[274] The Christian population is composed primarily of Arab Christians and Aramean Christians, but also includes post-Soviet immigrants, the foreign laborers of multinational origins, and followers of Messianic Judaism, considered by most Christians and Jews to be a form of Christianity. The IDF consists of the army, air force and navy. [647], Israeli literature is primarily poetry and prose written in Hebrew, as part of the renaissance of Hebrew as a spoken language since the mid-19th century, although a small body of literature is published in other languages, such as English. The proposed state included the entirety of the Gaza Strip and over 90% of the West Bank with Jerusalem as a shared capital. [287][288], At the other extreme, mountainous regions can be windy and cold, and areas at elevation of 750 metres (2,460ft) or more (same elevation as Jerusalem) will usually receive at least one snowfall each year. [342] More than one million Russian-speaking immigrants arrived in Israel from the post-Soviet states between 1990 and 2004. [517] Israel's foreign aid programme subsequently shifted its focus to Latin America. [48], A people named Israel appear for the first time in the Merneptah Stele, an ancient Egyptian inscription which dates to about 1200 BCE. [214], In May 1967, Egypt massed its army near the border with Israel, expelled UN peacekeepers, stationed in the Sinai Peninsula since 1957, and blocked Israel's access to the Red Sea. [201][202][203] The war, known as the Suez Crisis, resulted in significant reduction of Israeli border infiltration. 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. Long an object of veneration and conflict, the holy city of Jerusalem has been governed, both as a provincial town and a national capital, by an extended series of dynasties and states. Wagner's network in Africa faces uncertain future, Prigozhin's soldiers rage while others cry conspiracy, How one temple feeds 100,000 people a day. Premium Israel considers "complete and united" Jerusalem as its capital. The earliest surveys and excavations in Jerusalem were conducted in the 19th century, mainly by European Christians such as the French scholars Louis Flicien de Saulcy and Charles Clermont-Ganneau and the Englishman Sir Charles Warren, who were inspired by the wish to identify locations mentioned in the Bible. Israel has signed peace treaties with Egypt, returning the Sinai Peninsula, and with Jordan, and more recently normalized relations with several Arab countries, though efforts to resolve the IsraeliPalestinian conflict have not succeeded. Israel has applied civilian law to both areas and granted their inhabitants permanent residency status and the ability to apply for citizenship. The struggle between pro-Roman and pro-Parthian factions in Judea led to the installation of Herod the Great as a dynastic vassal of Rome. Tens of thousands of Jews in Arab countries left their homes because of the 1948 war as well, pushed by a combination of anti-Semitic feeling and legislation, religious feeling, Zionist activity, economic factors, the end of colonial rule, and other reasons.The decision to leave varied by circumstance, as well as by country and social class. [18] [fn 5] Before Jerusalem There Was Hebron - King David's First Capital [611][612][613] The Israeli model was being studied by several countries and being implemented in Denmark and Australia. [567] Israel was also ranked fifth in the world by share of people in high-skilled employment. ], The international community widely regards Israeli settlements in the occupied territories illegal under international law. In its Basic Laws, Israel defines itself as a Jewish and democratic state, and as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Israel has a history of providing emergency foreign aid and humanitarian response teams to disasters across the world. The country of Israel is located in the Middle East, and it borders Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. [254] Ehud Barak, elected Prime Minister in 1999, began the new millennium by withdrawing forces from Southern Lebanon and conducting negotiations with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat and U.S. President Bill Clinton at the 2000 Camp David Summit. Km., by Metropolitan Area and Selected Localities", 2.22 Localities and Population, by Municipal Status and District, "New town Harish harbors hopes of being more than another Pleasantville", "Population of Jerusalem, by Age, Religion and Geographical Spreading, 2019", "Israel may admit 3,000 Ethiopia migrants if Jews", "Israel's welcome for Ethiopian Jews wears thin", "Study: Soviet immigrants outperform Israeli students", "English programs at Israeli universities and colleges", "Population in Israel and in Jerusalem, by Religion, 1988 - 2016", "In Israel, Jews are united by homeland but