights to Israeli settlers in the occupied territories and denial of voting rights to their Palestinian neighbours, as well as the alleged [ethnocratic](/source/ethnocracy) nature of the state.{{cite journal |author=Yiftachel, O. |date=1999 |title='Ethnocracy': The Politics of Judaizing Israel/Palestine |journal=Constellations |volume=6 |issue=3 |pages=364–390 |doi=10.1111/1467-8675.00151 |quote=Israel's political structure and settlement activity have [...] in effect undermined the existence of universal suffrage (as Jewish settlers in the Occupied Territories can vote to the parliament that governs them, but their Palestinian neighbours cannot). |url=https://www.academia.edu/download/31054252/ethnocracy-yiftachel.pdf }}{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{cite journal |author=Ghanem, A. A. |author2=Rouhana, N. |author3=Yiftachel, O. |date=1998 |title=Questioning" ethnic democracy": A response to Sammy Smooha |journal=Israel Studies |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=253–267 |doi=10.2979/ISR.1998.3.2.253 |quote=settlers remain fully enfranchised Israeli citizens while their Palestinian neighbors have no voting rights and no impact on Israeli policies |jstor=30245721|s2cid=3524173}} The Gaza Strip is considered to be a "foreign territory" under Israeli law. Israel and Egypt operate a land, air, and sea [blockade of the Gaza Strip](/source/blockade_of_the_Gaza_Strip). The Gaza Strip was occupied by Israel after 1967. In 2005, as part of a [unilateral disengagement plan](/source/Israel's_unilateral_disengagement_plan), Israel removed its settlers and forces from the territory but continues to maintain control of its airspace and waters. The international community, including numerous international humanitarian organisations and UN bodies, consider Gaza to remain occupied.{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/F0B7D1A3A8E7CF1985257552004F640E |title=Situation Report on the Humanitarian Situation in the Gaza Strip |publisher=Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |date=23 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120612121839/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/F0B7D1A3A8E7CF1985257552004F640E |archive-date=12 June 2012 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/report/palestine-report-131207.htm |title=The occupied Palestinian territories: Dignity Denied |publisher=International Committee of the Red Cross |date=13 December 2007}}{{cite book |url=https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2013/country-chapters/israel-palestine |title=Israel/Palestine |chapter=World Report 2013: Israel/Palestine |year=2013 |publisher=Human Rights Watch |access-date=13 June 2013}}{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/pdfs/AHRC1248.pdf|title=Human Rights in Palestine and Other Occupied Arab Territories: Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict |publisher=United Nations Human Rights Council |date=15 September 2009 |page=85}}{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/093/2006/en/ |title=Israel/Occupied Territories: Road to nowhere |publisher=Amnesty International |date=1 December 2006 }} Following the 2007 Battle of Gaza, when [Hamas assumed power in the Gaza Strip](/source/Hamas_government_in_the_Gaza_Strip), Israel tightened control of the Gaza crossings along [its border](/source/Gaza%E2%80%93Israel_barrier), as well as by sea and air, and prevented persons from entering and exiting except for isolated cases it deemed humanitarian.{{cite web |url=http://www.btselem.org/gaza_strip/gaza_status |title=The scope of Israeli control in the Gaza Strip |publisher=B'Tselem |access-date=20 March 2012}} Gaza has a [border with Egypt](/source/Egypt%E2%80%93Gaza_border), and an agreement between Israel, the EU, and the PA governs how border crossings take place.{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/foreignpolicy/peace/mfadocuments/pages/agreed%20documents%20on%20movement%20and%20access%20from%20and%20to%20gaza%2015-nov-2005.aspx |title=Agreed documents on movement and access from and to Gaza |date=15 November 2005 |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=13 June 2013}} The application of democracy to its Palestinian citizens and the selective application of Israeli democracy in the Israeli-controlled Palestinian territories have been criticised.{{cite book|author=Jerome Slater|title=Mythologies Without End: The US, Israel, and the Arab-Israeli Conflict, 1917–2020|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yVAAEAAAQBAJ|date=1 October 2020|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-045909-3|page=15|quote=It is now clear that Israel is a true democracy in its broadest sense only for its Jewish citizens. The Arab-Israeli (or, as some prefer, the Palestinian-Israeli) peoples, roughly 20 per cent of the total population of Israel its pre-1967 boundaries, are citizens and have voting rights, but they face political, economic, and social discrimination. And, of course, Israeli democracy is inapplicable to the nearly 4 million Palestinian Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza, conquered by Israel in June 1967, who are occupied, repressed, and in many ways, directly and indirectly, effectively ruled by Israel.|ref={{harvid|Slater|2020}}}}{{cite book|author=Ben White|title=Palestinians in Israel: Segregation, Discrimination and Democracy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bp1PXwAACAAJ|date=15 January 2012|publisher=Pluto Press|isbn=978-0-7453-3228-4}} ====International opinion==== {{see also|Israeli war crimes}} The [International Court of Justice](/source/International_Court_of_Justice) said, in its [2004 advisory opinion](/source/International_law_and_the_Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_conflict) on the legality of the construction of the West Bank barrier, that the lands captured by Israel in the Six-Day War, including East Jerusalem, are occupied territory and found that the construction of the wall within the occupied Palestinian territory violates international law.{{cite news |title=Arabs will ask U.N. to seek razing of Israeli wall |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna5400559 |publisher=NBC News |date=9 July 2004 |access-date=9 February 2013}} Most negotiations relating to the territories have been on the basis of [UN Security Council Resolution 242](/source/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_242), which emphasises "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war", and calls on Israel to withdraw from occupied territories in return for normalisation of relations with Arab states ("[Land for peace](/source/Land_for_peace)").{{cite news |title=Olmert: Willing to trade land for peace |work=Ynetnews |date =16 December 2006 |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3340641,00.html |access-date=26 September 2007 }}{{cite news |title=Syria ready to discuss land for peace |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=12 June 2007 |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=64667 |access-date=20 March 2012}}{{cite news |title=Egypt: Israel must accept the land-for-peace formula |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=15 March 2007 |url=https://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=54876 |access-date=20 March 2012}} Israel has been criticised for engaging in systematic and widespread violations of [human rights in the occupied territories](/source/Human_rights_in_the_Israeli-occupied_territories), including occupation{{cite web|title=A/RES/36/147. Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Population of the Occupied Territories |url=https://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/36/a36r147.htm|access-date=12 February 2017}} and war crimes against civilians.{{cite news |last1=Rudoren |first1=Jodi |last2=Sengupta |first2=Somini |date=22 June 2015 |title=U.N. Report on Gaza Finds Evidence of War Crimes by Israel and by Palestinian Militants |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/23/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-report.html |access-date=12 February 2017}}{{cite web |date=23 July 2014 |title=Human Rights Council establishes Independent, International Commission of Inquiry for the Occupied Palestinian Territory |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2014/07/human-rights-council-establishes-independent-international-commission |access-date=12 February 2017 |publisher=[Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights](/source/Office_of_the_United_Nations_High_Commissioner_for_Human_Rights)}}{{cite news|title=UN condemns Israel's West Bank settlement plans|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-38740712|publisher=BBC News|access-date=12 February 2017 |date=25 January 2017}}{{cite web |date=22 December 1987 |title=The Avalon Project: United Nations Security Council Resolution 605 |url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/un605.asp |access-date=12 February 2017 |website=avalon.law.yale.edu}} The allegations include violations of international humanitarian law{{cite web|title=Faced with Israeli denial of access to Occupied Palestinian Territory, UN expert resigns |url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=52935|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161205095623/http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=52935|archive-date=5 December 2016 |date=4 January 2016}} by the [UN Human Rights Council](/source/United_Nations_Human_Rights_Council).{{cite web|title=Human Rights Council adopts six resolutions and closes its thirty-first regular session |url=http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=18535&LangID=E |access-date=12 February 2017}} The [U.S. State Department](/source/U.S._State_Department) has called reports of [abuses of significant human rights of Palestinians](/source/Human_rights_violations_against_Palestinians_by_Israel) "credible" both within Israel'Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: unlawful or arbitrary killings; arbitrary detention, often extraterritorial detention of Palestinians from the occupied territories in Israel; restrictions on Palestinians residing in Jerusalem including arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy, family, and home; substantial interference with the freedom of association; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; harassment of nongovernmental organizations; significant restrictions on freedom of movement within the country; violence against asylum seekers and irregular migrants; violence or threats of violence against national, racial, or ethnic minority groups; and labour rights abuses against foreign workers and Palestinians from the West Bank.' [https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/313615_ISRAEL-2021-HUMAN-RIGHTS-REPORT.pdf ''Israel 2021 Human Rights Report,''] [United States Department of State](/source/United_States_Department_of_State) 17 April 2021. and the occupied territories.'With respect to Israeli security forces in the West Bank: credible reports of unlawful or arbitrary killings due to unnecessary or disproportionate use of force by Israeli officials; torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by Israeli officials; arbitrary arrest or detention; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; restrictions on free expression and media, including violence, threats of violence, unjustified arrests and prosecutions against journalists, and censorship; restrictions on internet freedom; restrictions on Palestinians residing in Jerusalem, including arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy, family, and home; substantial interference with the rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of association, including harassment of nongovernmental organizations; and restrictions on freedom of movement and residence.' [https://www.state.gov/reports/2021-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/israel-west-bank-and-gaza/west-bank-and-gaza/ 2021 ''Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Israel, West Bank and Gaza,''] [United States Department of State](/source/United_States_Department_of_State) 12 April 2022 [Amnesty International](/source/Amnesty_International) and other NGOs have documented mass arbitrary arrests, torture, unlawful killings, systemic abuses and impunity{{cite news|last1=Heyer |first1=Julia Amalia|title=Kids Behind Bars: Israel's Arbitrary Arrests of Palestinian Minors |work=Der Spiegel |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/israeli-military-arrest-large-numbers-of-palestinian-children-a-995758.html |access-date=23 April 2017|date=7 October 2014}}{{cite web|title=Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories 2016/2017 |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/middle-east-and-north-africa/israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/report-israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/|publisher=Amnesty International|access-date=23 April 2017|language=en}}{{cite web|last1=Isfahan|first1=Ali |title=Why Israel's Impunity Goes Unpunished by International Authorities |url=https://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2014/08/11/why-israels-impunity-goes-unpunished-by-international-authorities/ |publisher=Foreign Policy Journal|access-date=23 April 2017|date=11 August 2014}}{{cite news |last1=Barghouti |first1=Marwan|date=16 April 2017 |title=Why We Are on Hunger Strike in Israel's Prisons |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/16/opinion/palestinian-hunger-strike-prisoners-call-for-justice.html|newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=23 April 2017}} in tandem with a denial of the right to [Palestinian self-determination](/source/Palestinian_self-determination).{{cite news |last1=Dorfman|first1=Zach |title=George Mitchell wrote 'A Path to Peace' about Israel and Palestine. Is there one?|url=http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-mitchell-peace-20170127-story.html|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|access-date=1 February 2017}}{{cite web|title=Outrage over Maimane's visit to Israel |url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/outrage-over-maimanes-visit-to-israel-7397147|access-date=1 February 2017}}{{cite web|title=The subordination of Palestinian rights must stop |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/the-subordination-of-palestinian-rights-must-stop-1.612166/|access-date=1 February 2017|publisher=The National}}{{cite web|title=Palestine-Israel Journal: Settlements and the Palestinian Right to Self-Determination |website=pij.org |url=http://www.pij.org/details.php?id=478 |access-date=1 February 2017}}{{cite web|last1=Hammond |first1=Jeremy R.|title=The Rejection of Palestinian Self Determination |url=http://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Hammond-Rejection-Palestinian-Self-Determination.pdf|access-date=1 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203161044/http://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Hammond-Rejection-Palestinian-Self-Determination.pdf|archive-date=3 February 2017}} Prime Minister Netanyahu has defended the country's security forces for protecting the innocent from terrorists{{cite news|title=Top US senator clashes with Netanyahu over Israeli rights record |url=http://www.politico.eu/article/patrick-leahy-clashes-with-netanyahu-over-israeli-rights-record-human-rights-violations/ |work=Politico|access-date=12 February 2017|date=31 March 2016}} and expressed contempt for what he describes as a lack of concern about the human rights violations committed by "criminal killers".{{cite news|title=Allegations of Israeli Human Rights Violations Closely Scrutinized, Says U.S. State Department |language=en|url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.718320 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160506194522/http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.718320 |url-status=dead |archive-date=6 May 2016 |newspaper=Haaretz|access-date=12 February 2017 |date=6 May 2017}} The [international community](/source/international_community) widely regards Israeli settlements in the occupied territories [illegal under international law](/source/international_law_and_Israeli_settlements).{{Cite journal |title=Israel: The security barrier—between international law, constitutional law, and domestic judicial review |last=Barak-Erez |first=Daphne |journal=International Journal of Constitutional Law |date=1 July 2006 |volume=4 |issue=3 |page=548| doi=10.1093/icon/mol021 |doi-access=free |quote=The real controversy hovering over all the litigation on the security barrier concerns the fate of the Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. Since 1967, Israel has allowed and even encouraged its citizens to live in the new settlements established in the territories, motivated by religious and national sentiments attached to the history of the Jewish nation in the land of Israel. This policy has also been justified in terms of security interests, taking into consideration the dangerous geographic circumstances of Israel before 1967 (where Israeli areas on the Mediterranean coast were potentially threatened by Jordanian control of the West Bank ridge). The international community, for its part, has viewed this policy as patently illegal, based on the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention that prohibit moving populations to or from territories under occupation.}} [United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334](/source/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_2334) (passed 2016) states that Israel's settlement activity constitutes a "flagrant violation" of [international law](/source/international_law) and demands that Israel stop such activity and fulfill its obligations as an [occupying power](/source/Military_occupation) under the [Fourth Geneva Convention](/source/Fourth_Geneva_Convention).{{cite news|title=Choosing not to veto, Obama lets anti-settlement resolution pass at UN Security Council |url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/choosing-not-to-veto-obama-lets-anti-settlement-resolution-pass-at-un-security-council/|access-date=23 December 2016|work=The Times of Israel}} A [United Nations special rapporteur](/source/United_Nations_special_rapporteur) concluded that the settlement programme was a war crime under the [Rome Statute](/source/Rome_Statute),{{cite web |last=Nebehay |first=Stephanie |title=Israeli settlements amount to war crime – U.N. rights expert |website=Reuters |date=9 July 2021 |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israeli-settlements-amount-war-crime-un-rights-expert-2021-07-09/ |access-date=6 April 2023}} and [Amnesty International](/source/Amnesty_International) found that the settlement programme constitutes an illegal transfer of civilians into occupied territory and "pillage", which is prohibited by the [Hague Conventions](/source/Hague_Conventions_of_1899_and_1907) and [Geneva Conventions](/source/Geneva_Conventions) as well as being a war crime under the Rome Statute.{{cite web |title=Chapter 3: Israeli Settlements and International Law |website=Amnesty International |date=30 January 2019 |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2019/01/chapter-3-israeli-settlements-and-international-law/ |access-date=6 April 2023}} In a [2024 advisory opinion](/source/International_law_and_the_Arab%E2%80%93Israeli_conflict), the International Court of Justice stated that occupation of the Palestinian territories violated international law; Israel should end its occupation as quickly as possible and pay reparations. In addition, the court found that Israel was in breach of article 3 of the [International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination](/source/International_Convention_on_the_Elimination_of_All_Forms_of_Racial_Discrimination), which requires states to prevent, prohibit and eradicate all practices of racial segregation and apartheid.{{Cite news |last=Siddique |first=Haroon |date=19 July 2024 |title=UN court orders Israel to end its occupation of Palestinian territories |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/jul/19/israels-settlement-policies-break-international-law-court-finds |access-date=20 August 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite web |date=19 July 2024 |title=ICJ says Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjerjzxlpvdo |access-date=20 August 2024 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |date=19 July 2024 |title=LEGAL CONSEQUENCES ARISING FROM THE POLICIES AND PRACTICES OF ISRAEL IN THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY, INCLUDING EAST JERUSALEM |url=https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/186/186-20240719-adv-01-00-en.pdf |website=icj-cij.org}} ====Accusations of apartheid==== {{main|Israeli apartheid}} Treatment of Palestinians within the occupied territories and to a lesser extent in Israel itself have drawn widespread accusations that it is guilty of [apartheid](/source/crime_of_apartheid), a [crime against humanity](/source/crime_against_humanity) under the Rome Statute and the [International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid](/source/International_Convention_on_the_Suppression_and_Punishment_of_the_Crime_of_Apartheid).{{sfn|Shakir|2021}}{{cite web |date=27 April 2021 |title=Israel committing crimes of apartheid and persecution – HRW |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-56898864 |access-date=6 April 2023 |website=BBC News}} ''The Washington Post'''s 2021 survey of scholars and academic experts on the Middle East found an increase from 59% to 65% of these scholars describing Israel as a "one-state reality akin to apartheid".{{cite news |date=16 February 2021 |title=Here's how experts on the Middle East see the region's key issues, our new survey finds |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/02/16/heres-how-experts-middle-east-see-regions-key-issues-our-new-survey-finds/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250722083441/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/02/16/heres-how-experts-middle-east-see-regions-key-issues-our-new-survey-finds/ |archive-date=22 July 2025 |access-date=20 April 2022 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |date=17 September 2021 |title=Academic experts believe that Middle East politics are actually getting worse |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/09/17/academic-experts-believe-that-middle-east-politics-are-actually-getting-worse/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240716023411/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/09/17/academic-experts-believe-that-middle-east-politics-are-actually-getting-worse/ |archive-date=16 July 2024 |access-date=20 April 2022 |url-status=live }} The claim that Israel's policies for Palestinians [within Israel](/source/Palestinian_citizens_of_Israel) or [within Israeli-occupied territories](/source/Israeli-occupied_territories) amount to apartheid has been affirmed by Israeli human rights organisation [B'tselem](/source/B'tselem),{{harvnb|Mansour|2024|p=134}}: "It stated that 'all Palestinians living under Israeli rule are treated as inferior in right and status to Jews who live the very same area'; the gist was in the title: 'A regime of Jewish supremacy from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea: This is apartheid' (B'Tselem 2021)"{{sfn|B'Tselem|2021}} University Network for Human Rights,{{harvnb|University Network for Human Rights|2025}}: "This report analyzes the crime of apartheid and its application to Israel's policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT)1 before and after October 7, 2023. Our analysis relies on a close examination of more than 25 credible human rights reports and judicial opinions from institutions and individuals with expertise in the region. Consistent with the findings of these experts, we conclude that Israel has committed and continues to commit the crime of apartheid as defined by the 1973 United Nations International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid (Apartheid Convention)" and international human rights organisations such as Amnesty International{{sfn|Amnesty International|2022}} and [Human Rights Watch](/source/Human_Rights_Watch).{{Cite news|last=Rosenfeld|first=Arno|date=27 April 2021|title=Israel is committing 'crime of apartheid,' Human Rights Watch says|url=https://forward.com/news/468473/israel-apartheid-human-rights-watch/|access-date=15 February 2022|work=The Forward |language=en-US}} Israeli human rights organisation [Yesh Din](/source/Yesh_Din) has also accused Israel of apartheid. Amnesty's claim was criticised by politicians and representatives from Israel and its closest allies such as, the US,{{Cite news |title=U.S. State Department Rejects Amnesty's Apartheid Claim Against Israel |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/u-s-state-department-rejects-amnesty-s-apartheid-claims-against-israel-1.10583830 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201203048/http://www.haaretz.com/us-news/u-s-state-department-rejects-amnesty-s-apartheid-claims-against-israel-1.10583830 |url-status=dead |archive-date=1 February 2022 |access-date=16 February 2022}} the UK,{{Cite news |last=Elgot |first=Jessica |date=28 April 2022 |title=Keir Starmer hosts Israeli Labor party in charm offensive ahead of local elections |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/apr/28/keir-starmer-hosts-israeli-labor-party-in-charm-offensive-ahead-of-local-elections |access-date=25 October 2023 |issn=0261-3077}} the [European Commission](/source/European_Commission),{{Cite web |date=20 January 2023 |title=Parliamentary question E-000932/2022(ASW) {{!}} Answer given by High Representative/Vice-President Borrell i Fontelles on behalf of the European Commission |url=https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/E-9-2022-000932-ASW_EN.html |access-date=25 October 2023 |website=[European Parliament](/source/European_Parliament) |language=en}} Australia,{{Cite web |last=Andrew Tillett |date=2 February 2022 |title=PM, Labor defend Israel over apartheid claim |url=https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/pm-labor-defend-israel-over-apartheid-claim-20220202-p59t33 |access-date=25 October 2023 |website=[Australian Financial Review](/source/Australian_Financial_Review) |language=en}} Netherlands{{Cite news |title=Netherlands rejects Amnesty report accusing Israel of apartheid |work=The Jerusalem Post |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-705664 |access-date=2 May 2022}} and Germany,{{Cite news |date=2 February 2022 |title=Germany rejects use of word 'apartheid' in connection with Israel |language=en |publisher=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-rejects-use-word-apartheid-connection-with-israel-2022-02-02/ |access-date=16 February 2022}} while said accusations were welcomed by Palestinians{{Cite news |date=1 February 2022 |title=Israeli policies against Palestinians amount to apartheid – Amnesty |language=en-GB |publisher=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-60197918 |access-date=15 February 2022}} and the [Arab League](/source/Arab_League).{{Cite news |url=https://arab.news/mggnn |title=Arab League, OIC welcome Amnesty's report on Israel's 'apartheid' against Palestinians|date=3 February 2022 |website=Arab News}} In 2022, Michael Lynk, a Canadian law professor [appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council](/source/United_Nations_Special_Rapporteur_on_the_occupied_Palestinian_territories) said that the situation met the legal definition of apartheid, and concluded: "Israel has imposed upon Palestine an apartheid reality in a post-apartheid world".{{Cite web |last=Kingsley |first=Patrick |date=23 March 2022 |title=U.N. Investigator Accuses Israel of Apartheid, Citing Permanence of Occupation |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/23/world/middleeast/israel-apatheid-un.html |website=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)}}{{cite news |last1=Berman |first1=Lazar |title=UN Human Rights Council report accuses Israel of apartheid |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/un-human-rights-council-report-accuses-israel-of-apartheid/ |access-date=2 June 2024 |work=The Times of Israel |date=23 March 2022}} Subsequent reports from his successor, [Francesca Albanese](/source/Francesca_Albanese) and from [Permanent United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Israel Palestine conflict](/source/Permanent_United_Nations_Fact_Finding_Mission_on_the_Israel_Palestine_conflict) chair Navi Pillay echoed the opinion.{{Cite web |url=https://www.newarab.com/news/un-report-urges-plan-end-israeli-colonialism-apartheid|title=UN report urges plan to 'end Israeli colonialism, apartheid'|website=The New Arab|date=19 October 2022 }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/un-commission-says-it-will-investigate-apartheid-charges-against-israel/|title=UN commission says it will investigate 'apartheid' charges against Israel|first=Luke|last=Tress|website=The Times of Israel |date=28 October 2022}} In February 2024, the [ICJ held public hearings](/source/ICJ_case_on_Israel's_occupation_of_the_Palestinian_territories) in regards to the legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory including East Jerusalem. During the hearings, 24 states and three international organisations said that Israeli practices amount to a breach of the prohibition of apartheid and/or amount to prohibited acts of racial discrimination.{{Cite web|url=https://www.justsecurity.org/93403/the-implications-of-an-icj-finding-that-israel-is-committing-the-crime-against-humanity-of-apartheid-2/|title=The Implications of An ICJ Finding that Israel is Committing the Crime Against Humanity of Apartheid|first=Victor|last=Kattan|date=20 March 2024|website=Just Security}} The [International Court of Justice](/source/International_Court_of_Justice) in its [2024 advisory opinion](/source/ICJ_case_on_Israel's_occupation_of_the_Palestinian_territories) found that Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories constitutes systemic discrimination and is in breach of Article 3 of the [International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination](/source/International_Convention_on_the_Elimination_of_All_Forms_of_Racial_Discrimination), which prohibits racial segregation and apartheid. The opinion is silent as to whether the discrimination amounts to apartheid; individual judges were split on the question.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ejiltalk.org/racial-segregation-and-apartheid-in-the-icj-palestine-advisory-opinion/|title='Racial Segregation and Apartheid' in the ICJ Palestine Advisory Opinion|date=31 July 2024 }}{{Cite web|url=https://en.idi.org.il/articles/55384|title=Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Legal Consequences of Israel's Policies and Practices in the "Occupied Palestinian Territory"|date=January 2024 }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-limits-of-the-icj-advisory-opinion-on-israel-s-occupation-and-the-west-bank|title=The Limits of the ICJ Advisory Opinion on Israel's Occupation and the West Bank|work=Lawfare |date=20 August 2024 |last1=Solomon |first1=Solon }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.ejiltalk.org/icj-delivers-advisory-opinion-on-the-legality-of-israels-occupation-of-palestinian-territories/|title=ICJ Delivers Advisory Opinion on the Legality of Israel's Occupation of Palestinian Territories|date=20 July 2024 }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.ejiltalk.org/racial-segregation-and-apartheid-in-the-icj-palestine-advisory-opinion/|title='Racial Segregation and Apartheid' in the ICJ Palestine Advisory Opinion|first=David|last=Keane|date=31 July 2024}}{{Cite journal|url=https://verfassungsblog.de/the-inadvertent-protagonist/|title=The Inadvertent Protagonist|first1=Florian|last1=Jeßberger|first2=Kalika|last2=Mehta|date=19 September 2024|journal=Verfassungsblog|via=verfassungsblog.de|doi=10.59704/27788635acf1f7b5|url-access=subscription|doi-access=free}} ===Foreign relations=== {{Main|Foreign relations of Israel|International recognition of Israel}} thumb|450px| {{legend|Yellow|State of Israel}} {{legend|Green|Countries that recognise Israel}} {{legend|#501616|Countries that have withdrawn their recognition of Israel}} {{legend|#c83737|Countries that have suspended/cut bilateral ties, but maintain recognition}} {{legend|#b9b9b9|Countries that have never recognised Israel}} Israel maintains diplomatic relations {{Numrec|Israel|with|[UN member states](/source/United_Nations_member_states)|link=N}}, the [Holy See](/source/Holy_See), [Kosovo](/source/Kosovo), the [Cook Islands](/source/Cook_Islands) and [Niue](/source/Niue). It has 107 [diplomatic missions](/source/List_of_diplomatic_missions_of_Israel);{{cite web |url=http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/AboutTheMinistry/Pages/Israel-s%20Diplomatic%20Missions%20Abroad.aspx |title=Israel's Diplomatic Missions Abroad: Status of relations |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=25 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420071334/http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/AboutTheMinistry/Pages/Israel-s%20Diplomatic%20Missions%20Abroad.aspx |archive-date=20 April 2016 }} countries with which it has no diplomatic relations include most Muslim countries.{{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-Ed-Contributors/Why-doesnt-the-Muslim-world-recognize-Israel#article=0QUFFOUZBN0YxODM3RDE5NDM4OUEyRkE5MjY1OEJCRDI= |title=Why Doesn't the Muslim World Recognize Israel? |author=Mohammed Mostafa Kamal|newspaper=[The Jerusalem Post](/source/The_Jerusalem_Post) |date=21 July 2012|access-date=30 November 2015}} Six out of 22 nations in the [Arab League](/source/Arab_League) have normalised relations with Israel. Israel remains formally in a [state of war with Syria](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Syria_relations), dating back uninterrupted to 1948. It has been in a similarly [formal state of war with Lebanon](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Lebanon_relations) since the end of the [Lebanese Civil War](/source/Lebanese_Civil_War) in 2000, with the Israel–Lebanon border remaining unagreed by treaty. Despite the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, Israel is still widely considered an enemy country among Egyptians."Massive Israel protests hit universities" (Egyptian Mail, 16 March 2010) "According to most Egyptians, almost 31 years after a peace treaty was signed between Egypt and Israel, having normal ties between the two countries is still a potent accusation and Israel is largely considered to be an enemy country" Iran withdrew its recognition of Israel during the [Islamic Revolution](/source/Islamic_Revolution).{{sfn|Abadi|2004|pp=47–49}} Israeli citizens may not visit Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen without permission from the [Ministry of the Interior](/source/Ministry_of_Interior_(Israel)).{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFAHeb/MFAArchive/2004/horaot+din+israeli0304.htm |publisher=Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs |script-title=he:הוראות הדין הישראלי |year=2004 |language=he |access-date=9 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070701072212/http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFAHeb/MFAArchive/2004/horaot%2Bdin%2Bisraeli0304.htm |archive-date=1 July 2007}} As a result of the 2008–09 Gaza War, Mauritania, Qatar, Bolivia, and Venezuela suspended political and economic ties with Israel,{{cite news |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/01/2009116151135307776.html |publisher=Al Jazeera English |title=Qatar, Mauritania cut Israel ties |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=17 January 2009}} though Bolivia renewed ties in 2019.{{cite news |last1=Flores |first1=Paola |title=Bolivia to renew Israel ties after rupture under Morales |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/bolivia-renew-israel-ties-rupture-morales-67374746 |access-date=15 December 2020 |agency=[ABC News](/source/ABC_News_(United_States)) |date=29 November 2019}} [[File:Bill Clinton, Yitzhak Rabin, Yasser Arafat at the White House 1993-09-13.jpg|thumb|Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat at the signing ceremony of the [Oslo Accords peace agreements](/source/Oslo_Accords), with then US President [Bill Clinton](/source/Bill_Clinton) (center)]] The [United States](/source/Israel%E2%80%93United_States_relations) and the [Soviet Union](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Russia_relations) were the first two countries to recognise the State of Israel, having declared recognition roughly simultaneously.{{Cite journal |jstor=2193961 |title=The Recognition of Israel |journal=The American Journal of International Law |volume=42 |issue=3 |pages=620–627 |last1=Brown |first1=Philip Marshall |doi=10.2307/2193961 |year=1948 |s2cid=147342045}} Diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union were broken in 1967 following the Six-Day War and renewed in 1991.{{cite news|last=Yaakov |first=Saar |title= There Were Times (Hayu Zemanim) |page= 30 |language= he |publisher= Israel Hayom |date= 18 October 2017 }} The United States regards Israel as its "most reliable partner in the Middle East",{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3581.htm |title=U.S. Relations With Israel Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs Fact Sheet March 10, 2014|website=U.S. Department of State|access-date=30 October 2014}} based on "common democratic values, religious affinities, and security interests".{{cite web |url=http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA470003&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf |title=Israel: Background and Relations with the United States Updated |publisher=Defense Technical Information Center|access-date=19 October 2009|archive-date=5 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110205011800/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA470003&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf}} The US has provided $68 billion [in military assistance](/source/Israel%E2%80%93United_States_military_relations) and $32 billion in grants to Israel since 1967, under the [Foreign Assistance Act](/source/Foreign_Assistance_Act) (period beginning 1962),{{Cite web|url=http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADT555.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510063014/http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADT555.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 May 2011|title=U.S. Overseas Loans and Grants}} more than any other country for that period until 2003.{{cite web |url= https://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s1297.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020131918/http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s1297.pdf |archive-date=20 October 2011 |title=U.S. Government Foreign Grants and Credits by Type and Country: 2000 to 2010}}{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/foreign_commerce_aid/foreign_aid.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071225192852/http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/foreign_commerce_aid/foreign_aid.html |archive-date=25 December 2007 |title=Foreign Aid}} Most surveyed Americans have held consistently favourable views of Israel.{{Cite web |date=17 March 2022 |title=Americans Still Pro-Israel, Though Palestinians Gain Support |url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/390737/americans-pro-israel-though-palestinians-gain-support.aspx |website=[Gallup, Inc](/source/Gallup%2C_Inc) |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2 February 2022 |title=Friend or Enemy — Israel |url=https://today.yougov.com/topics/travel/trackers/friend-enemy-israel |website=[YouGov](/source/YouGov) |language=en-us}} The United Kingdom is seen as having a "natural" [relationship](/source/Israel%E2%80%93United_Kingdom_relations) with Israel because of the Mandate for Palestine.{{cite web |url=http://ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/working-with-israel/uk-israel-relations/bilateral-relations |publisher=Foreign and Commonwealth Office |title=The bilateral relationship |website=UK in Israel |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116083311/http://ukinisrael.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/working-with-israel/uk-israel-relations/bilateral-relations |url-status=dead }} {{As of|2007|alt=By 2007}}, [Germany](/source/Germany%E2%80%93Israel_relations) had paid 25 billion euros in [reparations to Israel](/source/Reparations_Agreement_between_Israel_and_West_Germany) and individual Israeli Holocaust survivors.{{cite web |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL33808.pdf |title=Congressional Research Service: Germany's Relations with Israel: Background and Implications for German Middle East Policy, Jan 19, 2007. (p. CRS-2) |access-date=29 September 2010 |archive-date=6 February 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070206131300/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL33808.pdf |url-status=dead }} Israel [is included](/source/Israel%E2%80%93European_Union_relations) in the European Union's [European Neighbourhood Policy](/source/European_Neighbourhood_Policy).{{cite news |url=https://euobserver.com/foreign/127874|title=EU to Revise Relations with Turbulent Neighbourhood|author=Eric Maurice |publisher=[EUobserver](/source/EUobserver)|date=5 March 2015|access-date=1 December 2015}} Although [Turkey and Israel](/source/Israel%E2%80%93Turkey_relations) did not establish full diplomatic relations until 1991,{{harvnb|Abadi|2004|p=3}}. "However, it was not until 1991 that the two countries established full diplomatic relations." Turkey has cooperated with the Jewish state since its recognition of Israel in 1949. Turkey's ties to other Muslim-majority nations in the region have at times resulted in pressure from Arab and Muslim states to temper its relationship with Israel.{{sfn|Abadi|2004|pp=4–6}} Relations took a downturn after the 2008–09 Gaza War and Israel's [raid of the Gaza flotilla](/source/2010_Gaza_flotilla_raid).{{cite journal |last=Uzer |first=Umut |date=26 March 2013 |title=Turkish-Israeli Relations: Their Rise and Fall |url=http://www.mepc.org/journal/middle-east-policy-archives/turkish-israeli-relations-their-rise-and-fall |journal=Middle East Policy |volume=XX |issue=1 |pages=97–110 |doi=10.1111/mepo.12007 |access-date=7 January 2017|url-access=subscription }} Relations between [Greece and Israel](/source/Greece%E2%80%93Israel_relations) have improved since 1995 after decline of Israeli–Turkish relations.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11556442 |title=Israel woos Greece after rift with Turkey |publisher=BBC News |date=16 October 2010}} The two countries have a defence cooperation agreement and in 2010, the [Israeli Air Force](/source/Israeli_Air_Force) hosted Greece's [Hellenic Air Force](/source/Hellenic_Air_Force) in a joint exercise. The joint Cyprus-Israel oil and gas explorations centred on the [Leviathan gas field](/source/Leviathan_gas_field) are an important factor for Greece, given its [strong links](/source/Cyprus%E2%80%93Greece_relations) with Cyprus.{{cite news |title=Turkey, Greece discuss exploration off Cyprus |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/turkey-greece-discuss-exploration-off-cyprus-1.386864 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927072906/http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/turkey-greece-discuss-exploration-off-cyprus-1.386864 |url-status=dead |archive-date=27 September 2011 |newspaper=Haaretz |date=26 September 2011 |access-date=1 January 2012}} Cooperation in the world's longest [submarine power cable](/source/submarine_power_cable), the [EuroAsia Interconnector](/source/EuroAsia_Interconnector), has strengthened [Cyprus–Israel relations](/source/Cyprus%E2%80%93Israel_relations).{{cite news |last=Benari |first=Elad |date=5 March 2012 |title=Israel, Cyprus Sign Deal for Underwater Electricity Cable |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/153437 |website=Arutz Sheva |access-date=7 January 2017}} Azerbaijan is one of the few majority Muslim countries to develop strategic and economic [relations with Israel](/source/Azerbaijan%E2%80%93Israel_relations).{{Cite web |title=Inequality Report: The Palestinian Arab Minority in Israel – Adalah |url=https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/7404 |access-date=12 January 2024 |website=www.adalah.org |language=en}} Kazakhstan also has an economic and strategic partnership with Israel.{{Cite web |date=19 July 2016 |title=The Israel-Kazakhstan Partnership |url=https://thediplomat.com/2016/07/the-israel-kazakhstan-partnership/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518015549/https://thediplomat.com/2016/07/the-israel-kazakhstan-partnership/ |archive-date=18 May 2022 |website=[The Diplomat](/source/The_Diplomat_(magazine)) |language=en-US}} India established full [diplomatic ties](/source/India%E2%80%93Israel_relations) with Israel in 1992 and has fostered a strong military, technological and cultural partnership with the country since then.{{cite web |url=http://pakistanyouthmovement.com/Research-Reports/India%20Israel%20Ties.pdf |publisher=Jerusalem Institute for Western Defense |last=Kumar |first=Dinesh |title=India and Israel: Dawn of a New Era |access-date=19 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512233225/http://pakistanyouthmovement.com/Research-Reports/India%20Israel%20Ties.pdf |archive-date=12 May 2012 }} India is the largest customer of the [Israeli military equipment](/source/Israeli_military_equipment), and Israel is the second-largest military partner of India after Russia.{{cite news |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-to-hold-wide-ranging-strategic-talks-with-US-Israel/articleshow/5474033.cms |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260109132205/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-to-hold-wide-ranging-strategic-talks-with-US-Israel/articleshow/5474033.cms |archive-date=9 January 2026 |title=India to hold wide-ranging strategic talks with US, Israel |date=19 January 2010 |newspaper=[The Times of India](/source/The_Times_of_India) |url-status=live |access-date=20 March 2012 }} [Ethiopia](/source/Ethiopia%E2%80%93Israel_relations) is Israel's main ally in Africa due to common political, religious and security interests.{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2010/02/04/a-search-for-allies-in-a-hostile-world |title=Iran and Israel in Africa: A search for allies in a hostile world |newspaper=The Economist |date=4 February 2010 |access-date=20 March 2012}} As of 2025, Israel is the only UN member state to recognise the [Republic of Somaliland](/source/Republic_of_Somaliland).{{Cite news |last=Eichner |first=Itamar |date=2025-12-26 |title=Before addressing attack: Netanyahu announces official recognition of Republic of Somaliland |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/article/dxt2vjv0o |access-date=2025-12-26 |work=Ynetglobal |language=en}}{{cite web | title = Reforming Somaliland's Judiciary | publisher = United Nations | date =9 January 2006| website= UN.org |url = https://www.un.org/webcast/pdfs/unia991.pdf | access-date =2 February 2010}}{{cite web |url=http://www.ethjournal.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1503:arab-league-condemns-israel-over-somaliland-recognition&catid=13:headlines&Itemid=19 |title=Arab League condemns Israel over Somaliland recognition | website= ethjournal.com |date=7 March 2010 |access-date=6 May 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100621113049/http://www.ethjournal.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1503:arab-league-condemns-israel-over-somaliland-recognition&catid=13:headlines&Itemid=19 |archive-date=21 June 2010 }} ====Foreign aid==== Israel has a history of providing emergency foreign aid and humanitarian response to disasters across the world.{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/2015-04-28/ty-article/.premium/the-downsides-of-mercy-missions-abroad/0000017f-db13-d3a5-af7f-fbbf8bb60000 |last=Pfeffer|first=Anshel|newspaper=Haaretz|title=The Downsides of Israel's Missions of Mercy Abroad|date=28 April 2015|access-date=22 November 2015|quote=And even when no Israelis are involved, few countries are as fast as Israel in mobilizing entire delegations to rush to the other side of the world. It has been proved time and again in recent years, after the earthquake in Haiti, the typhoon in the Philippines and the quake/tsunami/nuclear disaster in Japan. For a country of Israel's size and resources, without conveniently located aircraft carriers and overseas bases, it is quite an impressive achievement.}} In 1955 Israel began its [foreign aid programme](/source/Israeli_foreign_aid) in Burma and then shifted to Africa.