divided into very different groups", "Israel's Christian population numbers 148,000 as of Christmas Eve", "Israel's disputatious Avigdor Lieberman: Can the coalition hold together? Despite public outrage, Israel heeded American calls to refrain from hitting back and did not participate in that war. [571] It is the world leader for number of start-ups per capita. In the second Book of Samuel, we read: All the tribes of Israelcame to David at Hebron and said, We are your own flesh and blood. In 1956, the United Kingdom and France aimed at regaining control of the Suez Canal, which the Egyptians had nationalized. A new era has begun. [278] East of the central highlands lies the Jordan Rift Valley, which forms a small part of the 6,500-kilometer (4,039mi) Great Rift Valley. [471] In 2022, Michael Lynk, a Canadian law professor appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council said that the situation met the legal definition of apartheid. S. Richard, "Archaeological sources for the history of Palestine: The Early Bronze Age: The rise and collapse of urbanism", Mark Smith in "The Early History of God: Yahweh and Other Deities of Ancient Israel" states "Despite the long regnant model that the Canaanites and Israelites were people of fundamentally different culture, archaeological data now casts doubt on this view. Ancient Samaria and Jerusalem - Biblical Archaeology Society [318][319] 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 percent every year, with over 25% of school children now originating from both communities. [250] In November 1995, Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated as he left a peace rally by Yigal Amir, a far-right Jew who opposed the Accords.[251]. [607][608] Over 90% of Israeli homes use solar energy for hot water, the highest per capita in the world. Why Jews and Muslims Both Have Religious Claims on Jerusalem The strained relationship between the two groups divides the city. [23] The first Arab-led party was established in 1988[393] and as of 2022, Arab-led parties hold about 10% of the parliament's seats. In addition, Israeli universities offer courses in the English language on various subjects. [641] Arab influences are present in many cultural spheres,[642][643] such as architecture,[644] music,[645] and cuisine. Israel's Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty seeks to defend human rights and liberties in Israel. [668], The Israel Museum in Jerusalem is one of Israel's most important cultural institutions[669] and houses the Dead Sea Scrolls,[670] along with an extensive collection of Judaica and European art. Alongside this population decline, there was a steady process of Arabization and Islamization brought on by non-Muslim emigration, Muslim immigration, and local conversion to Islam. The First Intifada, a Palestinian uprising against Israeli rule,[239] broke out in 1987, with waves of uncoordinated demonstrations and violence occurring in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. [577][578] Israel is first in the world in expenditure on research and development as a percentage of GDP. [149][150] The attack initially had the approval of the Haganah. Between 2005 and 2012, Israel had imported gas from Egypt via the al-ArishAshkelon pipeline, which was terminated due to Egyptian Crisis of 201114. Israel's sole official language is Hebrew. Jerusalem, the capital of the Jewish People for 3000 years, is located at the center of the Land of Israel, at the intersection of a number of ancient commerce routes. [586][587][588] Israel has produced six Nobel Prize-winning scientists since 2004[589] and has been frequently ranked as one of the countries with the highest ratios of scientific papers per capita in the world. [478] Six out of twenty-two nations in the Arab League have normalized relations with Israel. The public secular is the largest school group, and is attended by the majority of Jewish and non-Arab pupils in Israel. [22], The country has a parliamentary system, proportional representation, and universal suffrage. It has remained Israel's capital ever since,. Generations later, when David lamented the death of King Saul and Sauls son Jonathan, the young king consulted the Lord (2 Sam. [184][185], 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 (lit. Israel's practices in its occupation of the Palestinian territories have drawn international condemnation for violating the human rights of the Palestinians. During both stages of the 1948 Palestine war, over 700,000 Palestinian Arabs were expelled from or fled Israeli territory to the West Bank, Gaza, and the neighboring Arab countries, with fewer than 150,000 Palestinian Arabs remaining within Israel. What is the significance of the city of Jerusalem? [124] In 1896, Herzl published Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State), offering his