{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/isolatedstatesco0000geld |url-access=registration |quote=israel international aid africa 1970. |title=Isolated States: A Comparative Analysis |author=Deon Geldenhuys |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1990 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isolatedstatesco0000geld/page/428 428] |isbn=978-0-521-40268-2}} Israel's humanitarian efforts officially began in 1957 with the establishment of [Mashav](/source/Mashav), the Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation.{{cite web |url= http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/mashav/AboutMASHAV/Pages/Background.aspx |title=About MASHAV |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=20 January 2017}} In this early period, whilst Israel's aid represented only a small percentage of total aid to Africa, its programme was effective in creating goodwill; however, following the 1967 war relations soured.{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/internationalrel0000isma |url-access=registration |quote=Israel foreign aid 1958 burundi. |title=International Relations of the Contemporary Middle East: A Study in World Politics |author=Tareq Y. Ismael |publisher=Syracuse University Press| year=1986 |page=[https://archive.org/details/internationalrel0000isma/page/249 249] |isbn=978-0-8156-2382-3}} Israel's foreign aid programme subsequently shifted its focus to Latin America. Since the late 1970s Israel's foreign aid has gradually decreased, although in recent years Israel has tried to reestablish aid to Africa.{{cite book |title=Israel and Africa: A Genealogy of Moral Geography |author=Haim Yacobi |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-138-90237-4 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lgQXCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 111–112] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lgQXCgAAQBAJ}} There are additional Israeli humanitarian and emergency response groups that work with the government, including [IsraAid](/source/IsraAid), a joint programme run by Israeli organisations and North American Jewish groups,{{cite book |author=Haim Yacobi |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lgQXCgAAQBAJ |title=Israel and Africa: A Genealogy of Moral Geography |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-138-90237-4 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lgQXCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA113 113]}} [ZAKA](/source/ZAKA),{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/statement/2016-12-01/secretary-generals-remarks-reception-honour-zaka-international |title=Secretary-General's remarks at reception in honour of ZAKA International Rescue Unit [as prepared for delivery] |last=Ki-moon |first=Ban |date=1 December 2016 |publisher=United Nations |access-date=20 January 2017}} The Fast Israeli Rescue and Search Team,Ueriel Hellman,[https://www.jta.org/2010/01/19/news-opinion/israel-middle-east/israeli-aid-effort-helps-haitians-and-israels-image "Israeli aid effort helps Haitians – and Israel's image"], [Jewish Telegraphic Agency](/source/Jewish_Telegraphic_Agency) 19 January 2010 Israeli Flying Aid,{{cite web |url=http://www.israel21c.org/israels-superwoman-takes-flight-to-help-others/|title=Israel's 'superwoman' takes flight to help others |website=ISRAEL21c |author=Jenny Hazan|date=12 March 2006}} [Save a Child's Heart](/source/Save_a_Child's_Heart){{cite web |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Wolfson-cardiac-surgeons-save-lives-of-more-Gazan-children-374391|title=Wolfson cardiac surgeons save lives of more Gazan children |website=The Jerusalem Post|date=4 September 2014 }} and [Latet](/source/Latet).{{cite press release |date=17 January 2010 |url=http://reliefweb.int/report/haiti/earthquake-haiti-latet-organization-deploys-immediate-relief-victims|title=Earthquake in Haiti – Latet Organization deploys for immediate relief to victims |website=ReliefWeb}} Between 1985 and 2015, Israel sent 24 delegations of their search and rescue unit the [Home Front Command](/source/Home_Front_Command) to 22 countries.{{cite news |url=http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/26634/Default.aspx|date=20 May 2015|access-date=24 November 2015|newspaper=Israel Today|title=When catastrophe strikes the IDF is there to help|archive-date=19 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119084926/http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/26634/Default.aspx}} Currently Israeli foreign aid [ranks](/source/List_of_development_aid_country_donors) low among [OECD](/source/OECD) nations, spending less than 0.1% of its [GNI](/source/Gross_national_income) on development assistance.{{Cite web |title=Israel's Official Development Assistance (ODA) |url=https://www.oecd.org/israel/israels-official-development-assistance.htm#:~:text=In%202016,%20preliminary%20data%20show%20that%20ODA%20reached,a%20share%20of%20GNI%20remained%20stable%20at%200.07%25. |access-date=30 March 2023 |website=oecd.org |publisher=OECD}} The country ranked 38th in the 2018 [World Giving Index](/source/World_Giving_Index).{{cite report|title=World Giving Index|date=October 2018 |url=https://www.cafonline.org/docs/default-source/about-us-publications/caf_wgi2018_report_webnopw_2379a_261018.pdf |publisher=Charities Aid Foundation |access-date=22 February 2022}} ===Military=== {{Further|List of wars involving Israel|List of the Israel Defense Forces operations|Israel and weapons of mass destruction}} [[File:The_Southern_Lions._Squadron_116._I.jpg|thumb|[F-35](/source/F-35) fighter jets of the [Israeli Air Force](/source/Israeli_Air_Force)]] The [Israel Defence Forces](/source/Israel_Defence_Forces) (IDF) is the sole military wing of the [Israeli security forces](/source/Israeli_security_forces) and is headed by its [Chief of the General Staff](/source/Chief_of_the_General_Staff_(Israel)), the ''Ramatkal'', subordinate to the Cabinet. The IDF consists of the [army](/source/GOC_Army_Headquarters), [air force](/source/Israeli_Air_Force) and [navy](/source/Israeli_Navy). It was founded during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War by consolidating paramilitary organisations, chiefly the Haganah.{{cite web |url=http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/about/History/40s/1948/default.htm |publisher=Israel Defense Forces |access-date=31 July 2007 |title=History: 1948 |year=2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412082705/http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/about/History/40s/1948/default.htm |archive-date=12 April 2008 }} The IDF also draws upon the resources of the [Military Intelligence Directorate](/source/Military_Intelligence_Directorate_(Israel)) (''Aman'').{{sfn|Henderson|2003|p=97}} Most [Israelis are conscripted](/source/Conscription_in_Israel) at age 18. Men serve two years and eight months, and [women serve](/source/Women_in_the_Israel_Defence_Forces) two years.{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts%20About%20Israel/State/The%20Israel%20Defense%20Forces |title=The Israel Defense Forces |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=21 October 2006}} Following mandatory service, Israeli men join the reserve forces and usually do up to several weeks of [reserve duty](/source/Reserve_duty_(Israel)) every year until their forties. Most women are exempt from reserve duty. [Arab citizens of Israel](/source/Arab_citizens_of_Israel) (except the [Druze](/source/Druze_in_Israel)) and those engaged in full-time religious studies [are exempt](/source/Exemption_from_military_service_in_Israel), although the [exemption of yeshiva students](/source/Tal_committee) has been a source of contention.{{sfn|Stendel|1997|pp=191–192}}{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/cool-law-for-wrong-population-1.220687 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101118104941/http://www.haaretz.com/news/cool-law-for-wrong-population-1.220687 |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 November 2010 |date=16 May 2007 |access-date=19 March 2012 |title=Cool law, for wrong population |last=Shtrasler |first=Nehemia |newspaper=Haaretz}} An alternative for those who receive exemptions on various grounds is ''[Sherut Leumi](/source/Sherut_Leumi)'', or national service, which involves a programme of service in social welfare frameworks.{{cite web |url=http://www.nbn.org.il/aliyahpedia/army/585-sherut-leumi-national-service.html |publisher=Nefesh B'Nefesh |access-date=20 March 2012 |title=Sherut Leumi (National Service)}} A small minority of Israeli Arabs also volunteer in the army.{{Cite news |date=8 November 2016 |title=Israel's Arab soldiers who fight for the Jewish state |language=en-GB |publisher=[BBC News](/source/BBC_News) |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-37895021}} As a result of its conscription programme, the IDF maintains approximately 176,500 active troops and 465,000 reservists, giving Israel one of the world's highest [percentage of citizens with military training](/source/List_of_countries_by_number_of_military_and_paramilitary_personnel).IISS 2018, pp. 339–340 [[File:IDF_Air_Defense_fighters_during_Operation_Guardian_of_the_Walls,_May_2021._I.jpg|thumb|[Iron Dome](/source/Iron_Dome) is the world's first operational anti-[artillery rocket](/source/Rocket_artillery) defence system.]] The military relies heavily on high-tech [weapons](/source/Military_equipment_of_Israel) systems [designed and manufactured in Israel](/source/Defense_industry_of_Israel) as well as some foreign imports. The [Arrow](/source/Arrow_(Israeli_missile)) missile is one of the world's few operational [anti-ballistic missile](/source/anti-ballistic_missile) systems.{{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=56544 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |title=Arrow can fully protect against Iran |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |date=30 March 2007 |access-date=20 March 2012}} The [Python](/source/Python_(missile)) air-to-air missile series is often considered one of the most crucial weapons in its military history.''Israeli Mirage III and Nesher Aces'', By Shlomo Aloni, (Osprey 2004), p. 60 Israel's [Spike](/source/Spike_(missile)) missile is one of the most widely exported [anti-tank guided missile](/source/anti-tank_guided_missile)s in the world.[http://www.army-technology.com/projects/gill Spike Anti-Tank Missile, Israel] army-technology.com Israel's [Iron Dome](/source/Iron_Dome) anti-missile air defence system gained worldwide acclaim after intercepting hundreds of [rockets fired by Palestinian militants](/source/Palestinian_rocket_attacks_on_Israel) from the Gaza Strip.{{cite news|title=How Israel Developed Such A Shockingly Effective Rocket Defense System|author=Robert Johnson|work=Business Insider |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/how-israel-developed-the-iron-dome-2012-11?op=1#ixzz2Cme6aQn5|date=19 November 2012|access-date=20 November 2012}}{{cite news|title=A Missile-Defense System That Actually Works?|author=Sarah Tory |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2012/11/israel_iron_dome_defense_how_has_missile_defense_changed_battle_in_gaza.html|work=Slate|date=19 November 2012|access-date=20 November 2012}} Since the [Yom Kippur War](/source/Yom_Kippur_War), Israel has developed a network of [reconnaissance satellites](/source/reconnaissance_satellites).{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/kent-csi/vol44no5/html/v44i5a04p.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100426215752/https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/kent-csi/vol44no5/html/v44i5a04p.htm |archive-date=26 April 2010 |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |title=Israel's Quest for Satellite Intelligence |last=Zorn |first=E.L. |date=8 May 2007 |access-date=19 March 2012}} The ''[Ofeq](/source/Ofeq)'' programme has made Israel [one of seven countries](/source/Timeline_of_first_orbital_launches_by_country) capable of launching such satellites.{{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=64499 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |title=Analysis: Eyes in the sky |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |date=11 June 2007 |access-date=20 March 2012}} Israel is widely believed to [possess nuclear weapons](/source/Nuclear_weapons_and_Israel){{cite web |url=http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/transcripts/2004/alahram27072004.html |title=Transcript of the Director General's Interview with Al-Ahram News |first=Mohamed |last=ElBaradei |author-link=Mohamed ElBaradei |publisher=International Atomic Energy Agency |date=27 July 2004 |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120418221656/http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/transcripts/2004/alahram27072004.html |archive-date=18 April 2012 }} and per a 1993 report, chemical and biological [weapons of mass destruction](/source/Israel_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction).{{cite web |url=http://www.vaccines.mil/documents/library/proliferation.pdf |title=Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction: Assessing the Risks |publisher=Office of Technology Assessment |date=August 1993 |access-date=29 March 2012 |pages=65, 84 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120528155012/http://www.vaccines.mil/documents/library/proliferation.pdf |archive-date=28 May 2012 }}{{update after|2021|11}} Israel has not signed the [Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons](/source/Treaty_on_the_Non-Proliferation_of_Nuclear_Weapons){{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/en/conf/npt/2005/background.html |title=Background Information |date=27 May 2005 |website=2005 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) |publisher=United Nations |access-date=9 April 2012}} and maintains a [policy of deliberate ambiguity](/source/policy_of_deliberate_ambiguity) towards its nuclear capabilities.Ziv, Guy, "To Disclose or Not to Disclose: The Impact of Nuclear Ambiguity on Israeli Security", Israel Studies Forum, Vol. 22, No. 2 (Winter 2007): 76–94 The Israeli Navy's [Dolphin submarines](/source/Dolphin-class_submarine) are believed to be armed with nuclear missiles offering [second-strike](/source/second_strike) capability.{{cite web |url=https://fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/missile/popeye-t.htm |title=Popeye Turbo |publisher=Federation of American Scientists |access-date=19 February 2011 |archive-date=4 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110304230009/http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/missile/popeye-t.htm |url-status=dead }} Since the [Gulf War](/source/Gulf_War) in 1991, all homes in Israel are required to have a reinforced security room, [Merkhav Mugan](/source/Merkhav_Mugan), impermeable to chemical and biological substances.{{cite web |url=http://israelhomeowner.brinkster.net/Glossary.asp |title=Glossary |publisher=Israel Homeowner |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517224030/http://israelhomeowner.brinkster.net/Glossary.asp |archive-date=17 May 2012 }} Since Israel's establishment, military expenditure constituted a significant portion of the country's [gross domestic product](/source/gross_domestic_product), with peak of 30.3% of GDP in 1975.{{cite report |date=29 May 2017 |title=Defence Expenditure in Israel, 1950–2015 |url=http://cbs.gov.il/publications17/1680/pdf/t04.pdf |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=22 June 2017 |archive-date=19 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170619053457/http://cbs.gov.il/publications17/1680/pdf/t04.pdf }} In 2021, Israel ranked 15th in the world [by total military expenditure](/source/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures), with $24.3 billion, and 6th by defence spending as a percentage of GDP, with 5.2%.{{cite report |date=April 2022 |title=Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2021 |url=https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/2022-04/fs_2204_milex_2021_0.pdf |publisher=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute |access-date=21 February 2023}} Since 1974, the United States has been a particularly notable contributor of [military aid](/source/Israel%E2%80%93United_States_military_relations).{{cite report |last=Sharp |first=Jeremy M. |date=22 December 2016 |title=U.S. Foreign Aid to Israel |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33222.pdf |publisher=Congressional Research Service |page=36 |access-date=22 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150731092044/http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33222.pdf |archive-date=31 July 2015 }} Under a [memorandum of understanding](/source/memorandum_of_understanding) signed in 2016, the U.S. is expected to provide the country with $3.8 billion per year, or around 20% of Israel's defence budget, from 2018 to 2028.{{cite news |last=Lake |first=Eli |date=15 September 2016 |title=The U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Misunderstanding |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-09-15/the-u-s-israel-memorandum-of-misunderstanding |publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=17 March 2017}} Israel ranked 8th globally for [arms exports](/source/Arms_industry) in 2020–2024.{{Cite journal |first1=Pieter D. |last1=Wezeman|first2= Katarina |last2=Djokic|first3= Mathew|last3= George|first4= Zain |last4=Hussain |first5=Siemon T. |last5=Wezeman |title=Trends in international Arms Transfer 2024 |url=https://www.sipri.org/publications/2025/sipri-fact-sheets/trends-international-arms-transfers-2024 |doi=10.55163/XXSZ9056 |date=March 2025 |website=sipri.org |page=2 |url-access=subscription }} The majority of Israel's arms exports are unreported for security reasons.[https://www.haaretz.com/2014-01-09/ty-article/.premium/israel-reveals-over-7b-in-arms-sales/0000017f-dc67-d856-a37f-fde714b90000 Israel reveals more than $7 billion in arms sales, but few names] By Gili Cohen | 9 January 2014, Haaretz Israel is consistently rated low in the [Global Peace Index](/source/Global_Peace_Index), ranking 134th out of 163 nations in 2022.{{cite report |date=June 2022 |title=Global Peace Index 2022 |url=https://www.visionofhumanity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/GPI-2022-web.pdf |publisher=Institute for Economics and Peace |page=11 |access-date=21 February 2023}} ===Legal system=== {{Main|Judiciary of Israel|Israeli law}} [[File:Israel Supreme Court.jpg|thumb|[Supreme Court of Israel](/source/Supreme_Court_of_Israel), Givat Ram, Jerusalem]] Israel has a [three-tier court system](/source/Israeli_judicial_system). At the lowest level are [magistrate](/source/magistrate) courts, situated in most cities across the country. Above them are [district court](/source/district_court)s, serving as both [appellate](/source/appeal) courts and [courts of first instance](/source/trial_court); they are situated in five of Israel's six [districts](/source/Districts_of_Israel). The third and highest tier is the [Supreme Court](/source/Supreme_Court_of_Israel), located in Jerusalem; it serves a dual role as the highest court of appeals and the [High Court of Justice](/source/High_Court_of_Justice_(Israel)). In the latter role, the Supreme Court rules as a court of first instance, allowing both citizens and non-citizens to petition against the decisions of state authorities.{{cite news |title=Israel's high court unique in region |url=http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/opinion/editorials/2007/09/israel%E2%80%99s_high_court_unique_region |newspaper=Boston Herald |date=9 September 2007 |access-date=27 March 2013}} The legal system combines three legal traditions: [English common law](/source/English_law), [civil law](/source/civil_law_(legal_system)), and [Jewish law](/source/Halakha). It is based on the principle of ''[stare decisis](/source/stare_decisis)'' (precedent) and is an [adversarial system](/source/adversarial_system). Court cases are decided by professional judges.{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Government/Branches%20of%20Government/Judicial/The%20Judiciary-%20The%20Court%20System |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=5 August 2007 |date=1 August 2005 |title=The Judiciary: The Court System }}{{better source needed|date=January 2023}} [Marriage](/source/Marriage_in_Israel) and divorce are under the jurisdiction of the religious courts: [Jewish](/source/Beth_din), [Muslim](/source/Sharia), Druze, and Christian. The election of judges is carried out by a [selection committee](/source/Judicial_Selection_Committee_(Israel)) chaired by the [justice minister](/source/Ministry_of_Justice_(Israel)) (currently [Yariv Levin](/source/Yariv_Levin)).{{cite web |title=Yariv Levin |url=https://www.gov.il/en/departments/people/minister-of-justice |access-date=21 November 2023 |publisher=Ministry of Justice}}. Israel's [Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty](/source/Basic_Law%3A_Human_Dignity_and_Liberty) seeks to defend [human rights and liberties in Israel](/source/Human_rights_in_Israel). The [United Nations Human Rights Council](/source/United_Nations_Human_Rights_Council) and Israeli human rights organisation [Adalah](/source/Adalah_(legal_center)) have highlighted that this law does not in fact contain a general provision for equality and non-discrimination.Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee—Israel, CCPR/C/ISR/CO/3, 29 July 2010, para. 2, available at: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrc/docs/CCPR.C.ISR.CO.3.doc As a result of "[Enclave law](/source/Enclave_law)", large portions of Israeli civil law are applied to Israeli settlements and Israeli residents in the occupied territories.{{cite book|author1=Orna Ben-Naftali|author2=Michael Sfard|author3=Hedi Viterbo|title=The ABC of the OPT: A Legal Lexicon of the Israeli Control over the Occupied Palestinian Territory|url={{Google books|Is5TDwAAQBAJ|page=PA52|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|date=2018|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-107-15652-4|pages=52–}} Israeli law is seldom enforced in the occupied territories, with 96% of police investigations into settler violence in the West Bank from 2020 to 2025 ending without an indictment. No one has been charged in the killings of at least 1,100 Palestinian civilians by Israeli soldiers and settlers since 2020.{{Cite news |last=Graham-Harrison |first=Emma |date=2026-03-25 |title=Israeli former PM calls on ICC to halt West Bank ‘Jewish terrorists’ after prosecutions stop |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/25/no-israel-prosecutions-for-killing-palestinian-civilians-in-occupied-west-bank-since-start-of-decade |access-date=2026-03-25 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}} ==Economy== {{Main|Economy of Israel}} [[File:Bursa11.jpg|thumb|The [Diamond Exchange District](/source/Diamond_Exchange_District) in [Ramat Gan](/source/Ramat_Gan)]] Israel is considered the most advanced country in [West Asia](/source/West_Asia) and the Middle East in economic and industrial development.{{Cite book|title=World On Fire |last=Chua |first=Amy |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-385-72186-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/worldonfirehowex00chua_0/page/219 219–220] |url= https://archive.org/details/worldonfirehowex00chua_0/page/219}}{{Cite book |url={{Google books|Up_7Bh8SbDcC|page=|keywords=%22israel+is+the+most+industrialized%22|text=%22israel+is+the+most+industrialized%22|plainurl=yes}} |title=Northern and Western Asia |isbn=978-0-8225-2915-6 |last1=Bramwell |first1=Martyn |year=2000 |publisher=Lerner Publications Company}} {{As of|2023|10}}, the IMF estimated its GDP at 521.7 billion dollars and GDP per capita at 53.2 thousand ([ranking 13th worldwide](/source/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)_per_capita)).{{Cite web |work=IMF data mapper |title=Israel |date=October 2023 |url=https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/profile/ISR |access-date=21 November 2023 |publisher=International Monetary Fund}} It is the third richest country in Asia [by nominal per capita](/source/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)_per_capita) income{{Cite web |last=Team |first=FAIR |date=6 September 2023 |title=Top 10 Richest Countries in Asia [2023] |url=https://fairbd.net/top-10-richest-countries-in-asia/ |access-date=20 November 2023 |website=FAIR |language=en-GB}} and has the highest average [wealth per adult](/source/List_of_countries_by_wealth_per_adult) in the Middle East.{{Cite web |title=Global wealth report |url=https://www.credit-suisse.com/about-us/en/reports-research/global-wealth-report.html |access-date=20 September 2022 |website=credit-suisse.com |publisher=[Credit Suisse](/source/Credit_Suisse)}} ''[The Economist](/source/The_Economist)'' ranked Israel as the fourth most successful economy among the developed countries for 2022.{{Cite web |title=Israel ranked 4th-best-performing economy among OECD countries in 2022 |date=26 December 2022 |first=Sharon |last=Wrobel |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-ranked-4th-best-performing-economy-among-oecd-countries-in-2022/amp/ |access-date=8 February 2023 |website=The Times of Israel}} It has the [most billionaires](/source/List_of_countries_by_number_of_billionaires) in the Middle East and the 18th most in the world.{{Cite web |last=Chang |first=Richard J. |title=The Countries With The Most Billionaires 2022 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardjchang/2022/04/05/the-countries-with-the-most-billionaires-2022/ |access-date=29 March 2023 |website=Forbes |language=en}} In recent years, Israel had one of the highest growth rates in the developed world.{{Cite web |title=Israel |website=OECD Data |publisher=OECD |url=http://data.oecd.org/israel.htm |access-date=13 October 2023 |language=en}} In 2010, it joined the [OECD](/source/OECD).{{cite web |title=Israel's accession to the OECD |url=http://www.oecd.org/israel/israelsaccessiontotheoecd.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200516012445/http://www.oecd.org/israel/israelsaccessiontotheoecd.htm |archive-date=16 May 2020 |access-date=12 August 2012 |website=oecd.org |publisher=OECD}}{{cite web |title=List of OECD Member countries — Ratification of the Convention on the OECD |website=oecd.org |url=http://www.oecd.org/general/listofoecdmembercountries-ratificationoftheconventionontheoecd.htm |access-date=12 August 2012 |publisher=OECD}} The country is ranked 35th on the [World Bank](/source/World_Bank)'s [''Ease of Doing Business'' index](/source/Ease_of_doing_business_index).{{cite web |title=Rankings |website=World Bank |language=en |url=http://www.doingbusiness.org/en/rankings |access-date=1 December 2021}} Economic data covers the economic territory of Israel, including the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and Israeli settlements in the West Bank.{{sfn|OECD|2011}} Despite limited natural resources, intensive development of the [agricultural](/source/Agriculture_in_Israel) and industrial sectors over the past decades has made Israel largely self-sufficient in food production, apart from grains and beef. Imports, totalling $96.5 billion in 2020, include raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, grain, and consumer goods. Leading exports include machinery, equipment, software, [cut diamonds](/source/Diamond_industry_in_Israel), agricultural products, chemicals, textiles, and apparel; in 2020, exports reached $114 billion. The [Bank of Israel](/source/Bank_of_Israel) holds $201 billion of foreign-exchange reserves, the 17th highest in the world. Since the 1970s, Israel has received [military aid](/source/Israel%E2%80%93United_States_military_relations) from the United States, as well as loan guarantees, which account for roughly half of Israel's external debt. Israel has [one of the lowest](/source/List_of_countries_by_external_debt) external debts in the developed world, and is a lender in terms of net external debt ([assets vs. liabilities abroad](/source/Net_international_investment_position)), which {{as of|2015|alt=in 2015}} stood at a surplus of $69 billion.{{cite press release |date=20 September 2015 |title=Israel's International Investment Position (IIP), June 2015 |url=http://www.boi.org.il/en/NewsAndPublications/PressReleases/Pages/20-09-2015-IIP-Q2.aspx |publisher=Bank of Israel |access-date=29 January 2017 |archive-date=15 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215171824/https://www.boi.org.il/en/NewsAndPublications/PressReleases/Pages/20-09-2015-IIP-Q2.aspx}} Israel has the second-largest number of startup companies after the United States{{cite book |title=Intellectual Capital for Communities: Nations, Regions, and Cities |last=Bounfour |first=Ahmed |author2=Edvinsson, Leif |year=2005 |publisher=Butterworth-Heinemann |isbn=978-0-7506-7773-8 |page=47 (368 pages)}} and the third-largest number of [NASDAQ-listed companies](/source/List_of_Israeli_companies_quoted_on_the_Nasdaq).{{cite magazine |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardbehar/2016/05/11/inside-israels-secret-startup-machine/ |title=Inside Israel's Secret Startup Machine |magazine=Forbes |date=11 May 2016 |access-date=30 October 2016 |author=Richard Behar}} It is the world leader for number of start-ups per capita{{Cite web |title=The Israeli technological Eco-system |url=https://www2.deloitte.com/il/en/pages/innovation/article/the_israeli_technological_eco-system.html |access-date=26 February 2023 |website=Deloitte Israel |language=en}} and has been dubbed the "[Start-Up Nation](/source/Start-up_Nation)".{{Cite web |last=Yerman |first=Jordan |date=22 May 2019 |title=A Startup Nation: Why Israel Has Become The New Silicon Valley |url=https://apex.aero/articles/startup-nation-israel-become-silicon-valley/ |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=APEX |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |title=Israel's economy is a study in contrasts |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/special-report/2017/05/18/israels-economy-is-a-study-in-contrasts |access-date=22 October 2023 |issn=0013-0613}}{{Cite web |last=Ioniță |first=Antoanela |date=3 February 2023 |title=Lessons from Tel Aviv: What Has Fueled Israel's Startup Ecosystem's Growth |url=https://therecursive.com/lessons-from-tel-aviv-what-has-fueled-israel-s-startup-ecosystem-s-growth/ |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=TheRecursive.com |language=en-GB}}{{Cite news |date=6 January 2016 |title=Israel: Start-up nation comes of age |work=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/a5c2ad5a-b471-11e5-b147-e5e5bba42e51 |access-date=22 October 2023}} [Intel](/source/Intel){{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/Business/BusinessNews/Article.aspx?id=52876 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=27 February 2007 |access-date=20 March 2012 |title=Intel to expand Jerusalem R&D |last=Krawitz |first=Avi}} and [Microsoft](/source/Microsoft){{cite web |url=http://www.microsoftrnd.co.il/about/leadership |publisher=Microsoft |access-date=19 March 2012 |title=Microsoft Israel R&D center: Leadership |quote=Avi returned to Israel in 1991, and established the first Microsoft R&D Center outside the US ... |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120313223906/http://www.microsoftrnd.co.il/about/leadership |archive-date=13 March 2012 }} built their first overseas [research and development](/source/research_and_development) facilities in Israel, and other high-tech multinational corporations have opened [research and development centres in the country](/source/List_of_multinational_companies_with_research_and_development_centres_in_Israel). The days which are allocated to working times are Sunday through Thursday (for a five-day workweek), or Friday (for a six-day workweek). In observance of [Shabbat](/source/Shabbat), in places where Friday is a work day and the majority of population is Jewish, Friday is a "short day". Several proposals have been raised to adjust the work week with the majority of the world.{{cite news |url=http://www.themarker.com/career/1.1739743 |newspaper=The Marker |title=Instead of 4 work days: 6 optional days to be considered half day-outs |last=Koren |first=Orah |date=26 June 2012 |access-date=26 June 2012}} (in Hebrew) ===Science and technology=== {{Main|Science and technology in Israel|List of Israeli inventions and discoveries}} [[File:Matam hi-tech park (Haifa).jpg|thumb|[Matam](/source/Matam%2C_Haifa) high-tech park in Haifa]] Israel's development of cutting-edge technologies in software, communications and the life sciences have [evoked comparisons](/source/Silicon_Wadi) with [Silicon Valley](/source/Silicon_Valley).{{cite news |title=Israel keen on IT tie-ups |date=10 January 2001 |newspaper=Business Line |url=http://www.hindu.com/businessline/2001/01/11/stories/151139ue.htm |access-date=19 March 2012 |archive-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116074212/http://www.hindu.com/businessline/2001/01/11/stories/151139ue.htm}}{{cite news |title=Israel's technology industry: Punching above its weight |date=10 November 2005 |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/business/2005/11/10/punching-above-its-weight |access-date=20 March 2012}} Israel is first in the world in [expenditure on research and development](/source/List_of_countries_by_research_and_development_spending) as a percentage of GDP.{{cite web |url=https://data.oecd.org/rd/gross-domestic-spending-on-r-d.htm|title=Research and development (R&D) – Gross domestic spending on R&D |website=OECD Data |publisher=OECD |access-date=10 February 2016}} It is ranked 14th in the [Global Innovation Index](/source/Global_Innovation_Index) in 2025,{{Cite web |title=GII Innovation Ecosystems & Data Explorer 2025 |url=https://www.wipo.int/gii-ranking/en/israel |access-date=16 October 2025 |website=WIPO}}{{Cite book |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2025/en/index.html |title=Global Innovation Index 2025: Innovation at a Crossroads |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |publisher=[World Intellectual Property Organization](/source/World_Intellectual_Property_Organization) |year=2025 |isbn=978-92-805-3797-0 |page=19 |language=en |doi=10.34667/tind.58864 |access-date=17 October 2025}} and 5th in the 2019 [Bloomberg Innovation Index](/source/Bloomberg_Innovation_Index).{{Cite news |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-22/germany-nearly-catches-korea-as-innovation-champ-u-s-rebounds|title=These Are the World's Most Innovative Countries|website=Bloomberg.com |date=22 January 2019|access-date=24 January 2019}} Israel has 140 scientists, technicians, and engineers per 10,000 employees, the highest number in the world{{cite web |last=Shteinbuk |first=Eduard |date=22 July 2011 |url=http://sun.inc.hse.ru/sites/default/files/Shteinbuk.pdf |title=R&D and Innovation as a Growth Engine |publisher=National Research University – Higher School of Economics |access-date=11 May 2013 |archive-date=8 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190808102137/http://sun.inc.hse.ru/sites/default/files/Shteinbuk.pdf}}{{Cite report |author1=Augusto Lopez-Claros |author2=Irene Mia |date=2006 |url=http://www.investinisrael.gov.il/NR/rdonlyres/61BD95A0-898B-4F48-A795-5886B1C4F08C/0/israelcompleteweb.pdf |title=Israel: Factors in the Emergence of an ICT Powerhouse |publisher=Foreign Direct Investment Database |place=Geneva |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712025800/http://www.investinisrael.gov.il/NR/rdonlyres/61BD95A0-898B-4F48-A795-5886B1C4F08C/0/israelcompleteweb.pdf |archive-date=12 July 2015 |via=InvestinIsrael.gov}} and has produced six [Nobel Prize-winning](/source/List_of_Israeli_Nobel_laureates) scientists, mostly in chemistry, since 2004{{cite news |author=Haviv Rettig Gur |date=9 October 2013 |title=Tiny Israel a Nobel heavyweight, especially in chemistry |url=http://www.timesofisrael.com/tiny-israel-a-nobel-heavyweight-especially-in-chemistry/ |website=The Times of Israel |access-date=30 January 2017}} and has been frequently ranked as one of the countries with the highest ratios of [scientific papers](/source/scientific_papers) per capita.{{cite news |last=Heylin |first=Michael |date=27 November 2006 |title=Globalization of Science Rolls On |work=Chemical & Engineering News |pages=29–31 |url=http://www.achem.univ.kiev.ua/news/pdf/globalization_of_science_rolls_on.pdf |access-date=5 February 2013}}{{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-EdContributors/Article.aspx?id=32635 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |last=Gordon |first=Evelyn |title=Kicking the global oil habit |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=24 August 2006}}{{cite news |title=Israel's scientific fall from grace: Study shows drastic decline in publications per capita |author=Yarden Skop |url=https://www.haaretz.com/2013-09-02/ty-article/.premium/israeli-scientific-studies-declining/0000017f-df8e-db5a-a57f-dfee87e50000 |newspaper=Haaretz |date=2 September 2013}} [Israeli universities](/source/List_of_Israeli_universities_and_colleges) are ranked among the top 50 world universities in computer science ([Technion](/source/Technion) and [Tel Aviv University](/source/Tel_Aviv_University)), mathematics ([Hebrew University of Jerusalem](/source/Hebrew_University_of_Jerusalem)) and chemistry ([Weizmann Institute of Science](/source/Weizmann_Institute_of_Science)). In 2012, Israel was ranked ninth in the world by the Futron's [Space Competitiveness Index](/source/Space_Competitiveness_Index).{{cite web|title=Futron Releases 2012 Space Competitiveness Index|url=http://spaceref.biz/2012/08/futron-releases-2012-space-competitiveness-index.html|access-date=21 December 2013|archive-date=24 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224114215/http://spaceref.biz/2012/08/futron-releases-2012-space-competitiveness-index.html}} The [Israel Space Agency](/source/Israel_Space_Agency) coordinates all space research programmes with scientific and commercial goals, and have designed and built at least 13 commercial, research and spy satellites.{{cite news |title=Israel's domestic satellite industry saved |first=Arieh |last=O'Sullivan |url=https://www.jpost.com/Features/InThespotlight/Article.aspx?id=276757 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=9 July 2012 |access-date=9 December 2012 |quote=The Amos 6 will be IAI's 14th satellite}} Some satellites are ranked among the world's most advanced space systems.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/jan/21/iran.marktran |title=Israel launches new satellite to spy on Iran |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=21 January 2008 |newspaper=The Guardian |first=Mark |last=Tran}} [Shavit](/source/Shavit_2) is a space [launch vehicle](/source/launch_vehicle) produced by Israel to launch small satellites into [low Earth orbit](/source/low_Earth_orbit).{{cite web |title=Space launch systems – Shavit|publisher=Deagel |url=http://www.deagel.com/Space-Launch-Systems/Shavit_a001901001.aspx|access-date=19 November 2013}} It was first launched in 1988, making Israel the [eighth nation](/source/Timeline_of_first_orbital_launches_by_country) to have a space launch capability. In 2003, [Ilan Ramon](/source/Ilan_Ramon) became Israel's first astronaut, serving on the [fatal mission](/source/Space_Shuttle_Columbia_disaster) of [Space Shuttle ''Columbia''](/source/Space_Shuttle_Columbia).{{cite news |url=https://m.jpost.com/PromoContent/Learning-Hebrew-Online-Colonel-Ilan-Ramon#article=0OTBDN0ZDNEMyQTAzMDUyNTZCQTAxQzhERUM4OTczMkQ= |title=Learning Hebrew Online – Colonel Ilan Ramon |author=e-Teacher |newspaper=[The Jerusalem Post](/source/The_Jerusalem_Post) |date=9 February 2010 |access-date=1 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208124754/http://m.jpost.com/PromoContent/Learning-Hebrew-Online-Colonel-Ilan-Ramon |archive-date=8 December 2015 }} The [ongoing water shortage](/source/Water_supply_and_sanitation_in_Israel) has spurred innovation in water conservation techniques, and a substantial [agricultural modernisation](/source/Agricultural_research_in_Israel), [drip irrigation](/source/drip_irrigation), was invented in Israel. Israel is also at the technological forefront of desalination and water recycling. The Sorek desalination plant is the largest seawater [reverse osmosis](/source/reverse_osmosis) desalination facility in the world.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/s/534996/megascale-desalination/ |title=Megascale Desalination |last=Talbot |first=David |date=2015 |magazine=MIT Technology Review |access-date=13 February 2017}} By 2014, desalination programmes provided roughly 35% of the drinking water, and it is expected to supply 70% by 2050.{{cite news |url=https://news.yahoo.com/israel-solves-water-woes-desalination-053359192.html |title=Israel solves water woes with desalination |author=Federman, Josef |agency=Associated Press |date=30 May 2014 |access-date=30 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140602041312/http://news.yahoo.com/israel-solves-water-woes-desalination-053359192.html |archive-date=2 June 2014 }} {{as of|2015}}, over 50 per cent of the water for households, agriculture and industry is artificially produced.{{Cite news|title = Aided by the Sea, Israel Overcomes an Old Foe: Drought|url = https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/30/world/middleeast/water-revolution-in-israel-overcomes-any-threat-of-drought.html|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 29 May 2015|access-date = 31 May 2015|first = Isabel|last = Kershner}} In 2011, Israel's water technology industry was worth around $2 billion per year with annual exports of products and services in the tens of millions of dollars. As a result of innovations in reverse osmosis technology, Israel is set to become a net [exporter of water](/source/Water_export).{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-desalination-idUSTRE7B50V520111206 |title=Desalination plant could make Israel water exporter |newspaper=Reuters |date=6 December 2011 |first=Ari |last=Rabinovitch}} [[File:Solar dish at Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center in Israel.jpg|thumb|alt=A horizontal parabolic dish, with a triangular structure on its top.|The world's largest [solar parabolic dish](/source/Parabolic_reflector) at the [Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center](/source/Ben-Gurion_National_Solar_Energy_Center){{cite news |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/01/25/faiman_negev_solar_plan/ |title=Giant solar plants in Negev could power Israel's future |first=John |last=Lettice |newspaper=The Register |date=25 January 2008}}]] Israel has embraced [solar energy](/source/Solar_power_in_Israel); its engineers are on the cutting edge of solar energy technology,{{cite news |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15503716 |title=Israel Pushes Solar Energy Technology |publisher=NPR |first=Linda |last=Gradstein |author-link=Linda Gradstein |date=22 October 2007}} and its solar companies work on projects around the world.{{cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/reportsfromabroad/parry/20070815.html |title=Looking to the sun |first=Tom |last=Parry |date=15 August 2007 |newspaper=[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation](/source/Canadian_Broadcasting_Corporation) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924093635/http://www.cbc.ca/news/reportsfromabroad/parry/20070815.html |archive-date=24 September 2008 }}{{cite news |title=At the Zenith of Solar Energy |first=Neal |last=Sandler |url=http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2008-03-26/at-the-zenith-of-solar-energybusinessweek-business-news-stock-market-and-financial-advice |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105185413/http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2008-03-26/at-the-zenith-of-solar-energybusinessweek-business-news-stock-market-and-financial-advice |archive-date=5 November 2012 |newspaper=Bloomberg Businessweek |date=26 March 2008 |access-date=12 August 2012}} Over 90% of homes use solar energy for hot water, the highest per capita.{{cite web |url=http://www.neaman.org.il/Neaman2011/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DBID=1&TMID=581&LNGID=1&FID=646&IID=7974 |title=Solar energy for the production of heat Summary and recommendations of the 4th assembly of the energy forum at SNI |last1=Grossman |first1=Gershon |last2=Ayalon |first2=Ofira |last3=Baron |first3=Yifaat |last4=Kauffman |first4=Debby |publisher=Samuel Neaman Institute for Advanced Studies in Science and Technology |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116083312/http://www.neaman.org.il/Neaman2011/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DBID=1&TMID=581&LNGID=1&FID=646&IID=7974 |archive-date=16 January 2013 }}{{cite web |last1=Del Chiaro |first1=Bernadette |last2=Telleen-Lawton |first2=Timothy |title=Solar Water Heating: How California Can Reduce Its Dependence on Natural Gas |date=3 April 2007 |publisher=Environment California |url=http://www.environmentcalifornia.org/reports/cae/solar-water-heating-how-california-can-reduce-its-dependence-natural-gas |access-date=20 March 2012 |format=PDF}} According to government figures, the country saves 8% of its electricity consumption per year because of its solar energy use in heating.{{cite web |url=http://roma.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/156237.pdf |title=Solar, what else?! |last=Berner |first=Joachim |date=January 2008 |website=Sun & Wind Energy |publisher=Israel Special |page=88 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721141348/http://roma.mfa.gov.il/mfm/Data/156237.pdf |archive-date=21 July 2011 |access-date=15 May 2010}} The high annual incident solar irradiance at its geographic latitude creates ideal conditions for what is an internationally renowned solar research and development industry in the Negev. Israel had a modern electric car infrastructure involving a countrywide network of charging stations;{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2066975,00.html |title=Will Israel's Electric Cars Change the World? |magazine=Time |access-date=11 April 2012 |date=26 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415081103/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0%2C8599%2C2066975%2C00.html |archive-date=15 April 2012 }}{{cite news | url=https://www.ft.com/content/c0ef35cc-c06a-11df-8a81-00144feab49a | title=Electric cars are all the rage in Israel |newspaper=Financial Times | date=17 September 2010 | access-date=11 April 2012}}{{cite news | url=https://www.haaretz.com/business/israel-to-keep-electric-car-recharging-fees-low-1.418128 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314050857/http://www.haaretz.com/business/israel-to-keep-electric-car-recharging-fees-low-1.418128 | url-status=dead | archive-date=14 March 2012 | title=Israel to keep electric car recharging fees low | newspaper=Haaretz | access-date=11 April 2012| date=13 March 2012 }} however, its electric car company [Better Place](/source/Better_Place_(company)) shut down in 2013.{{cite news | url=http://www.businessinsider.com/better-place-folds-2013-5 |title=Electric Car Company Folds After Taking $850 Million From GE And Others |work=Business Insider |date=26 May 2013}} ===Energy=== {{Main|Energy in Israel}} Israel [began producing natural gas](/source/Natural_gas_in_Israel) from its own offshore gas fields in 2004. In 2009 [Tamar gas field](/source/Tamar_gas_field) was discovered near the coast, and [Leviathan gas field](/source/Leviathan_gas_field) was discovered in 2010.{{cite news|title=Israel Billionaire Tshuva Strikes Gas, Fueling Expansion in Energy, Hotels |first1=David |last1=Wainer |first2=Calev |last2=Ben-David |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-04-21/israel-billionaire-tshuva-strikes-gas-fueling-expansion-in-energy-hotels.html |publisher=Bloomberg News |date=22 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110112194937/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-04-21/israel-billionaire-tshuva-strikes-gas-fueling-expansion-in-energy-hotels.html |archive-date=12 January 2011 }} The natural gas reserves in these two fields could make Israel energy-secure for more than 50 years. Commercial production of natural gas from the Tamar field began in 2013, with over 7.5 billion cubic metres (bcm) produced annually.{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2249rank.html|title=The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency |website=cia.gov|access-date=11 May 2018|archive-date=15 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315051210/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2249rank.html}} Israel had 199 billion bcm of proven reserves of natural gas as of 2016.{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2253rank.html#is|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615230151/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2253rank.html#is|archive-date=15 June 2013|title=The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency|website=cia.gov}} The Leviathan gas field started production in 2019.