vision of a future Jewish state; the following year he presided over the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. In February 1947, the British referred the Palestine issue to the newly formed United Nations. But these stone blocks are just the outside setting. [363] In 2010, it joined the OECD. [66]:308, In 332 BCE, Alexander the Great of Macedon conquered the region as part of his campaign against the Persian Empire. (Jacobs second wife, Rachel, who died young, was buried near Bethlehem.). Jerusalem was the capital of King David's Israel in the Hebrew Bible, as well as the city where David's son Solomon built his temple. [53]:7879 According to the modern archaeological account, the Israelites and their culture branched out of the Canaanite peoples and their cultures through the development of a distinct monolatristicand later monotheisticreligion centered on Yahweh. The (mainly Haredi) city of Bnei Brak is the most densely populated city in Israel and one of the 10 most densely populated cities in the world. The response of the United Nations further complicated the issue when 128 . [601] The country hosts an annual Water Technology and Environmental Control Exhibition & Conference (WATEC) that attracts thousands of people from across the world. The war ended on 25 October with Israel successfully repelling Egyptian and Syrian forces but having suffered over 2,500 soldiers killed in a war which collectively took 1035,000 lives in about 20 days. In times of peace this fact was of little importance, but if the city was under siege, a serious threat of being cut off from the sole water supply arises. 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. [664] In the 2017 Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders, Israel (including "Israel extraterritorial" since 2013 ranking)[665] was placed 91st of 180 countries, first in the Middle East and North Africa region. [606][607][608] Israel had a modern electric car infrastructure involving a countrywide network of charging stations to facilitate the charging and exchange of car batteries. - WorldAtlas What is the Capital of Israel? As Arab militias and gangs attacked Jewish areas, they were faced mainly by the Haganah, as well as the smaller Irgun and Lehi. [166], On 14 May 1948, the day before the expiration of the British Mandate, David Ben-Gurion, the head of the Jewish Agency, declared "the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz-Israel, to be known as the State of Israel. [536] As a result of its conscription programme, the IDF maintains approximately 176,500 active troops and an additional 465,000 reservists, giving Israel one of the world's highest percentage of citizens with military training. In all, there are 77 Israeli localities granted "municipalities" (or "city") status by the Ministry of the Interior,[336] four of which are in the West Bank. [243][244] The following year, Shimon Peres on behalf of Israel, and Mahmoud Abbas for the PLO, signed the Oslo Accords, which gave the Palestinian National Authority the right to govern parts of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Print. Later, David marched on Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:6-10, c. 1000 BC), and he "captured the fortress of Zionwhich is the City of David" from the Jebusites (verse 7). 850 BCE. 2, p. 531. In April 1948, the Haganah moved onto the offensive. The British terminated the Mandate on 14 May 1948, and Israel declared independence that day. This created a problem of access to water at times of war. Being a warrior, he was not permitted to build the Holy Temple himself. [142] At the same time, hundreds of thousands of Jewish Holocaust survivors and refugees sought a new life far from their destroyed communities in Europe. "[151] In the Report of the Committee dated 3 September 1947 to the General Assembly,[152] the majority of the Committee in Chapter VI proposed a plan 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. [301][302][303][304][305] Data published by the OECD in 2016 estimated the average life expectancy of Israelis at 82.5 years, making it the 6th-highest in the world. What Is the Capital of Israel? | National Review [552] Since 1974, the United States has been a particularly notable contributor of military aid to Israel. [247] Arab public support for the Accords was damaged by the continuation of Israeli settlements[248] and checkpoints, and the deterioration of economic conditions. [citation needed], Roughly half of the Israeli-Jewish population attests to keeping kosher at home. The prime minister serves as head of government, and is elected by the Knesset, Israel's unicameral legislature. [115] In 1834, a revolt by Palestinian Arab peasants broke out against Egyptian conscription and taxation policies under Muhammad Ali. American Friends of the Tel Aviv University. [561] Israel