{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-natgas-leviathan/israel-gets-first-gas-from-leviathan-with-exports-to-follow-idUSKBN1YZ0H9 |publisher=Reuters |title=Israel gets first gas from Leviathan with exports to follow |last1=Cohen |first1=Tova |last2=Ari |first2=Rabinovitch |date=31 December 2019 |access-date=26 June 2022}} [Ketura Sun](/source/Ketura_Sun) is Israel's first commercial solar field. Built in 2011 by the [Arava Power Company](/source/Arava_Power_Company), the field will produce about {{convert|9|GW.h}} of electricity per year,{{cite web |url= http://www.aravapower.com/Technical%20Figures |title= Ketura Sun Technical Figures |access-date= 26 June 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120309003501/http://www.aravapower.com/Technical%20Figures |archive-date= 9 March 2012|publisher=Arava Power Company}} sparing the production of some {{convert|125,000|t}} of carbon dioxide over 20 years.{{cite web |url=http://www.aravapower.com/Field%20Profile |title=Ketura Sun Field Profile |access-date=26 June 2011 |archive-date=27 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131227131408/http://www.aravapower.com/Field%20Profile |url-status=dead |publisher=Arava Power Company}} ===Transport=== {{Main|Transport in Israel}} [[File:4X-ECC LLBG 09-05-2014b.jpg|thumb|[Ben Gurion International Airport](/source/Ben_Gurion_International_Airport), the main international airport of Israel]] As of 2016, Israel has {{convert|19224|km|mi}} of paved [roads](/source/Roads_in_Israel){{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st24_10&CYear=2016 |title=Roads, by Length and Area |date=1 September 2016 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=15 February 2017}} and 3 million motor vehicles.{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/newhodaot/hodaa_template.html?hodaa=201627085 |title=3.09 Million Motor Vehicles in Israel in 2015 |date=30 March 2016 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=15 February 2017}} The [number of motor vehicles per 1,000 persons](/source/List_of_countries_by_vehicles_per_capita) is 365, relatively low among developed countries. The country aims to have 30% of vehicles on its roads powered by electricity by 2030.{{Cite news |date=12 September 2023 |title=Israel expects 30% of cars on its roads to be electric by 2030 |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/israel-expects-30-cars-its-roads-be-electric-by-2030-2023-09-12/}} Israel has 5,715 buses on scheduled routes,{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton60/st24_04.pdf |title=Bus Services on Scheduled Routes |year=2009 |publisher=Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=5 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610053142/http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton60/st24_04.pdf |archive-date=10 June 2011 }} operated by several carriers, the largest and oldest of which is [Egged](/source/Egged_(company)), serving most of the country.{{cite news|last=Stub|first=Zev|title=Egged's monopoly ends, Superbus taking over Jerusalem lines in late 2021|url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/eggeds-monopoly-ending-superbus-to-take-over-j-m-bus-lines-in-late-2021-657673|access-date=1 December 2021|work=The Jerusalem Post}} [Railways](/source/Rail_transport_in_Israel) stretch across {{convert|1277|km|mi}} and are operated by government-owned [Israel Railways](/source/Israel_Railways).{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st24_03&CYear=2016 |title=Railway Services |date=1 September 2016 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=15 February 2017}} Following major investments beginning in the early to mid-1990s, the number of train passengers per year has grown from 2.5 million in 1990, to 53 million in 2015; railways transport {{convert|7.5|e6t|e6ST e6LT|abbr=off}} of cargo per year. Israel is served by three international [airports](/source/List_of_airports_in_Israel): [Ben Gurion Airport](/source/Ben_Gurion_Airport), the country's main hub for international air travel; [Ramon Airport](/source/Ramon_Airport); and [Haifa Airport](/source/Haifa_Airport). Ben Gurion handled over 21.1 million passengers in 2023.{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=22 January 2024 |title=Number of Passengers at Ben-Gurion Airport Rises 10% Despite Cancellations Due to Israel-Hamas War |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-01-22/ty-article/number-of-passengers-at-ben-gurion-airport-rises-10-despite-israel-hamas-war/0000018d-3246-d81e-abdf-3a4e9e540000 |work=Haaretz}} There are three main ports: the [Port of Haifa](/source/Port_of_Haifa), the oldest and largest; [Ashdod Port](/source/Port_of_Ashdod); and the [Port of Eilat](/source/Port_of_Eilat) on the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea). ===Tourism=== {{Main|Tourism in Israel}} {{see also|List of archaeological sites in Israel and Palestine}} [[File:Ein Bokek - Dead Sea2.jpg|thumb|[Ein Bokek](/source/Ein_Bokek) resort on the shore of the [Dead Sea](/source/Dead_Sea)]] Tourism, especially [religious tourism](/source/religious_tourism), is an important industry, with [beaches](/source/List_of_beaches_in_Israel), [archaeological](/source/Archaeology_of_Israel), other [historical](/source/List_of_World_Heritage_Sites_in_Israel) and [biblical](/source/List_of_biblical_places) sites, and unique geography also drawing tourists. In 2017, a record 3.6 million tourists visited Israel, yielding a 25 per cent growth since 2016 and contributed NIS 20 billion to the economy.{{cite web |url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-01/03/c_136867704.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180124195618/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-01/03/c_136867704.htm |archive-date=24 January 2018 |title=Israel sees record 3.6 mln inbound tourists in 2017 |last=Yan |date=3 January 2018 |website=Xinhua}}{{cite news |url=http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-record-36m-tourists-visit-israel-in-2017-1001217309 |title=Record 3.6m tourists visit Israel in 2017 |last=Raz-Chaimovich |first=Michal |date=27 December 2017 |newspaper=Globes}} ===Real estate=== {{main|Housing in Israel}} Housing prices are listed in the top third of all countries,{{cite web |title=Housing prices |website=OECD Data |publisher=OECD |language=en |url=https://data.oecd.org/price/housing-prices.htm}} with an average of 150 salaries required to buy an apartment.{{cite web |title=Average salary in Israel |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/mediarelease/DocLib/2022/002/26_22_002b.pdf |website=Central Bureau of Statistics of Israel |access-date=4 January 2022}} As of 2022, there are about 2.7 million properties in Israel, with an annual increase of over 50,000.{{cite web |title=Dwellings and Buildings in Israel |website=Central Bureau of Statistics of Israel |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/mediarelease/DocLib/2021/030/04_21_030b.pdf |access-date=26 January 2022}} However, demand for housing exceeds supply, with a shortage of about 200,000 apartments as of 2021.{{cite news |last1=Tsion |first1=Hila |date=23 June 2021 |title=Housing crisis: about 200,000 apartments are missing |work=Ynet |language=he |url=https://www.ynet.co.il/economy/article/S1KYZ9kh00}} As a result, by 2021 housing prices rose by 5.6%.{{cite web|title=Israeli housing prices show largest increase in the world |url=https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-housing-prices-show-largest-increase-in-the-world/ |website=ISRAEL21c |author=Brian Blum|date=15 September 2021|access-date=28 January 2022 |language=en}} In 2021, Israelis took a record of NIS 116.1 billion in mortgages, an increase of 50% from 2020.{{cite web |title=Report on housing loans |website=Bank of Israel |url=https://www.boi.org.il/he/BankingSupervision/Data/Pages/HousingLoan.aspx |access-date=26 January 2022 |archive-date=26 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126140617/https://www.boi.org.il/he/BankingSupervision/Data/Pages/HousingLoan.aspx}} ==Demographics== {{Main|Demographics of Israel|Israelis}} [[File:Aliyah 1948-2015.png|upright=1.25|thumb|[Aliyah](/source/Aliyah) in the years 1948–2015. The two peaks were in 1949 and 1990.]] Israel has the largest Jewish population in the world and is the only country where Jews are the majority,{{cite report |editor1-last=Dashefsky |editor1-first=Arnold |editor-link1=Arnold Dashefsky |editor2-last=Della-Pergola |editor2-first=Sergio |editor-link2=Sergio Della Pergola |editor3-last=Sheskin |editor3-first=Ira |date=2021 |title=World Jewish Population |url=https://www.jewishdatabank.org/api/download/?studyId=1185&mediaId=bjdb%5c2021_World_Jewish_Population_AJYB_(DellaPergola)_DB_Public.pdf |publisher=[Berman Jewish DataBank](/source/Berman_Jewish_DataBank) |access-date=4 September 2023 |archive-date=6 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230906084243/https://www.jewishdatabank.org/api/download/?studyId=1185&mediaId=bjdb%5C2021_World_Jewish_Population_AJYB_(DellaPergola)_DB_Public.pdf |url-status=live }} and the only country in which Jews make up more than 2% of the total national population.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=18 December 2012 |title=Jews |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-jew/ |access-date=17 December 2024 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}} As of April 2025, the population was an estimated 10,094,000.{{Cite web |title=Media Release Israel's Independence Day 2025 |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/en/mediarelease/Pages/2025/Israel-Independence-Day-2025.aspx |access-date=6 May 2025 |website=www.cbs.gov.il}} In 2025, the government recorded {{percentage|7,274.2|10,119.4}} of the population as [Jews](/source/Israeli_Jews), {{percentage|2,124.2|10,119.4}} as [Arabs](/source/Arab_citizens_of_Israel), and {{percentage|10,119.4-7,274.2-2,124.2|10,119.4}} as "Others" (non-Arab Christians and people who have no religion listed). Over the last decade, large numbers of migrant workers from Romania, Thailand, China, Africa, and South America have settled in Israel. Exact figures are unknown, as many of them are living in the country illegally,{{cite news |url=http://www.irinnews.org/Report/85270/ISRAEL-Crackdown-on-illegal-migrants-and-visa-violators |title=ISRAEL: Crackdown on illegal migrants and visa violators |newspaper=IRIN |date=14 July 2009 |access-date=11 April 2026 |archive-date=19 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119084926/http://www.irinnews.org/report/85270/israel-crackdown-on-illegal-migrants-and-visa-violators |url-status=dead}} but estimates run from 166,000 to 203,000.Adriana Kemp, "Labour migration and racialisation: labour market mechanisms and labour migration control policies in Israel", ''Social Identities'' 10:2, 267–292, 2004 By June 2012, approximately 60,000 [African migrants](/source/Illegal_immigration_from_Africa_to_Israel) had entered Israel.{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-africans-idUSBRE85A0VI20120611 |title=Israel rounds up African migrants for deportation |publisher=Reuters |date=11 June 2012 |access-date=5 July 2021 |archive-date=16 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816220533/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-africans-idUSBRE85A0VI20120611 |url-status=live }} About 93% of Israelis live in urban areas.{{cite web|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=IL|title=Urban population (% of total population) – Israel|website=data.worldbank.org|publisher=[World Bank](/source/World_Bank)|access-date=11 February 2023|archive-date=11 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211181255/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=IL|url-status=live}} 90% of Palestinian Israelis reside in 139 densely populated towns and villages concentrated in the Galilee, [Triangle](/source/Triangle_(Israel)) and Negev regions, with the remaining 10% in [mixed cities](/source/mixed_cities) and neighbourhoods.{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/06/04/can-jews-palestinians-live-peacefully-israel-data-mixed-neighborhoods-says-yes/ |access-date=15 February 2022|title=Can Jews and Palestinians live peacefully in Israel? The data on mixed neighborhoods says yes |newspaper=The Washington Post}} The OECD in 2016 estimated the average life expectancy at 82.5 years, the [6th-highest in the world](/source/List_of_countries_by_life_expectancy).{{cite web|url=https://data.oecd.org/healthstat/life-expectancy-at-birth.htm|title=Life expectancy at birth|website=OECD Data|publisher=OECD|access-date=30 May 2019|archive-date=2 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150202012350/https://data.oecd.org/healthstat/life-expectancy-at-birth.htm|url-status=live}} Israeli Arab life expectancy lags by 3 to 4 years{{Cite web |date=29 March 2020 |title=Arab and Jewish medics together on frontline of Israel's virus fight |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20200329-arab-and-jewish-medics-together-on-frontline-of-israel-s-virus-fight |access-date=23 June 2022 |publisher=[France 24](/source/France_24) |agency=[Agence France Presse](/source/Agence_France_Presse) |language=en |archive-date=23 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623114215/https://www.france24.com/en/20200329-arab-and-jewish-medics-together-on-frontline-of-israel-s-virus-fight |url-status=live }}Dov Chernichovsky, Bishara Bisharat, Liora Bowers, Aviv Brill, and Chen Sharony, [https://www.taubcenter.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/healthofthearabisraelipopulation.pdf "The Health of the Arab Israeli Population"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210212846/https://www.taubcenter.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/healthofthearabisraelipopulation.pdf |date=10 February 2022 }}. Taub Centre for Social Policy Studies in Israel December 2017 pp.1–50, 13 (2015) and is higher than in most Arab and Muslim countries.{{Cite news |date=9 October 2012 |title=Saudi writer: 'Why is life expectancy in Israel better?' |language=en-GB |publisher=[BBC News](/source/BBC_News) |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-radio-and-tv-19890597 |access-date=30 March 2023 |archive-date=23 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623113753/https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-radio-and-tv-19890597 |url-status=live }}{{cite news|url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5062493,00.html |access-date=15 February 2022|title=Taub Center report shows discrepancy in Jewish, Arab life expectancy|newspaper=Ynetnews|archive-date=15 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220215072847/https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5062493,00.html#:~:text=The%20life%20expectancy%20of%20Israel's,developed%20countries'%20average%20of%2081.6.|url-status=live}} The country has the highest [fertility rate](/source/Total_fertility_rate) in the OECD and the only one which is above the replacement figure of 2.1.{{Cite news |date=21 June 2024 |title=Israel's birth rate remains highest in OECD by far, at 2.9 children per woman |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-birth-rate-remains-highest-in-oecd-by-far-at-2-9-children-per-woman |work=Times of Israel}} Retention of Israel's population since 1948 is about even or greater, when compared to other countries with mass immigration.{{cite book |last=DellaPergola |first=Sergio |author-link=Sergio DellaPergola |contribution=Still Moving: Recent Jewish Migration in Comparative Perspective |editor=Daniel J. Elazar |editor2=Morton Weinfeld |editor2-link=Morton Weinfeld |title=The Global Context of Migration to Israel |year=2000 |publisher=Transaction Publishers |isbn=978-1-56000-428-8 |pages=13–60}} Jewish emigration from Israel (called ''[yerida](/source/yerida)''), primarily to the United States and Canada, is described by demographers as modest,{{cite magazine |last=Herman |first=Pini |title=The Myth of the Israeli Expatriate |magazine=Moment Magazine |volume=8 |issue=8 |pages=62–63| date=1 September 1983}} but is often cited by Israeli government ministries as a major threat to Israel's future.{{cite journal |last1=Gould |first1=Eric D. |last2=Moav |first2=Omer |year=2007 |title=Israel's Brain Drain |journal=Israel Economic Review |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=1–22 |ssrn=2180400 }}{{cite news |last=Rettig Gur |first=Haviv |title=Officials to US to bring Israelis home |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=6 April 2008 |url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=97254 |access-date=20 March 2012}} Approximately 80% of [Israeli Jews](/source/Israeli_Jews) are [born in Israel](/source/Sabra_(person)), 14% are immigrants from Europe and the Americas, and 6% are immigrants from Asia and Africa.{{cite web |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/doclib/2022/2.shnatonpopulation/st02_09.pdf |title=Jews, by Continent of Origin, Continent of Birth and Period of Immigration |date=15 September 2022 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=21 February 2023}} Jews from Europe and the former Soviet Union and their descendants born in Israel, including Ashkenazi Jews, constitute approximately 44% of Jewish Israelis. Jews from Arab and Muslim countries and their descendants, including both Mizrahi and Sephardi Jews,{{cite journal |url=http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/jss/summary/v015/15.1.goldberg.html |title=From Sephardi to Mizrahi and Back Again: Changing Meanings of "Sephardi" in Its Social Environments|journal=Jewish Social Studies|volume=15|issue=1|pages=165–188|last1=Goldberg |first1=Harvey E. |year=2008 |doi=10.18647/2793/JJS-2008|url-access=subscription}} form most of the rest of the Jewish population.{{cite web |url=http://www.jewcy.com/post/missing_mizrahim |title=The Missing Mizrahim |date=31 August 2009 |author=Joel Schalit |website=Jewcy}} Jewish intermarriage rates run at over 35% and recent studies suggest that the percentage of Israelis descended from both Sephardi and Ashkenazi Jews increases by 0.5 per cent yearly, with over 25% of schoolchildren now originating from both.{{cite web |url=http://sociology.huji.ac.il/docs/Okun-paper-2006-01.pdf |title=Socioeconomic Status and Demographic Behavior of Adult Multiethnics: Jews in Israel |last1=Okun |first1=Barbara S. |last2=Khait-Marelly |first2=Orna |year=2006 |publisher=Hebrew University of Jerusalem |access-date=26 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029210049/http://sociology.huji.ac.il/docs/Okun-paper-2006-01.pdf |archive-date=29 October 2013 }} Around 4% of Israelis (300,000), ethnically defined as "others", are Russian descendants of Jewish origin or family who are not Jewish according to rabbinical law, but were eligible for citizenship under the Law of Return.{{cite web |url=http://jppi.org.il/uploads/Jewish_Demographic_Policies.pdf |title=Jewish Demographic Policies |publisher=The Jewish People Policy Institute |year=2011 |last=DellaPergola |first=Sergio}}{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Israel_(people).aspx |title=Israel (people) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia.com |year=2007}}{{cite news|author=Yoram Ettinger|date=5 April 2013 |title=Defying demographic projections |url= http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=3913 |access-date=29 October 2013|newspaper=[Israel Hayom](/source/Israel_Hayom)}} Israeli settlers beyond the Green Line number over 600,000 (≈10% of the Jewish Israeli population).{{cite magazine |last=Gorenberg |first=Gershom |date=26 June 2017 |title=Settlements: The Real Story |url=http://prospect.org/article/settlements-real-story |magazine=The American Prospect |access-date=25 August 2017}} {{As of|2016|alt=In 2016}}, [399,300 Israelis lived](/source/Population_statistics_for_Israeli_settlements_in_the_West_Bank) in West Bank settlements, including those that predated the establishment of the State of Israel and which were re-established after the Six-Day War. Additionally there were more than 200,000 Jews living in East Jerusalem and 22,000 in the Golan Heights. Approximately 7,800 Israelis [lived in settlements](/source/Population_statistics_for_Israeli_Gaza_Strip_settlements) in the Gaza Strip, known as [Gush Katif](/source/Gush_Katif), until they were evacuated by the government as part of its 2005 [disengagement plan](/source/Israel's_unilateral_disengagement_plan).{{cite web |url=http://www.fmep.org/settlement_info/settlement-info-and-tables/stats-data/settlements-in-the-gaza-strip-1 |title=Settlements in the Gaza Strip |access-date=12 December 2007 |website=Settlement Information |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130826025402/http://www.fmep.org/settlement_info/settlement-info-and-tables/stats-data/settlements-in-the-gaza-strip-1 |archive-date=26 August 2013 }} Israeli Arabs (including the Arab population of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights) comprise 21.1% of the population or 1,995,000 people.{{cite web |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/en/mediarelease/Pages/2021/Population-of-Israel-on-the-Eve-of-2022.aspx |title=Population of Israel on the Eve of 2022 |publisher=Cbs.gov.il |date= |access-date=13 February 2022}} In a 2017 poll, 40% of Arab citizens of Israel identified as "Arab in Israel" or "Arab citizen of Israel", 15% identified as "Palestinian", 8.9% as "Palestinian in Israel" or "Palestinian citizen of Israel", and 8.7% as "Arab"; a poll found that 60% of Israeli Arabs have a positive view of the state.{{cite report|publisher=[Konrad Adenauer Foundation](/source/Konrad_Adenauer_Foundation)|url=https://www.kas.de/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=0e141dca-8ac4-a77f-7045-f3a7d4c30991|title=Citizenship, Identity and Political Participation: Measuring the Attitudes of the Arab Citizens in Israel|date=December 2017|pages=22, 25, 28 |issue=12 |quote=(p.28) "The positions of the participants in the focus groups reflect the strength of Palestinian-Arab identity among Arab citizens and the fact that they do not see a contradiction between Palestinian-Arab national identity and Israeli civic identity. The designation "Israeli-Arab" aroused great opposition in the focus groups, as did Israel's Independence Day. ... The collective position presented in the focus group discussions finds expression in the public sphere and emphasizes the Palestinian national identity. Conversely, the responses of the survey participants reveal individual attitudes that assign a broader (albeit secondary, identity) dimension to the component of Israeli civic identity"; quote (p.25): The designation "Arab citizens of Israel" was acceptable to them on the basis of the understanding that it is impossible to live without citizenship, and as long as Israeli citizenship does not harm the national consciousness. Conversely, the participants spoke out against the designation "Arab-Israeli"...}}{{cite news|last1=Lynfield|first1=Ben|title=Survey: 60% of Arab Israelis have positive view of state|url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Survey-60-percent-of-Arab-Israelis-have-positive-view-of-state-506150|access-date=23 October 2017|work=The Jerusalem Post|date=27 September 2017}} ===Major urban areas=== {{Main list|List of cities in Israel }} {{wide image|Tel Aviv Panorama.jpg|800px|View over the [Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area](/source/Tel_Aviv_Metropolitan_Area)}} [[File:Israel cities.svg|thumb|110px|[Israel cities](/source/List_of_cities_in_Israel)]] Israel has four major metropolitan areas: [Gush Dan](/source/Gush_Dan) (Tel Aviv metropolitan area; population 3,854,000), [Jerusalem](/source/Jerusalem_metropolitan_area) (population 1,253,900), [Haifa](/source/Haifa_metropolitan_area) (924,400), and [Beersheba](/source/Beersheba_metropolitan_area) (377,100).{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_25&CYear=2017 |title=Localities, Population and Density per Sq. Km., by Metropolitan Area and Selected Localities |date=6 September 2017 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=19 September 2017}} The largest municipality, in population and area, is Jerusalem with {{Israel populations|Jerusalem}} residents in an area of {{convert|125|km2|0}}.{{Israel populations|reference}} Statistics on Jerusalem include the population and area of East Jerusalem, the status of which is in international dispute.{{harvnb|Roberts|1990|p=60}} Although East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights have been brought directly under Israeli law, by acts that amount to annexation, both of these areas continue to be viewed by the international community as occupied, and their status as regards the applicability of international rules is in most respects identical to that of the West Bank and Gaza. Tel Aviv and Haifa rank as Israel's next most populous cities, with populations of {{Israel populations|Tel Aviv - Yafo}} and {{Israel populations|Haifa}}, respectively.{{Israel populations|reference}} The (mainly [Haredi](/source/Haredi)) city of [Bnei Brak](/source/Bnei_Brak) is the most densely populated city in Israel and one of the [10 most densely populated cities](/source/List_of_cities_proper_by_population_density) in the world.{{Cite web|url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-city-rankings/population-density-by-city|title=Population Density by City 2024|website=worldpopulationreview.com}} Israel has 16 cities with populations over 100,000. {{As of|2018|alt=As of 2018}} there are 77 localities granted ["municipalities" (or "city") status](/source/City_council_(Israel)) by the Ministry of the Interior,[http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_22&CYear=2018 2.22 Localities and Population, by Municipal Status and District], 2018 [four of which are in the West Bank](/source/List_of_Israeli_settlements_with_city_status_in_the_West_Bank).{{cite web | url=https://www.science.co.il/municipal/Cities.php | title=List of Cities in Israel}} {{Largest cities of Israel}} ===Language=== {{Main|Languages of Israel}} [[File:שלט רחוב יהודה (3777232251).jpg|thumb|[Road sign](/source/Road_signs_in_Israel) in [Hebrew](/source/Hebrew_language), [Arabic](/source/Arabic_language_in_Israel), and [English](/source/English_language)]] The official language is [Hebrew](/source/Hebrew_language). Hebrew is the primary language of the state and is spoken daily by the majority of the population. Prior to 1948, [opposition](/source/Anti-Yiddish_sentiment) to [Yiddish](/source/Yiddish), the historical language of the Ashkenazi Jews, was common among supporters of the Zionist movement, including the Yishuv, who sought to promote [Hebrew's revival](/source/Revival_of_the_Hebrew_language) as a unifying national language.{{cite news |url=https://apnews.com/article/9d46cc421298178d834b94bc067c1821 |first=Karin|last=Laub|title=Long Suppressed, Yiddish is Making a Comeback in Israel |date=18 June 1987|work=[Associated Press News](/source/Associated_Press_News)|location=Jerusalem|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221124170549/https://apnews.com/article/9d46cc421298178d834b94bc067c1821|archive-date=24 November 2022}} These sentiments were reflected in the early policies of the Israeli government, which largely banned [Yiddish theatre](/source/Yiddish_theatre) and publications.{{cite news|first=Zach|last=Golden|title=How Yiddish became a 'foreign language' in Israel despite being spoken there since the 1400s|date=11 September 2023|work=[The Forward](/source/The_Forward) |url=https://forward.com/forverts-in-english/560390/how-yiddish-became-foreign-language-israel/|access-date=14 May 2024}} Until 2018, [Arabic](/source/Arabic_language_in_Israel) was also an official language; in 2018 it was downgraded to having a "special status in the state". Arabic is spoken by the Arab minority and is the main medium of teaching in Arab schools where Hebrew is studied as a subject. Arabic is studied in most Jewish schools and is often used on signage and in transport announcements.{{cite news|title=The sudden, surprising rise of Arabic on Israeli street signs|url=https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21732032-one-area-where-binyamin-netanyahus-government-not-so-hostile-arabs|newspaper=The Economist|date=6 December 2017|access-date=11 December 2017}} Due to mass immigration from the former Soviet Union and [Ethiopia](/source/Aliyah_from_Ethiopia) (some 130,000 [Ethiopian Jews live in Israel](/source/Ethiopian_Jews_in_Israel)),[Israel Central Bureau of Statistics](/source/Israel_Central_Bureau_of_Statistics): [http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/newhodaot/hodaa_template.html?hodaa=201211307 The Ethiopian Community in Israel]{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-ethiopia-jews-sb-idUSTRE56F4ZY20090716 |title=Israel may admit 3,000 Ethiopia migrants if Jews |publisher=Reuters |date=16 July 2009}} [Russian](/source/Russian_language_in_Israel) and [Amharic](/source/Amharic) are widely spoken.{{cite news |title=Israel's welcome for Ethiopian Jews wears thin |first=Bill |last=Meyer |url=http://www.cleveland.com/world/index.ssf/2008/08/israels_welcome_for_ethiopian.html |newspaper=The Plain Dealer |date=17 August 2008 |access-date=1 October 2012}} Over one million Russian-speaking immigrants arrived in Israel between 1990 and 2004.{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/study-soviet-immigrants-outperform-israeli-students-1.238970 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120531040829/http://www.haaretz.com/news/study-soviet-immigrants-outperform-israeli-students-1.238970 |url-status=dead |archive-date=31 May 2012 |title=Study: Soviet immigrants outperform Israeli students |newspaper=Haaretz |date=10 February 2008}} French is spoken by around 700,000 Israelis,{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4156781,00.html |title=French radio station RFI makes aliyah |newspaper=Ynetnews |date=5 December 2011}} mostly originating [from France](/source/French_Jews_in_Israel) and North Africa (see [Maghrebi Jews](/source/Maghrebi_Jews)). English was an official language during the Mandate period;{{cite book|last=Spolsky|first=Bernard|title=Round Table on Language and Linguistics |url={{Google books|ljumbfV_7y0C|page=PA169|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=1999|publisher=Georgetown University Press|isbn=978-0-87840-132-1 |pages=169–170 |quote=In 1948, the newly independent state of Israel took over the old British regulations that had set English, Arabic, and Hebrew as official languages for Mandatory Palestine but, as mentioned, dropped English from the list. In spite of this, official language use has maintained a de facto role for English, after Hebrew but before Arabic.}} it lost this status after the establishment of Israel, but retains a role comparable to that of an official language.{{cite book |first=Hava |last=Bat-Zeev Shyldkrot|editor2-first=Hava|editor2-last=Bat-Zeev Shyldkrot |editor1-first=Dorit |editor1-last=Diskin Ravid|editor1-link=Dorit Ravid|title=Perspectives on Language and Development: Essays in Honor of Ruth A. Berman |chapter-url={{Google books |xMzx6xFB0IgC |page=PA90 |keywords=|text= |plainurl=yes}} |publisher=Kluwer Academic Publishers |date=2004 |page=90 |chapter=Part I: Language and Discourse |isbn=978-1-4020-7911-5 |quote=English is not considered official but it plays a dominant role in the educational and public life of Israeli society. ... It is the language most widely used in commerce, business, formal papers, academia, and public interactions, public signs, road directions, names of buildings, etc.}}{{cite book |first=Elana|last=Shohamy|title=Language Policy: Hidden Agendas and New Approaches |url={{Google books|5mG09P64jzYC|page=PA72|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |year=2006 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-32864-7 |pages=72–73 |quote=While English is not declared anywhere as an official language, the reality is that it has a very high and unique status in Israel. It is the main language of the academy, commerce, business, and the public space.}} Many Israelis communicate reasonably well in English, as many television programmes are broadcast in English with subtitles and the language is taught in elementary school. The primary medium of teaching in Israeli universities is Hebrew, but some courses are offered in English.{{cite web |title=English programs at Israeli universities and colleges |url=http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/IsraelExperience/AboutIsrael/Education/Pages/English_programs_Israeli_universities_colleges.aspx |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs}}{{better source needed|date=January 2023}} The main language of the [Circassians in Israel](/source/Circassians_in_Israel) is [Adyghe](/source/Adyghe_language), and most of them also know Hebrew and Arabic. The deaf community in Israel primarily uses the [Israeli Sign Language](/source/Israeli_Sign_Language). Another local sign language is the [Al-Sayyid Bedouin Sign Language](/source/Al-Sayyid_Bedouin_Sign_Language). ===Religion=== {{Main|Religion in Israel}} {{See also|Abrahamic religions}} [[File:Westernwall2.jpg|thumb|The [Dome of the Rock](/source/Dome_of_the_Rock) and the [Western Wall](/source/Western_Wall), Jerusalem|alt=A large open area with people bounded by old stone walls. To the left is a mosque with large golden dome.]] The estimated religious affiliation as of 2022 was 73.5% Jewish, 18.1% [Muslim](/source/Muslims), 1.9% [Christian](/source/Christians), 1.6% [Druze](/source/Druze), and 4.9% other.{{Cite web |title=Israel |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/israel/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240910082545/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/israel |url-status=dead |archive-date=10 September 2024 |access-date=30 September 2024 |website=[The World Factbook](/source/The_World_Factbook) |date=10 September 2024 |publisher=[Central Intelligence Agency](/source/Central_Intelligence_Agency)}} The [religious affiliation](/source/Jewish_religious_movements) of [Israeli Jews](/source/Israeli_Jews) varies widely: a 2016 survey by [Pew Research](/source/Pew_Research) indicates that 49% self-identify as [Hiloni](/source/Hiloni) (secular), 29% as [Masorti](/source/Masortim) (traditional), 13% as [Dati](/source/Dati) (religious) and 9% as [Haredi](/source/Haredi_Judaism) (ultra-Orthodox).{{cite web |url=http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/03/08/in-israel-jews-are-united-by-homeland-but-divided-into-very-different-groups/ |title=In Israel, Jews are united by homeland but divided into very different groups |last1=Starr |first1=Kelsey Jo |last2=Masci |first2=David |date=8 March 2016 |publisher=Pew Research Center |access-date=14 January 2017}} Haredi Jews are expected to represent over 20% of the Jewish population by 2028.{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/at-the-edge-of-the-abyss-1.3538 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100812183722/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/at-the-edge-of-the-abyss-1.3538 |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 August 2010 |author=Shahar Ilan |title=At the edge of the abyss |newspaper=Haaretz |date=24 November 2009}} [Muslims](/source/Islam_in_Israel) constitute the largest religious minority, making up about 18.1% of the population. About 1.9% of the population is [Christian](/source/Christianity_in_Israel), and 1.6% is [Druze](/source/Druze_in_Israel). The Christian population comprises primarily [Arab Christians](/source/Arab_Christians) and [Aramean Christians](/source/Arameans_in_Israel) but also includes post-Soviet immigrants, foreign labourers, [Armenian Christians](/source/Armenians_in_Israel_and_Palestine), and followers of [Messianic Judaism](/source/Messianic_Judaism), considered by most Christians and Jews to be a form of Christianity.{{cite news |title=Israel's Christian population numbers 148,000 as of Christmas Eve |first=Moti |last=Bassok |url=https://www.haaretz.com/news/israel-s-christian-population-numbers-148-000-as-of-christmas-eve-1.208151 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101121203945/http://www.haaretz.com/news/israel-s-christian-population-numbers-148-000-as-of-christmas-eve-1.208151 |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 November 2010 |newspaper=Haaretz |date=25 December 2006 |access-date=26 April 2012}} Members of many other religious groups, including [Buddhists](/source/Buddhism) and [Hindus](/source/Hinduism_in_Israel), maintain a presence in Israel, albeit in small numbers.{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton53/st_eng02.pdf |title=National Population Estimates |access-date=6 August 2007 |page=27 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807012547/http://www.cbs.gov.il/shnaton53/st_eng02.pdf |archive-date=7 August 2011 }} Out of over one million immigrants from the former Soviet Union, about 300,000 are considered not Jewish by the [Chief Rabbinate of Israel](/source/Chief_Rabbinate_of_Israel).{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2010/03/11/can-the-coalition-hold-together |title=Israel's disputatious Avigdor Lieberman: Can the coalition hold together? |date=11 March 2010 |newspaper=The Economist |access-date=12 August 2012}} Israel comprises a major part of the [Holy Land](/source/Holy_Land), a region of significant importance to all [Abrahamic religions](/source/Abrahamic_religions). Jerusalem is of [special importance](/source/Religious_significance_of_Jerusalem) to Jews, Muslims, and Christians, as it is the home of [sites](/source/List_of_places_in_Jerusalem) that are pivotal to their religious beliefs, such as the [Old City](/source/Old_City_(Jerusalem)) that incorporates the [Western Wall](/source/Western_Wall) and the [Temple Mount](/source/Temple_Mount) (Al-Aqsa Mosque compound) and the [Church of the Holy Sepulchre](/source/Church_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre).{{cite book |title=Jerusalem: its sanctity and centrality to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam |last=Levine |first=Lee I. |year=1999 |publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8264-1024-5 |page=516}} Other locations of religious importance are [Nazareth](/source/Nazareth) (site of the [Annunciation](/source/Annunciation) of [Mary](/source/Mary_(mother_of_Jesus))), [Tiberias](/source/Tiberias) and [Safed](/source/Safed) (two of the [Four Holy Cities](/source/Four_Holy_Cities) in Judaism), the [White Mosque](/source/White_Mosque%2C_Ramla) in [Ramla](/source/Ramla) (shrine of the prophet [Saleh](/source/Salih)), and the [Church of Saint George and Mosque of Al-Khadr, Lod](/source/Church_of_Saint_George_and_Mosque_of_Al-Khadr%2C_Lod) (tomb of [Saint George](/source/Saint_George) or [Al Khidr](/source/Al_Khidr)). A number of other religious landmarks are located in the [West Bank](/source/West_Bank), including [Joseph's Tomb](/source/Joseph's_Tomb), the [birthplace of Jesus](/source/Church_of_the_Nativity), [Rachel's Tomb](/source/Rachel's_Tomb), and the [Cave of the Patriarchs](/source/Cave_of_the_Patriarchs). The [administrative center](/source/Arc_(Bah%C3%A1%CA%BC%C3%AD)) of the [Baháʼí Faith](/source/Bah%C3%A1%CA%BC%C3%AD_Faith) and the [Shrine of the Báb](/source/Shrine_of_the_B%C3%A1b) are located at the [Baháʼí World Centre](/source/Bah%C3%A1%CA%BC%C3%AD_World_Centre) in [Haifa](/source/Haifa); the leader of the faith is [buried](/source/Shrine_of_Bah%C3%A1'u'll%C3%A1h) in [Acre](/source/Acre%2C_Israel).{{cite book | title = Hebrew Phrasebook | publisher = Lonely Planet Publications |year=1999 | page = 156 |isbn=978-0-86442-528-7}}{{cite web |url=http://info.bahai.org/article-1-6-0-5.html |title=The Baháʼí World Centre: Focal Point for a Global Community |publisher=The Baháʼí International Community |access-date=2 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070629171538/http://info.bahai.org/article-1-6-0-5.html |archive-date=29 June 2007 }}{{cite web |publisher=Baháʼí Library Online |title=Teaching the Faith in Israel |date=23 June 1995 |url=http://bahai-library.com/uhj_teaching_in_israel |access-date=6 August 2007 }} The [Mahmood Mosque](/source/Mahmood_Mosque%2C_Haifa) is affiliated with the reformist [Ahmadiyya](/source/Ahmadiyya_in_Israel) movement. [Kababir](/source/Kababir), Haifa's mixed neighbourhood of Jews and Ahmadi Arabs, is one of a few of its kind in the country.{{cite web | url=http://www.haifatrail.com/haifa-trail-segment14-eng.htm#./images/sect-14/Haifa-Trail-Sect14-P1610817.jpg | title=Kababir and Central Carmel – Multiculturalism on the Carmel | access-date=8 January 2015}}{{cite web | url=http://www.visit-haifa.org/eng/Kababir | title=Visit Haifa | access-date=8 January 2015 | archive-date=15 December 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215131744/http://www.visit-haifa.org/eng/Kababir | url-status=dead }} ===Education=== {{Main|Education in Israel}} [[File:Brain research labs-Bar Ilan university.jpg|thumb|[Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center](/source/Bar-Ilan_University) at [Bar-Ilan University](/source/Bar-Ilan_University)]] In 2015, Israel [ranked](/source/List_of_countries_by_tertiary_education_attainment) third among OECD members for the percentage of 25–64-year-olds that have attained tertiary education with 49% compared with the OECD average of 35%.{{cite report |date=15 September 2016 |title=Education at a Glance: Israel |url=http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/education/education-at-a-glance-2016/israel_eag-2016-63-en |publisher=Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development |access-date=18 January 2017 |archive-date=10 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110050434/http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/education/education-at-a-glance-2016/israel_eag-2016-63-en |url-status=dead }} In 2012, the country ranked third in the number of academic degrees per capita (20 per cent of the population).{{cite web |url=http://www.american.edu/initeb/as5415a/Israel_ICT/itWork.html |title=Israel: IT Workforce |access-date=14 August 2007 |website=Information Technology Landscape in Nations Around the World |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060913013444/http://www.american.edu/initeb/as5415a/Israel_ICT/itWork.html |archive-date=13 September 2006}} Israel has a [school life expectancy](/source/school_life_expectancy) of 16 years and a [literacy rate](/source/List_of_countries_by_literacy_rate) of 97.8%. The State Education Law (1953) established five types of schools: state secular, state religious, ultra orthodox, communal settlement schools, and Arab schools. The public secular is the largest school group and is attended by the majority of Jewish and non-Arab pupils. Most Arabs send their children to Arabic-language schools.{{cite book |url=http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED250227&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED250227 |title=Israeli Schools: Religious and Secular Problems |publisher=Education Resources Information Center |date=10 October 1984 |access-date=20 March 2012 |last1=Franklin |first1=Parker }} Education is compulsory between the ages of three and eighteen.{{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/knesset-raises-school-dropout-age-to-18-1.225752 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101205220958/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/knesset-raises-school-dropout-age-to-18-1.225752 |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 December 2010 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=18 July 2007 |title=Knesset raises school dropout age to 18 |first1=Or |last1=Kashti |first2=Shahar |last2=Ilan}} Schooling is divided into three tiers—primary school (grades 1–6), middle school (grades 7–9), and high school (grades 10–12)—culminating with ''[Bagrut](/source/Bagrut)'' matriculation exams. Proficiency in core subjects such as mathematics, the Hebrew language, Hebrew and general literature, the English language, history, Biblical scripture and civics is necessary to receive a Bagrut certificate.{{cite web |url=http://www.moia.gov.il/Publications/education_en.pdf |title=Education |last1=Shetreet |first1=Ida Ben |last2=Woolf |first2=Laura L. |year=2010 |website=Publications Department |publisher=Ministry of Immigrant Absorption |access-date=30 August 2012}} The Jewish population maintains a relatively high level of educational attainment where just under half of all Israeli Jews (46%) hold post-secondary degrees.{{cite web |url=http://www.pewforum.org/2016/12/13/religion-and-education-around-the-world/|title=Religion and Education Around the World |date=13 December 2016}}{{cite web |url=http://www.pewforum.org/2016/12/13/jewish-educational-attainment/|title=6. Jewish educational attainment|date=13 December 2016}} Israeli Jews 25 and older have an average 11.6 years of schooling, making them one of the most highly educated of all major religious groups in the world.{{cite web |url=http://www.pewforum.org/2016/12/13/how-religious-groups-differ-in-educational-attainment/|title=How Religious Groups Differ in Educational Attainment|date=13 December 2016}}{{cite web |url=https://www.ncronline.org/news/world/jews-top-class-first-ever-global-study-religion-and-education|title=Jews at top of class in first-ever global study of religion and education|date=13 December 2016}} In Arab, Christian and Druze schools, the exam on Biblical studies is replaced by an exam on Muslim, Christian or Druze heritage, respectively.{{cite web |url=http://www.bibl.u-szeged.hu/oseas/bagrut.html |publisher=United States-Israel Educational Foundation via the University of Szeged University Library |title=The Israeli Matriculation Certificate |access-date=5 August 2007 |date=January 1996 |archive-date=15 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170915073741/http://www.bibl.u-szeged.hu/oseas/bagrut.html}} In 2020, 68.7% of 12th graders earned a matriculation certificate.{{cite web |date=2023 |title=Students in Grade 12 – Matriculation Examinees and Those Entitled to a Certificate |url=https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/publications/LochutTlushim/2023/st04_19.pdf |access-date=19 October 2023 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics}} [[File:MountScopusDec032022 03.jpg|thumb|[Mount Scopus](/source/Mount_Scopus) Campus of the [Hebrew University of Jerusalem](/source/Hebrew_University_of_Jerusalem)]] Israel has a tradition of higher education where its university education has been largely responsible in spurring modern economic development.{{cite web |url=http://kehilanews.com/2017/05/11/israels-educational-tradition-drives-economic-growth/ |title=Israel's educational tradition drives economic growth |last=Silver |first=Stefan |date=11 May 2017 |website=Kehlia News Israel |access-date=31 July 2017 |archive-date=7 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207190253/https://kehilanews.com/2017/05/11/israels-educational-tradition-drives-economic-growth/ |url-status=dead }} Israel has [nine public universities subsidised by the state and 49 private colleges](/source/List_of_Israeli_universities_and_colleges).{{cite web |url=http://embassies.gov.il/delhi/Departments/Pages/Academic%20Affairs.aspx |title=Higher Education in Israel |access-date=19 March 2012 |publisher=Embassy of Israel In India |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120725031634/http://embassies.gov.il/delhi/Departments/Pages/Academic%20Affairs.aspx |archive-date=25 July 2012}}{{cite news|last=Paraszczuk|first=Joanna|title=Ariel gets university status, despite opposition |url=https://www.jpost.com/National-News/Ariel-gets-university-status-despite-opposition|access-date=21 December 2013|newspaper=The Jerusalem Post|date=17 July 2012}} The [Hebrew University of Jerusalem](/source/Hebrew_University_of_Jerusalem) houses the [National Library of Israel](/source/National_Library_of_Israel), the world's largest repository of Judaica and Hebraica.{{cite web |url=http://web.nli.org.il/sites/NLI/English/library/aboutus/past/Building/Pages/history.aspx |publisher=National Library of Israel |title=History of the Library |access-date=22 August 2014}} The [Technion](/source/Technion) and the Hebrew University consistently ranked among world's 100 top universities by [ARWU](/source/Academic_Ranking_of_World_Universities) ranking.{{cite web |url=http://www.shanghairanking.com/World-University-Rankings-2016/Israel.html |title=Israel |date=2016 |publisher=Academic Ranking of World Universities |access-date=6 January 2017 |archive-date=17 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817025723/http://www.shanghairanking.com/World-University-Rankings-2016/Israel.html }} Other major universities include the [Weizmann Institute of Science](/source/Weizmann_Institute_of_Science), [Tel Aviv University](/source/Tel_Aviv_University), [Ben-Gurion University of the Negev](/source/Ben-Gurion_University_of_the_Negev), [Bar-Ilan University](/source/Bar-Ilan_University), the [University of Haifa](/source/University_of_Haifa), and the [Open University of Israel](/source/Open_University_of_Israel). ==Culture== {{Main|Culture of Israel}} Cultural diversity stems from its diverse population: Jews from various diaspora communities brought their cultural and religious traditions with them.