has the highest average wealth per adult in the Middle East. In 1917, during World War I, British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour sent the Balfour Declaration to Lord Rothschild, a leader of the British Jewish community, that stated that Britain intended for the creation of a Jewish "national home" in Palestine. [514] In 1955 Israel began its foreign aid programme in Burma. [515] Israel's humanitarian efforts officially began in 1957, with the establishment of Mashav, the Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation. The spring flows out of the ground from the foot of the hill, in the bed of the Kidron brook. [108][107][110][111] The end of the 11th century brought the Crusades, papally-sanctioned incursions of Christian crusaders intent on wresting Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslim control and establishing Crusader States. The area of Beersheba and the Northern Negev have a semi-arid climate with hot summers, cool winters, and fewer rainy days than the Mediterranean climate. [615], Israel began producing natural gas from its own offshore gas fields in 2004. 9,153,000 1 Currency Exchange Rate: 1 USD equals 3.627 Israeli shekel Head Of State: President: Isaac Herzog See all facts & stats Recent News For David, this was of great significance, because this enabled him to conquer the city with royal forces, and, as was customary at the time, retain it as royal property. [137], The Third (191923) and Fourth Aliyahs (192429) brought an additional 100,000 Jews to Palestine. Jacob and his sons had lived in Canaan but were forced by famine to go into Egypt for four generations, lasting 430 years,[37] until Moses, a great-great-grandson of Jacob,[38] led the Israelites back into Canaan during the "Exodus". Tel Aviv-Yafo, Yafo also spelled Jaffa or Joppa, Arabic Yf, major city and economic centre in Israel, situated on the Mediterranean coast some 40 miles (60 km) northwest of Jerusalem. 105107, Laskier, Michael "Egyptian Jewry under the Nasser Regime, 195670" pp. [131][132][133] Arab opposition to British rule and Jewish immigration led to the 1920 Palestine riots and the formation of a Jewish militia known as the Haganah (meaning "The Defense" in Hebrew) as an outgrowth of Hashomer, from which the Irgun and Lehi paramilitaries later split off. [140] The British introduced restrictions on Jewish immigration to Palestine with the White Paper of 1939. Maccabi Tel Aviv, Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Tel Aviv have competed in the UEFA Champions League and Hapoel Tel Aviv reached the UEFA Cup quarter-finals. [219] Jerusalem's boundaries were enlarged, incorporating East Jerusalem, and the 1949 Green Line became the administrative boundary between Israel and the occupied territories. [191] Some new immigrants arrived as refugees with no possessions and were housed in temporary camps known as ma'abarot; by 1952, over 200,000 people were living in these tent cities. [177] The Arab league stated the invasion was to restore law and order and to prevent further bloodshed. [179] Jordan annexed what became known as the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Egypt occupied the Gaza Strip. All the. [564] Israel's quality university education and the establishment of a highly motivated and educated populace is largely responsible for spurring the country's high technology boom and rapid economic development. [530] The Israel Defense Forces have been involved in several major wars and border conflicts in its short history, making it one of the most battle-trained armed forces in the world. [562] The Economist ranked Israel as the 4th most successful economy among the developed countries for 2022. [274] The Bank of Israel holds $201 billion of foreign-exchange reserves, the 17th highest in the world. He legally purchased the site of the Temple. [531], Most Israelis are drafted into the military at the age of 18. [639] High prices do not stop Israelis from buying properties. [295], The Israeli Ministry of Environmental Protection has reported that climate change "will have a decisive impact on all areas of life, including: water, public health, agriculture, energy, biodiversity, coastal infrastructure, economics, nature, national security, and geostrategy", and will have the greatest effect on vulnerable populations such as the poor, the elderly, and the chronically ill.[296], As of 31December2022[update], Israel's population was an estimated 9,656,000. [186] Both groups facilitated regular immigration logistics like arranging transportation, but the latter also engaged in clandestine operations in countries, particularly in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, where the lives of Jews were believed to be in danger and exit from those places was difficult.
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