{{cite web |url=http://www.hse.ru/en/news/28331917.html |publisher=National Research University Higher School of Economics |title=Asian Studies: Israel as a 'Melting Pot' |access-date=18 April 2012}} [Arab influences](/source/Arab_citizens_of_Israel) are found in [architecture](/source/Architecture_of_Israel),{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFA+Publications/Photo+exhibits/Encounters-+The+Vernacular+Paradox+of+Israeli+Arch-+Intro.htm |publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs |title=Encounters: The Vernacular Paradox of Israeli Architecture |last=Ran |first=Ami |access-date=6 September 2007 |date=25 August 1998 }} [music](/source/Music_of_Israel),{{cite news |work=ISRAEL21c |url=http://www.israel21c.org/culture/israeli-palestinian-and-jordanian-djs-create-bridge-for-peace |title=Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian DJs create bridge for peace |last=Brinn |first=David |date=23 October 2005 |access-date=20 March 2012}} and [cuisine](/source/Israeli_cuisine),{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/History/Modern%20History/Israel%20at%2050/The%20International%20Israeli%20Table |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |title=The International Israeli Table |access-date=26 June 2009 }} among others.{{cite book|last1=Mendel|first1=Yonatan|last2=Ranta|first2=Ronald|title=From the Arab Other to the Israeli Self: Palestinian Culture in the Making of Israeli National Identity|url={{Google books|dD_7CwAAQBAJ|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|year=2016|publisher=Routled|isbn=978-1-317-13171-7|pages=137, 140–141}} Israel is the only country where life revolves around the [Hebrew calendar](/source/Hebrew_calendar), which is aligned to the seasons in the Levant. [Public holidays](/source/Public_holidays_in_Israel) are determined by the [Jewish holidays](/source/Jewish_holidays), and except for [Yom HaAtzma'ut](/source/Yom_HaAtzma'ut) (Independence Day) there are no annual civil holidays. The official day of rest is Saturday, the [Jewish Sabbath](/source/Shabbat).{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Facts%20About%20Israel/People/Jewish%20Festivals%20in%20Israel |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |title=Jewish Festivals and Days of Remembrance in Israel |access-date=16 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070814055003/http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/facts%20about%20israel/people/jewish%20festivals%20in%20israel |archive-date=14 August 2007 }} ===Literature=== [Israeli literature](/source/Israeli_literature) is primarily [poetry](/source/Modern_Hebrew_poetry) and prose written in Hebrew, as part of the [renaissance](/source/Revival_of_the_Hebrew_language) of Hebrew as a spoken language since the mid-19th century, although a small body of literature is published in other languages. By law, two copies of all works published in Israel must be deposited in the [National Library](/source/National_Library_of_Israel).{{cite web |url=http://jnul.huji.ac.il/eng/lgd.html |publisher=Jewish National and University Library |title=Depositing Books to The Jewish National & University Library |access-date=21 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415143212/http://jnul.huji.ac.il/eng/lgd.html |archive-date=15 April 2016 |url-status=dead }} In 2016, 89 per cent of the 7,300 books transferred to the library were in Hebrew.{{cite web |url=http://web.nli.org.il/sites/NLI/English/library/depositing/statistics/Pages/lgd-statistics-2016.aspx |title=The Annual Israeli Book Week Report 2016 |publisher=National Library of Israel |access-date=26 April 2018}} In 1966, [Shmuel Yosef Agnon](/source/Shmuel_Yosef_Agnon) shared the [Nobel Prize in Literature](/source/Nobel_Prize_in_Literature) with German Jewish author [Nelly Sachs](/source/Nelly_Sachs).{{cite web |url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1966/index.html |publisher=Nobel Foundation |title=The Nobel Prize in Literature 1966 |access-date=12 August 2007 }} Leading poets include [Yehuda Amichai](/source/Yehuda_Amichai), [Nathan Alterman](/source/Nathan_Alterman), [Leah Goldberg](/source/Leah_Goldberg), and [Rachel Bluwstein](/source/Rachel_Bluwstein).{{Cite web |title=Yehuda Amichai |url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/yehuda-amichai |access-date=1 July 2023 |website=Poetry Foundation |language=en}} Internationally famous contemporary novelists include [Amos Oz](/source/Amos_Oz), [Etgar Keret](/source/Etgar_Keret) and [David Grossman](/source/David_Grossman).{{Cite web |title=5 Israeli authors you should know – DW – 09/03/2021 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/5-israeli-authors-you-should-know/a-59072065 |access-date=1 July 2023 |website=dw.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Books |first=Five |title=The Best Contemporary Israeli Fiction |url=https://fivebooks.com/best-books/israeli-novels-ayelet-gundar-goshen/ |access-date=1 July 2023 |website=Five Books |language=en}} ===Music and dance=== {{Further|Music of Israel|Dance in Israel}}[[File:Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|[Israel Philharmonic Orchestra](/source/Israel_Philharmonic_Orchestra) conducted by [Zubin Mehta](/source/Zubin_Mehta)|alt=Several dozen musicians in formal dress, holding their instruments, behind a conductor]] [Israeli music](/source/Music_of_Israel) includes [Mizrahi](/source/Mizrahi_music) and [Sephardic music](/source/Sephardic_music), [Hasidic](/source/Hasidic_Judaism) melodies, [Greek music](/source/Greek_music_in_Israel), [jazz](/source/jazz), and [pop rock](/source/pop_rock).{{sfn |Broughton |Ellingham |Trillo |1999 |pp=365–369}}{{cite web |title=Israel |url=http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/country/content.country/israel_36 |publisher=National Geographic Society |website=World Music |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120210070052/http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/country/content.country/israel_36 |archive-date=10 February 2012 }} The [Israel Philharmonic Orchestra](/source/Israel_Philharmonic_Orchestra){{sfn|Ben-Sasson|1985|p=1095}}{{cite book |title=Whose Master's Voice?: The Development of Popular Music in Thirteen Cultures |last1=Ewbank |first1=Alison J. |last2=Papageorgiou |first2=Fouli T. |year=1997 |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=978-0-313-27772-6 |page=117}} has been in operation for over seventy years and performs more than two hundred concerts each year.{{cite web |url=https://www.israel21c.org/us-music-lovers-join-the-birthday-fun-for-israels-greatest-classical-ensemble-the-ipo/ |website=ISRAEL21c |title=US music lovers join the birthday fun for Israel's greatest classical ensemble – the IPO |date=4 February 2007 |last=Davis |first=Barry}} [Itzhak Perlman](/source/Itzhak_Perlman), [Pinchas Zukerman](/source/Pinchas_Zukerman) and [Ofra Haza](/source/Ofra_Haza) are among the internationally acclaimed musicians born in Israel. The country {{Esccnty|Israel|t=has participated}} in the [Eurovision Song Contest](/source/Eurovision_Song_Contest) nearly every year since 1973, winning it four times and hosting three times.{{cite web |title=Israel |url=https://eurovision.tv/country/israel |access-date=9 August 2023 |work=Eurovision.tv |publisher=[European Broadcasting Union](/source/European_Broadcasting_Union) (EBU)}} [Eilat](/source/Eilat) has hosted its own international music festival, the [Red Sea Jazz Festival](/source/Red_Sea_Jazz_Festival), every summer since 1987.{{cite web |url=http://www.redseajazzeilat.com/en/about/ |publisher=Red Sea Jazz Festival |title=About the Red Sea Jazz Festival |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312202659/http://www.redseajazzeilat.com/en/about/ |archive-date=12 March 2012 }} The nation's canonical [folk songs](/source/folk_music) are known as "Songs of the Land of Israel".{{cite web |url=http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/genre/content.genre/israeli_folk_735/en_US |publisher=National Geographic Society |title=Israeli Folk Music |access-date=20 March 2012 |website=World Music |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120103145812/http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/genre/content.genre/israeli_folk_735/en_US |archive-date=3 January 2012 }} ===Cinema and theatre=== {{Main|Cinema of Israel}} Ten Israeli films [have been final nominees](/source/List_of_Israeli_submissions_for_the_Academy_Award_for_Best_Foreign_Language_Film) for [Best Foreign Language Film](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Foreign_Language_Film) at the [Academy Awards](/source/Academy_Awards). Palestinian Israeli filmmakers have made films dealing with the Arab-Israeli conflict and status of Palestinians within Israel, such as [Mohammad Bakri](/source/Mohammad_Bakri)'s 2002 film ''[Jenin, Jenin](/source/Jenin%2C_Jenin)'' and ''[The Syrian Bride](/source/The_Syrian_Bride)''. Continuing the strong theatrical traditions of the [Yiddish theatre](/source/Yiddish_theatre) in Eastern Europe, Israel maintains a vibrant theatre scene. Founded in 1918, [Habima Theatre](/source/Habima_Theatre) in Tel Aviv is Israel's oldest [repertory theatre](/source/repertory_theatre) company and national theatre.{{cite web |url=http://www.habima.co.il/ |script-title=he:התיאטרון הלאומי הבימה |publisher=Habima National Theatre |access-date=13 August 2007 |language=he }} Other theatres include [Ohel](/source/Ohel_Theater), [the Cameri](/source/Cameri_Theatre) and [Gesher](/source/Gesher_Theater).{{Cite web |title=Theatre in Israel |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/theatre-in-israel |access-date=19 October 2023 |website=jewishvirtuallibrary.org}}{{Cite web |title=Israeli Theatre |url=https://www.myjewishlearning.com/culture/2/Theatre_and_Dance/Theatre/Israel.shtml |access-date=19 October 2023 |website=My Jewish Learning |language=en-US |archive-date=18 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150318093329/http://myjewishlearning.com/culture/2/Theatre_and_Dance/Theatre/Israel.shtml |url-status=dead }} === Visual arts === {{main|Visual arts in Israel}} [[File:שאגת האריה.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|''[The Roaring Lion](/source/The_Roaring_Lion_(sculpture))'' sculpture by [Avraham Melnikov](/source/Avraham_Melnikov)]] Israeli Jewish art has been particularly influenced by the [Kabbalah](/source/Kabbalah), the [Talmud](/source/Talmud) and the [Zohar](/source/Zohar). Another art movement that held a prominent role in the 20th century was the [School of Paris](/source/School_of_Paris). In the late 19th and early 20th century, the Yishuv's art was dominated by art trends emanating [Bezalel](/source/Bezalel_Academy_of_Arts_and_Design). Beginning in the 1920s, the local art scene was heavily influenced by modern French art, first introduced by [Isaac Frenkel Frenel](/source/Yitzhak_Frenkel).{{Cite web |title=1883 {{!}} Encyclopedia of the Founders and Builders of Israel |url=https://www.tidhar.tourolib.org/tidhar/view/4/1883 |access-date=19 October 2023 |website=tidhar.tourolib.org}}{{Cite web |date=2 January 2019 |title=Alexandre FRENEL |url=https://ecoledeparis.org/en/alexandre-frenel/ |access-date=3 June 2024 |website=Bureau d’art Ecole de Paris |language=en}} Jewish masters of the [school of Paris](/source/school_of_Paris), such as [Soutine](/source/Cha%C3%AFm_Soutine), [Kikoine](/source/Michel_Kikoine), [Frenkel](/source/Yitzhak_Frenkel), [Chagall](/source/Marc_Chagall) heavily influenced the development of Israeli art.{{Cite web |date=25 May 2023 |title=Chaim Soutine – From Russia to Paris by Ben Uri Research Unit |url=https://issuu.com/benurigallery/docs/chaim_soutine___from_russia_to_paris |access-date=19 October 2023 |website=issuu.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Israel Studies An Anthology: Art in Israel |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/israel-studies-an-anthology-art-in-israel |access-date=19 October 2023 |website=jewishvirtuallibrary.org}} Israeli sculpture took inspiration from modern [European sculpture](/source/Art_of_Europe) as well [Mesopotamian](/source/Art_of_Mesopotamia), [Assyrian](/source/Assyrian_sculpture) and local art.{{Cite news |date=29 December 2023 |title=South Africa launches case at top UN court accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza |url=https://apnews.com/article/south-africa-israel-un-court-palestinians-genocide-ffe672c4eb3e14a30128542eaa537b21 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240102144544/https://apnews.com/article/south-africa-israel-un-court-palestinians-genocide-ffe672c4eb3e14a30128542eaa537b21 |archive-date=2 January 2024 |access-date=5 January 2024 |work=[Associated Press](/source/Associated_Press) |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Israel – Art, Music, Dance |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Israel/Cultural-life |access-date=26 December 2023 |website=britannica.com |language=en}} [Avraham Melnikov](/source/Avraham_Melnikov)'s [The Roaring Lion](/source/The_Roaring_Lion_(sculpture)), David Polus' Alexander Zaid and [Ze'ev Ben Zvi](/source/Zeev_Ben-Zvi)'s cubist sculpture exemplify some of the different streams in sculpture.{{Cite journal |date=18 January 2008 |title=Encyclopaedia Judaica (2nd edition) |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/09504120810843177 |journal=Reference Reviews |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=51–53 |doi=10.1108/09504120810843177 |issn=0950-4125|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite web |date=11 April 2023 |title=1938-1941 - Alexander Zaid, David Polus |url=https://israeled.org/1938-1941-alexander-zaid-david-polus/ |access-date=26 December 2023 |website=CIE |language=en}} Common themes in art are the mystical cities of Safed and Jerusalem, the bohemian café culture of Tel Aviv, agricultural landscapes, biblical stories and war. Today Israeli art has delved into [optical art](/source/optical_art), [AI art](/source/Artificial_intelligence_art), [digital art](/source/digital_art) and the use of salt in sculpture. === Architecture === {{main|Architecture of Israel}} [[File:מוזיאון הבאוהאוס1.jpg|thumb|[Bauhaus Museum Tel Aviv](/source/Bauhaus_Foundation_Tel_Aviv)]] Due to the immigration of Jewish architects, architecture has come to reflect different styles. In the early 20th century Jewish architects sought to combine Occidental and Oriental architecture producing buildings that showcase a myriad of infused styles.{{Cite web |title=Eclectic–Modern \ Tel Aviv Museum of Art |url=https://www.tamuseum.org.il/en/exhibition/eclecticmodern/ |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=tamuseum.org.il |language=en}} The [eclectic](/source/Eclecticism_in_architecture) style gave way to the modernist [Bauhaus](/source/Bauhaus) style with the influx of German Jewish architects (among them [Erich Mendelsohn](/source/Erich_Mendelsohn)) fleeing [Nazi persecution](/source/Nazi_persecution_of_Jews).{{Cite web |title="Erich Mendelsohn: Berlin – Jerusalem" Photography by Carsten Krohn {{!}} Bauhaus Center Tel Aviv |url=https://bauhaus-center.com/gallery-art-exhibition/erich-mendelsohn-berlin-jerusalem-photography-by-carsten-krohn/ |access-date=27 October 2023 |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Erich Mendelsohn |url=https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/about/erich-mendelsohn |access-date=27 October 2023 |website=Weizmann Wonder Wander |language=en}} The [White City of Tel Aviv](/source/White_City%2C_Tel_Aviv) is a [UNESCO heritage site](/source/UNESCO_Heritage_site).{{Cite web |last=Centre |first=UNESCO World Heritage |title=White City of Tel-Aviv – the Modern Movement |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1096/ |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |language=en}} Following independence, multiple government projects were commissioned, a grand part built in a brutalist style with heavy emphasis on the use of concrete and acclimatisation to the desert climate.{{Cite web |last=Constantinoiu |first=Marina |date=21 April 2021 |title=In Tel Aviv, amazing Brutalist architecture hides in plain sight |url=https://www.israel21c.org/in-tel-aviv-amazing-brutalist-architecture-hides-in-plain-sight/ |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=ISRAEL21c |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=12 January 2019 |title=Beyond Bauhaus – The allure of Israeli Brutalism |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/brutally-beautiful-576859 |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=[The Jerusalem Post](/source/The_Jerusalem_Post) |language=en-US |issn=0792-822X}} Several novel ideas such as the [Garden City](/source/Garden_city_movement) were implemented in Israeli cities; the [Geddes plan](/source/Geddes_Plan_for_Tel_Aviv) of Tel Aviv became renowned internationally for its revolutionary design and adaptation to the local climate.{{Cite web |title=Sir Patrick Geddes Plan for Tel-Aviv |url=https://magazine.esra.org.il/posts/entry/sir-patrick-geddes.html |access-date=22 October 2023 |website=ESRAmagazine |language=en-gb}} ===Museums=== {{Main list|List of Israeli museums }} [[File:Billy Rose Art Garden (14755133799).jpg|thumb|[Shrine of the Book](/source/Shrine_of_the_Book), repository of the [Dead Sea Scrolls](/source/Dead_Sea_Scrolls) in Jerusalem]] The [Israel Museum](/source/Israel_Museum) in Jerusalem is one of Israel's most important cultural institutions,{{cite web |url=http://www.english.imjnet.org.il/page_1465?c0=14896&bsp=14393 |publisher=The Israel Museum, Jerusalem |title=About the Museum |access-date=13 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130302154234/http://www.english.imjnet.org.il/page_1465?c0=14896&bsp=14393 |archive-date=2 March 2013 }} and houses the [Dead Sea Scrolls](/source/Dead_Sea_Scrolls),{{cite web |url=http://www.imj.org.il/eng/shrine/index.html |publisher=The Israel Museum, Jerusalem |title=Shrine of the Book |access-date=13 August 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070709044752/https://www.imj.org.il/eng/shrine/index.html |archive-date=9 July 2007 }} along with an extensive collection of [Judaica](/source/Judaica) and [European art](/source/European_art). [Yad Vashem](/source/Yad_Vashem) ({{langx|he|יָד וַשֵׁם}}, {{lit|a memorial and a name}}) is the world's central [Holocaust](/source/Holocaust) memorial institution and archive of Holocaust-related information.{{cite web |url=http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/about/index.asp |publisher=Yad Vashem |title=About Yad Vashem |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314132026/http://www1.yadvashem.org/yv/en/about/index.asp |archive-date=14 March 2012 }} [ANU - Museum of the Jewish People](/source/ANU_-_Museum_of_the_Jewish_People) is an interactive museum devoted to the history of Jewish communities around the world.{{cite web |url=http://www.bh.org.il/about-us.aspx |publisher=Beth Hatefutsoth |title=Museum Information |access-date=13 August 2007 }} Israel has the highest number of museums per capita.{{Cite web |last=Ahituv |first=Netta |date=12 July 2017 |title=10 of Israel's best museums |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/best-israel-museums/index.html |access-date=1 August 2024 |website=CNN |language=en}} Several museums are devoted to Islamic culture, including the [Rockefeller Archaeological Museum](/source/Rockefeller_Museum) and the [L. A. Mayer Institute for Islamic Art](/source/L._A._Mayer_Institute_for_Islamic_Art), both in Jerusalem. The Rockefeller specialises in archaeological remains from Middle East history. It is also the home of the first hominid fossil skull found in West Asia, called [Galilee Man](/source/Galilee_Man).{{cite book|url={{Google books|4Z0YrPfeHa8C|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Through the Ages in Palestinian Archaeology: An Introductory Handbook |page=50|first=Walter E.|last=Rast|year=1992|isbn=978-1-56338-055-6|publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group}} "Galilee man" (lowercase "m") in this source is a typo – ref. [Solo Man](/source/Solo_Man), [Peking Man](/source/Peking_Man) and so forth. ===Mass media=== {{Main|Mass media in Israel}} Notable newspapers include the left-wing ''[Haaretz](/source/Haaretz)'',{{cite web |date=16 September 2008 |title=Israel — Hebrew- and English-Language Media Guide |url=https://fas.org/irp/dni/osc/israelmedia.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508142637/https://fas.org/irp/dni/osc/israelmedia.pdf |archive-date=8 May 2021 |access-date=15 July 2022 |publisher=Open Source Center}} centrist ''[Yedioth Ahronoth](/source/Yedioth_Ahronoth)'',{{Cite web |date=25 February 2005 |title=Israeli Newspaper Brawl Moving to the Internet |url=https://forward.com/news/2979/israeli-newspaper-brawl-moving-to-the-internet/ |access-date=24 July 2024 |website=The Forward |language=en}} and center-right ''[Israel Hayom](/source/Israel_Hayom)''.{{cite book |title=Historical Dictionary of Israel |date=2016 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |isbn=978-1-4422-7185-2 |editor1=Bernard Reich |page=271 |editor2=David H. Goldberg}} There are several major television channels which cater to different audiences, from Russian-language [Channel 9](/source/Israel_Plus)Russian TV channel Israel Plus sees loss, Haaretz, 2 December 2013 to Arabic-language [Kan 33](/source/Kan_33).{{Cite news |last=Tucker |first=Nati |date=12 September 2019 |title=Israel's Only Private Arabic TV Channel Thrives After Help From Surprising Ally |work=Haaretz}} The 2024 Freedom House report found Israeli media is "vibrant and free to criticise government policy".{{Cite web |title=Israel: Freedom in the World 2024 Country Report |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/israel/freedom-world/2024 |access-date=24 July 2024 |website=Freedom House |language=en}} In the 2024 [Press Freedom Index](/source/Press_Freedom_Index) by [Reporters Without Borders](/source/Reporters_Without_Borders), Israel was placed 112th of 180 countries, second in the Middle East and North Africa.{{cite web |date=2024 |title=2024 World Press Freedom Index |url=https://rsf.org/en/index?year=2024 |access-date=30 May 2024 |publisher=Reporters Without Borders}}{{cite web |date=2024 |title=Middle East – North Africa Journalism throttled by political pressure |url=https://rsf.org/en/classement/2024/middle-east-north-africa |access-date=30 May 2024 |publisher=Reporters Without Borders}} Reporters Without Borders reported that the Israel Defence Forces had killed more than 100 Palestinian journalists in Gaza. During the 2023 Gaza war, Israel has been alleged to be "trying to suppress the reporting coming out of the besieged enclave while disinformation infiltrates its own media ecosystem". In May 2024, Israel shut down the local offices of [Al Jazeera](/source/Al_Jazeera).{{Cite news |last=Sharon |first=Jeremy |date=7 May 2024 |title=Shin Bet report that led to closure of Al Jazeera is 'classified,' won't be released |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/shin-bet-report-that-led-to-closure-of-al-jazeera-is-classified-wont-be-released/ |work=Times of Israel}} In 2024, according to the [Committee to Protect Journalists](/source/Committee_to_Protect_Journalists), Israel was the second leading country in jailing journalists,{{cite web |author= |date=16 January 2025 |title=Journalist jailings near record high in 2024 as crackdown on press freedom grows |url=https://cpj.org/2025/01/journalist-jailings-near-record-high-in-2024-as-crackdown-on-press-freedom-grows/ |website=[Committee to Protect Journalists](/source/Committee_to_Protect_Journalists) |access-date=27 May 2025}} and responsible for the majority of journalists killed in the world.{{cite web |author= |date=12 February 2025 |title=2024 is deadliest year for journalists in CPJ history; almost 70% killed by Israel |url=https://cpj.org/special-reports/2024-is-deadliest-year-for-journalists-in-cpj-history-almost-70-percent-killed-by-israel/ |website=[Committee to Protect Journalists](/source/Committee_to_Protect_Journalists) |access-date=27 May 2025}} ===Cuisine=== {{Main|Israeli cuisine}} [[File:Food in Israel.jpg|thumb|A meal including [falafel](/source/falafel), [hummus](/source/hummus), [French fries](/source/French_fries) and [Israeli salad](/source/Israeli_salad)]] Israeli cuisine includes local dishes as well as [Jewish cuisine](/source/Jewish_cuisine) brought to the country by immigrants. Particularly since the late 1970s, a [fusion cuisine](/source/fusion_cuisine) has developed. The cuisine has adapted elements of the [Mizrahi](/source/Mizrahi_Jewish_cuisine), [Sephardi](/source/Sephardic_Jewish_cuisine), and [Ashkenazi](/source/Ashkenazi_cuisine) styles of cooking. It incorporates many foods traditionally eaten in the [Levantine](/source/Levantine_cuisine), [Arab](/source/Arab_cuisine), [Middle Eastern](/source/Middle_Eastern_cuisine) and [Mediterranean](/source/Mediterranean_cuisine) cuisines, such as [falafel](/source/falafel), [hummus](/source/hummus), [shakshouka](/source/shakshouka), [couscous](/source/couscous), and [za'atar](/source/za'atar). [Schnitzel](/source/Schnitzel), [pizza](/source/pizza), [hamburger](/source/hamburger)s, [French fries](/source/French_fries), [rice](/source/rice) and [salad](/source/salad) are common. [Ptitim](/source/Israeli_couscous) (Israeli couscous) is a notable Israeli food invented in the 1950s due to rice shortages during the [austerity period](/source/Austerity_in_Israel).{{cite book |last=Gur |first=Janna |title=The Book of New Israeli Food: A Culinary Journey |publisher=Schocken Books |year=2008 |chapter=Simple Pleasures |page=127 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zkbGpxM6QYgC&pg=PA127 |isbn=978-0805212242}} Roughly half of the Jewish population attests to keeping [kosher](/source/kosher) at home.Uzi Rebhun, Lilakh Lev Ari, [https://books.google.com/books?id=CG-WQZDJdo8C&pg=PA113 ''American Israelis: Migration, Transnationalism, and Diasporic Identity,''] Brill, 2010 pp. 112–113.{{harvnb|Bernstein|2010|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=FYXlAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA227 227], [https://books.google.com/books?id=FYXlAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA233 233–234]}} [Kosher restaurant](/source/Kosher_restaurant)s make up around a quarter of the total {{As of|2015|lc=y}}.Yael Raviv, [https://books.google.com/books?id=KjuYCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT119 ''Falafel Nation,''] University of Nebraska Press, 2015 Pork—often called "white meat" in Israel{{harvnb|Bernstein|2010|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=FYXlAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA232 231–233]}}—is produced and consumed despite attempts to ban it; [it is forbidden](/source/Religious_restrictions_on_the_consumption_of_pork) by both Judaism and Islam but is permitted by Christianity and mostly produced in traditionally Christian areas of northern Israel.{{cite news |author=Jeffrey Yoskowitz |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/life/faithbased/2012/08/israel_s_pork_problem_and_what_it_means_for_the_country_s_christian_arabs_.single.html|work=[Slate](/source/Slate_(magazine))|title=Israel's Pork Problem|date=8 August 2012 |access-date=28 December 2015}}{{cite news |last1=Rubin |first1=Shira |title=Land of Pork and Honey |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2015/06/pork-in-israel-how-russian-immigrants-and-hipster-foodies-are-challenging-the-holy-lands-cultural-taboos.html |access-date=31 May 2025 |work=Slate |date=19 June 2015}} Other non-kosher foods produced and eaten in Israel include rabbits, ostriches, and non-kosher fish. ===Sports=== {{Main|Sport in Israel}} [[File:ירוק עולה.jpg|thumb|[Maccabi Haifa F.C.](/source/Maccabi_Haifa_F.C.) fans at [Sammy Ofer Stadium](/source/Sammy_Ofer_Stadium) in the city of Haifa]] The most popular spectator sports in Israel are association football and basketball.{{sfn|Torstrick|2004|p=141}} The [Israeli Premier League](/source/Israeli_Premier_League) is the country's premier football league, and the [Israeli Basketball Premier League](/source/Israeli_Basketball_Premier_League) is the premier basketball league.{{cite web |url=http://www.basket.co.il/Data.asp?id=1&lang=en |publisher=Winner Basketball Super League |title=Basketball Super League Profile |access-date=13 August 2007 }} [Maccabi Haifa](/source/Maccabi_Haifa_F.C.), [Maccabi Tel Aviv](/source/Maccabi_Tel_Aviv_F.C.), [Hapoel Tel Aviv](/source/Hapoel_Tel_Aviv_F.C.) and [Beitar Jerusalem](/source/Beitar_Jerusalem_F.C.) are the largest [football clubs](/source/List_of_football_clubs_in_Israel). Maccabi Tel Aviv, Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Tel Aviv have competed in the [UEFA Champions League](/source/UEFA_Champions_League) and Hapoel Tel Aviv reached the [UEFA Cup](/source/UEFA_Cup) quarter-finals. Israel hosted and won the [1964 AFC Asian Cup](/source/1964_AFC_Asian_Cup); in 1970 the [Israel national football team](/source/Israel_national_football_team) qualified for the [FIFA World Cup](/source/1970_FIFA_World_Cup), the only time it participated. The [1974 Asian Games](/source/1974_Asian_Games), held in Tehran, were the last Asian Games in which Israel [participated](/source/Israel_at_the_Asian_Games), plagued by Arab countries that [refused to compete](/source/Boycotts_of_Israel_in_sports) with Israel. Israel was excluded from the [1978 Asian Games](/source/1978_Asian_Games) and since then has not competed in Asian sport events.{{cite web |url=https://www.jta.org/1976/07/26/archive/israel-barred-from-asian-games |title=Israel Barred from Asian Games |publisher=Jewish Telegraphic Agency |date=26 July 1976 |access-date=11 April 2014}} In 1994, [UEFA](/source/UEFA) agreed to admit Israel, and its football teams now compete in Europe. [Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C.](/source/Maccabi_Tel_Aviv_B.C.) has won the [European championship](/source/FIBA_European_Champions_Cup_and_EuroLeague_records_and_statistics) in basketball six times.{{cite web|url=http://www.euroleague.net/final-four/milan-2014/maccabi-electra-tel-aviv |title=Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv – Welcome to EUROLEAGUE BASKETBALL |access-date=30 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625083458/http://www.euroleague.net/final-four/milan-2014/maccabi-electra-tel-aviv |archive-date=25 June 2014 }} Israel has won [20 Olympic medals](/source/Israel_at_the_Olympics) since its first win [in 1992](/source/1992_Summer_Olympics), including a gold medal in [windsurfing](/source/Sailing_at_the_2004_Summer_Olympics_%E2%80%93_Men's_Mistral_One_Design) at the [2004 Summer Olympics](/source/2004_Summer_Olympics),{{cite web |url=http://www.olympic.org/israel |publisher=International Olympic Committee |title=Israel |access-date=20 March 2012}} and seven medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.{{Cite web |title=Paris 2024 Olympics : Medals Table of Israel |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/en/sport/jo-2024/medals/israel/ |access-date=28 April 2025 |website=Le Monde.fr |language=en-US}} Israel has won [over 100](/source/Israel_at_the_Paralympics) gold medals in the [Paralympic Games](/source/Paralympic_Games) and is ranked 20th in the [all-time medal count](/source/All-time_Paralympic_Games_medal_table). The [1968 Summer Paralympics](/source/1968_Summer_Paralympics) were hosted by Israel.{{cite web |url=http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games/tel-aviv-1968 |title=Tel Aviv 1968 |publisher=International Paralympic Committee |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320024849/http://www.paralympic.org/paralympic-games/tel-aviv-1968 |archive-date=20 March 2012 }} The [Maccabiah Games](/source/Maccabiah_Games), an Olympic-style event for [Jewish](/source/List_of_Jews_in_sports) and Israeli athletes, has been held every four years since the 1930s. [Krav Maga](/source/Krav_Maga), a martial art developed by Jewish ghetto defenders, is used by the Israeli security forces and police.{{cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,988284,00.html|url-access=subscription|title=Choke! Gouge! Smash!|last=Ellis|first=Judy|magazine=[Time](/source/Time_(magazine))|date=4 May 1998|access-date=1 January 2017}}{{Dead link|date=May 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }} [Chess](/source/Chess) is a leading sport. There are many Israeli grandmasters and [Israeli chess players](/source/List_of_Israeli_chess_players) have won a number of youth world championships.{{cite news | url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/pawn-stars-shine-in-new-national-sport-1.317002 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101007154255/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/pawn-stars-shine-in-new-national-sport-1.317002 | url-status=dead | archive-date=7 October 2010 | title=Pawn stars shine in new 'national sport' | newspaper=Haaretz | access-date=21 May 2012| date=4 October 2010 }} Israel stages an annual international [championship](/source/Israeli_Chess_Championship) and hosted the [World Team Chess Championship](/source/World_Team_Chess_Championship) in 2005. ==See also== * [Outline of Israel](/source/Outline_of_Israel) ==Notes== {{Reflist|group=fn}} {{notelist}} ==References== {{reflist}} ===Sources=== {{Refbegin|30em}} * {{cite book |title=Israel's Quest for Recognition and Acceptance in Asia: Garrison State Diplomacy|last=Abadi|first=Jacob|isbn=978-0-7146-5576-5|publisher=Routledge|year=2004}} *{{cite web| title = Al-Haq Launches Landmark Palestinian Coalition Report: 'Israeli Apartheid: Tool of Zionist Settler Colonialism' | publisher = [Al-Haq](/source/Al-Haq) | url = https://www.alhaq.org/advocacy/20931.html | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240127194531/https://www.alhaq.org/advocacy/20931.html | date = 29 November 2022 | access-date = 7 March 2024 | archive-date = 27 January 2024 | ref = {{harvid|Al-Haq|2022}}}} *{{cite web| title = Israel's apartheid against Palestinians |author=Amnesty International |author-link1=Amnesty International | publisher = [Amnesty International](/source/Amnesty_International) |url = https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2022/02/israels-system-of-apartheid/ | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231107210818/https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2022/02/israels-system-of-apartheid/ | date = 1 February 2022 | access-date = 7 March 2024 | archive-date = 7 November 2023 |ref = {{harvid|Amnesty International|2022}}}} * {{cite book|last=Avineri|first=Shlomo|author-link =Shlomo Avineri|title=The Making of Modern Zionism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N1UovgAACAAJ&pg=PA|year=2017|publisher=Basic Books |isbn=978-0-465-09479-0}} * {{cite book|title=The Original Story: God, Israel and the World|last1=Barton|first1=John|last2=Bowden|first2=Julie |author-link=John Barton (theologian)|isbn=978-0-8028-2900-9|publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company|year=2004}} * {{cite book | last = Bascomb | first = Neal | author-link = Neal Bascomb | title = Hunting Eichmann: How a Band of Survivors and a Young Spy Agency Chased Down the World's Most Notorious Nazi | year = 2009 | publisher = Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |isbn=978-0-618-85867-5 | title-link = Hunting Eichmann }} * {{cite book | last=Ben-Ami | first=Shlomo | title=Scars of war, wounds of peace: the Israeli-Arab tragedy | publisher=Oxford University Press | publication-place=Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town | date=2007 | isbn=978-0-19-532542-3}} * {{cite book |title=A History of the Jewish People |last=Ben-Sasson |first=Hayim |year=1985 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-39731-6}} * {{cite book |last=Bernstein |first=Julia |year=2010 |title=Food for Thought: Transnational Contested Identities and Food Practices of Russian-Speaking Jewish Migrants in Israel and Germany |publisher=Campus Verlag |isbn=978-3-593-39252-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FYXlAgAAQBAJ}} * {{cite book|title=A History of Israel|last=Bregman|first=Ahron |isbn=978-0-333-67631-8|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|year=2002 |author-link=Ahron Bregman |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofisrael0000breg}} * {{cite book|last1=Broughton|first1=Simon|last2=Ellingham |first2=Mark|last3=Trillo|first3=Richard|year=1999|title=World Music: The Rough Guide |isbn=978-1-85828-635-8|publisher=Rough Guides |url=https://archive.org/details/roughguidetoworl00simo}} *{{cite web| title = Apartheid |author=B'Tselem |author-link1=B'Tselem |publisher = [B'Tselem](/source/B'Tselem) |url = https://www.btselem.org/apartheid | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240126010520/https://www.btselem.org/apartheid | date = 12 January 2021 | access-date = 27 January 2024 | archive-date = 26 January 2024 | ref = {{harvid|B'Tselem|2021}}}} * {{Cite report|author=B'Tselem |author-link1=B'Tselem |date=July 2025 |title=Our Genocide |url=https://www.btselem.org/sites/default/files/publications/202507_our_genocide_eng.pdf}} * {{cite book|title=Holocaust City: The Making of a Jewish Ghetto|last=Cole|first=Tim|isbn=978-0-415-92968-4|year=2003 |publisher=Routledge}} * {{cite book|last=Dieckhoff|first=Alain| title=The Invention of a Nation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1m_w5J0X7lUC&pg=PA|year=2003|publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-12766-0}} * {{cite book |chapter=Introduction |last1=Dumper |first1=Michael |last2=Badran |first2=Amneh |doi=10.4324/9781003031994 |title=Routledge Handbook on Palestine |date=2024 |editor-last1=Dumper |editor-first1=Michael |editor-last2=Badran |editor-first2=Amneh |isbn=978-1-003-03199-4 |edition=1st |publisher=Routledge }} * {{cite book |last1=Faust |first1=Avraham |chapter=The Exodus Group |editor-last1=Levy |editor-first1=Thomas E. |editor-last2=Schneider |editor-first2=Thomas |editor-last3=Propp |editor-first3=William H. C. |title=Israel's Exodus in Transdisciplinary Perspective: Text, Archaeology, Culture, and Geoscience |date=28 March 2015 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-319-04768-3 |language=en}} * {{cite book |last1=Finkelstein |first1=Israel |last2=Silberman |first2=Neil Asher |title=The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Sacred Texts |date=6 March 2002 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-0-7432-2338-6 |language=en}} * {{cite book | last=Finkelstein | first=Norman | title=Gaza | publisher=Univ of California Press | publication-place=Oakland, California | date=9 January 2018 | isbn=978-0-520-96838-7}} * {{cite book | last=Fischbach | first=Michael | title=Jewish Property Claims Against Arab Countries | publisher=Columbia University Press | year=2008 |isbn=978-0-231-51781-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=38xyBIqKgkwC&pg=PA27 }} * {{cite book|last=Fraser|first=T.G.|title=The Arab-Israeli Conflict|url={{Google books|IBJrQgAACAAJ|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|access-date=12 May 2013|year=2004|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan Limited|isbn=978-1-4039-1338-8}} * {{cite book|title=The Israel-Palestine Conflict: One Hundred Years of War|last=Gelvin|first=James L.|author-link=James L. Gelvin |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2005|isbn=978-0-521-85289-0}} * {{cite book|title=The Routledge Atlas Of The Arab–Israeli conflict|last=Gilbert|first=Martin|isbn=978-0-415-35900-9|year=2005 |publisher=Routledge|edition=8th}} * {{cite book|title=The Climate of Israel: Observation, Research and Application|last=Goldreich|first=Yair|isbn=978-0-306-47445-3|year=2003 |publisher=Springer}} * {{cite book|title=Warfare and the Third World|last1=Harkavy|first1=Robert E.|last2=Neuman|first2=Stephanie G.|year=2001|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-0-312-24012-7}} * {{cite book|title=Brassey's International Intelligence Yearbook|edition=2003|last=Henderson|first=Robert D'A.|publisher=Brassey's Inc. |year=2003|isbn=978-1-57488-550-7}} * {{cite book|title=The Jewish State|last=Herzl|first=Theodor|author-link=Theodor Herzl|publisher=American Zionist Emergency Council |year=1946|isbn=978-0-486-25849-2}} * {{cite journal |last=Imseis |first=Ardi |date=Winter 2021 |title=The United Nations Plan of Partition for Palestine Revisited: On the Origins of Palestine's International Legal Subalternality |journal=Stanford Journal of International Law |volume=57 |issue=1 |pages=1–54 |url=https://law.queensu.ca/sites/lawwww/files/files/Professors/UN%20Plan%20of%20Partition%20Revisited.pdf}} * {{cite book|title=Society and Settlement: Jewish Land of Israel in the Twentieth Century|last=Kellerman|first=Aharon|year=1993 |publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-1295-4 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/societysettlemen0000kell}} * {{cite book |last=Killebrew |first=Ann E. |title=Biblical Peoples and Ethnicity: An Archaeological Study of Egyptians, Canaanites, Philistines, and Early Israel, 1300-1100 B.C.E. |publisher=Society of Biblical Literature |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-58983-097-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VtAmmwapfVAC}} * {{cite book|title=Theodor Herzl: From Assimilation to Zionism|last=Kornberg|first=Jacques|isbn=978-0-253-33203-5 |publisher=Indiana University Press|year=1993}} * {{cite book|title=For the Land and the Lord: Jewish Fundamentalism in Israel|last=Lustick|first=Ian|isbn=978-0-87609-036-7 |publisher=Council on Foreign Relations Press|year=1988 |url=https://archive.org/details/forlandlordjewis0000lust}} * {{cite book |chapter=The 1967 War and the Conquest of Palestine |last1=Mansour |first1=Awad |doi=10.4324/9781003031994 |title=Routledge Handbook on Palestine |date=2024 |editor-last1=Dumper |editor-first1=Michael |editor-last2=Badran |editor-first2=Amneh |isbn=978-1-003-03199-4 |edition=1st |publisher=Routledge }} * {{cite book|title=Israel's Higher Law: Religion and Liberal Democracy in the Jewish State|last=Mazie|first=Steven |publisher=Lexington Books |year=2006|isbn=978-0-7391-1485-8}} * {{cite book |last=Morris |first=Benny |author-link=Benny Morris |date=2008 |title=1948: A History of the First Arab–Israeli War |url={{Google books|J5jtAAAAMAAJ|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-14524-3}} * {{cite book|title=Triumph of the File: The Media's War in the Persian Gulf — A Global Perspective|last1=Mowlana|first1=Hamid |last2=Gerbner|first2=George|last3=Schiller|first3=Herbert I.|year=1992|publisher=Westview Press|isbn=978-0-8133-1610-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/triumphofimageme0000unse}} * {{cite report |author-link=OECD|author=OECD|date=2011 |title=Study on the Geographic Coverage of Israeli Data |publisher=OECD |url=https://www.oecd.org/els/48442642.pdf}} * {{cite book |last1=Redmount |first1=Carol A. |chapter=The Literary and Historical Character of the Exodus Narrative |editor-last1=Coogan |editor-first1=Michael D. |title=The Oxford History of the Biblical World |date=7 June 2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-988148-2 |language=en}} * {{cite journal|last=Roberts|first=Adam|author-link=Adam Roberts (scholar)|title=Prolonged Military Occupation: The Israeli-Occupied Territories Since 1967|journal=The American Journal of International Law|volume=84|issue=1|year=1990|pages=44–103 |doi=10.2307/2203016 |jstor=2203016 |s2cid=145514740}} * {{cite book|title=A Historical Atlas of Israel|last=Romano |first=Amy|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|year=2003 |isbn=978-0-8239-3978-7 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/historicalatlaso0000roma_r5h5}} * {{cite book|title=The Economic Consequences of Zionism|last=Rosenzweig|first=Rafael|year=1997|publisher=Brill Academic Publishers|isbn=978-90-04-09147-4}} * {{cite book|title=Understanding Jewish History|last=Scharfstein|first=Sol|isbn=978-0-88125-545-4|year=1996|publisher=KTAV Publishing House}} * {{cite book|title=1967: Israel, the War, and the Year that Transformed the Middle East|last=Segev|first=Tom|isbn=978-0-8050-7057-6|year=2007 |publisher=Henry Holt and Company}} * {{cite book |title=Palestine: A Guide |last=Shahin |first=Mariam |year=2005 |publisher=Interlink Books |isbn=978-1-56656-557-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/palestine00mari}} *{{Cite report| title = A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution | last = Shakir | first = Omar | publisher = [Human Rights Watch](/source/Human_Rights_Watch) | url = https://www.hrw.org/report/2021/04/27/threshold-crossed/israeli-authorities-and-crimes-apartheid-and-persecution | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230117152618/https://www.hrw.org/report/2021/04/27/threshold-crossed/israeli-authorities-and-crimes-apartheid-and-persecution | date = 27 April 2021 | access-date = 9 January 2024 | archive-date = 17 January 2023}} * {{cite book|last=Shimoni| first =Gideon|title=The Zionist ideology|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nthtAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA|year=1995|publisher=[University Press of New England](/source/University_Press_of_New_England)/[Brandeis University Press](/source/Brandeis_University_Press) |isbn=978-0-87451-703-3}} * {{cite book|title=The Land Beyond Promise: Israel, Likud and the Zionist Dream|last=Shindler|first=Colin |isbn=978-1-86064-774-1|year=2002 |publisher=I.B.Tauris Publishers}} * {{cite journal |last1=Shlay |first1=Anne B. |last2=Rosen |first2=Gillad |title=Making Place: The Shifting Green Line and the Development of "Greater" Metropolitan Jerusalem |journal=City & Community |date=December 2010 |volume=9 |issue=4 |pages=358–389 |doi=10.1111/j.1540-6040.2010.01344.x |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1540-6040.2010.01344.x |language=en |issn=1535-6841|url-access=subscription }} * {{cite book|title=Deterring America: Rogue States and the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction|isbn=978-0-521-86465-7 |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2006|last=Smith|first=Derek |url=https://archive.org/details/deterringamerica0000smit}} * {{cite book|title=The Hope Fulfilled: The Rise of Modern Israel|last=Stein|first=Leslie|year=2003|publisher=Greenwood Press|isbn=978-0-275-97141-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/hopefulfilledris00lesl}} * {{cite book|title=The Arabs in Israel|last=Stendel|first=Ori|isbn=978-1-898723-23-3|year=1997|publisher=Sussex Academic Press |url=https://archive.org/details/arabsinisrael00sten}} * {{cite book|title=Critical Essays on Israeli Social Issues and Scholarship|last1=Stone|first1=Russell A.|last2=Zenner|first2=Walter P. |isbn=978-0-7914-1959-5|publisher=SUNY Press|year=1994}} * {{cite book|title=Culture and Customs of Israel|last=Torstrick|first=Rebecca L.|isbn=978-0-313-32091-0|year=2004|publisher=Greenwood Press}} * {{cite report |author=University Network for Human Rights; International Human Rights Clinic, Cornell Law School; International Human Rights Clinic, Boston University School of Law |date=15 May 2025 |title=Apartheid In Israel: An Analysis of Israel's Laws and Policies and The Responsibilities of US Academic and Other Institutions |url=https://www.humanrightsnetwork.org/publications/apartheid-in-israel-gaza-west-bank-universities |publisher=University Network for Human Rights |ref={{harvid|University Network for Human Rights|2025}} }} {{Refend}} ==External links== {{Sister project links |s=Portal:Israel |b=Wikijunior:Countries_A-Z/Israel |voy=Israel |d=Q801 |m=Category:Israel}} * {{official website|https://www.gov.il/en/departments/prime_ministers_office/govil-landing-page}} of the [Israel Prime Minister's Office](/source/Prime_Minister's_Office_(Israel)) * {{official website|https://www.cbs.gov.il/en/Pages/default.aspx}} of the [Israel Central Bureau of Statistics](/source/Israel_Central_Bureau_of_Statistics) * [https://www.nli.org.il/en/discover/israel The Israel Collection] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030104706/https://www.nli.org.il/en/discover/israel |date=30 October 2023 }} at the [National Library of Israel](/source/National_Library_of_Israel) * [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14628835 Israel] at [BBC News Online](/source/BBC_News_Online) * [https://www.oecd.org/israel/ Israel] at the [OECD](/source/OECD) * {{GovPubs|Israel}} * {{Wikiatlas}} * {{OSM relation|1473946}} {{Israel topics}} {{navboxes |list= {{Middle East}} {{Countries and territories of the Mediterranean Sea}} {{Countries of Asia}} {{States with limited recognition}} {{Zionism and the Land of Israel}} }} {{Portal bar|Israel|Judaism|Countries|Asia}} {{Authority control}} {{coord|31|N|35|E|region:IL_type:country|display=title}} Category:Israel Category:Articles containing video clips Category:Countries and territories where Arabic is an official language Category:Countries in Asia Category:Eastern Mediterranean Category:Jewish polities Category:Levant Category:Member states of the Union for the Mediterranean Category:Member states of the United Nations Category:Political entities in the Land of Israel Category:Republics Category:States and territories established in 1948 Category:States with limited recognition Category:Countries in West Asia --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Israel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.