Israel

• Negev desert in the south;
• low coastal plain;
• central mountains;
• Jordan Rift Valley

agricultural land:

23.8%;

• arable land 13.7%;
• permanent crops 3.8%;
• permanent pasture 6.3%

forest:

7.1%

other:

69.1% (2011 est.)

• population concentrated in and around Tel-Aviv, as well as around the Sea of Galilee;
• the south remains sparsely populated with the exception of the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba

• sandstorms may occur during spring and summer;
• droughts;
• periodic earthquakes

• limited arable land and restricted natural freshwater resources;
• desertification;
• air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions;
• groundwater pollution from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:

Marine Life Conservation

• Lake Tiberias (Sea of Galilee) is an important freshwater source;
• the Dead Sea is the second saltiest body of water in the world (after Lake Assal in Djibouti);
• in 2017, there were 422 settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories - 42 settlements in the Golan Heights, 380 sites in the occupied Palestinian territories to include 213 settlements and 132 outposts in the West Bank, and 35 settlements in East Jerusalem;
• there are no Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, as all were evacuated in 2005 (2017)

noun:

Israeli(s)

adjective:

Israeli

• population concentrated in and around Tel-Aviv, as well as around the Sea of Galilee;
• the south remains sparsely populated with the exception of the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.96 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.81 male(s)/female

total population:

1.01 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

State of Israel

conventional short form:

Israel

local long form:

Medinat Yisra'el

local short form:

Yisra'el

etymology:

• named after the ancient Kingdom of Israel;
• according to Biblical tradition, the Jewish patriarch Jacob received the name "Israel" ("He who struggles with God") after he wrestled an entire night with an angel of the Lord;
• Jacob's 12 sons became the ancestors of the Israelites, also known as the Twelve Tribes of Israel, who formed the Kingdom of Israel

name:

• Jerusalem: note - while Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, the international community does not recognize it as such;
• the US, like all other countries, maintains its embassy in Tel Aviv-Yafo

geographic coordinates:

31 46 N, 35 14 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, Friday before the last Sunday in March; ends the last Sunday in October

history:

no formal constitution; some functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws, and the Law of Return (as amended)

amendments:

• proposed by Government of Israel ministers or by the Knesset;
• passage requires a majority vote of Knesset members and subject to Supreme Court judicial review;
• 11 of the 13 Basic Laws have been amended at least once, latest in 2014 (2016)

• 18 years of age;
• universal;
• 17 years of age for municipal elections

chief of state:

President Reuven RIVLIN (since 27 July 2014)

head of government:

Prime Minister Binyamin NETANYAHU (since 31 March 2009)

cabinet:

Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved by the Knesset

elections/appointments:

• president indirectly elected by the Knesset for a 7-year term (limited to 1 term);
• election last held on 10 June 2014 (next to be held in 2021 but can be called earlier);
• following legislative elections, the president, in consultation with party leaders, tasks a Knesset member (usually the member of the largest party) with forming a government

election results:

Reuven RIVLIN elected president in second round; Knesset vote - Reuven RIVLIN (Likud) 63, Meir SHEETRIT (The Movement) 53, other/invalid 4

description:

unicameral Knesset (120 seats; members directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)

elections:

last held on 17 March 2015 (next to be held by 5 November 2019 but can be called earlier)

election results:

• percent of vote by party - Likud 23.4%, Zionist Camp 18.7%, Joint List 10.5%, Yesh Atid 8.8%, Kulanu 7.5%, The Jewish Home 6.7%, Shas, 5.7%, Yisrael Beitenu 5.1%, UTJ 5.0%, Meretz 3.9%, Yachad 3.0%, other 1.7%;
• seats by party - Likud 30, Zionist Camp 24, Joint List 13, Yesh Atid 11, Kulanu 10, The Jewish Home 8, Shas 7, Yisrael Beitenu 6, UTJ 6, Meretz 5

highest court(s):

Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 14 judges)

judge selection and term of office:

• judges selected by the Judicial Selection Committee consisting of 3 Supreme Court judges, 2 Cabinet members including the Minister of Justice as chairman, 2 Knesset members, and 2 representatives from the Israel Bar Association;
• judges can serve up to mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts:

• Court for Administrative Matters;
• district and magistrate courts;
• national and regional labor courts;
• special and religious courts

• Balad [Jamal ZAHALKA]
• Democratic Front for Peace and Equality or HADASH [Ayman ODEH]
• Israeli Labor Party [Avi GABBAY]
• Joint List [Ayman ODEH] (coalition includes Balad, HADASH, United Arab List, and Ta'al))
• Kulanu [Moshe KAHLON]
• Likud [Binyamin NETANYAHU]
• Meretz [Zehava GALON]
• SHAS [Arye DERI]
• Ta'al (Arab Movement for Renewal) [Ahmad TIBI]
• Tekumah/National Union (Ichud Leumi) [Uri ARIEL]
• The Jewish Home (Habayit Hayehudi) [Naftali BENNETT]
• The Movement (Hatnuah) [Tzipora "Tzipi" LIVNI]
• United Arab List [Masud GANAIM]
• United Torah Judaism or UTJ [Yaakov LITZMAN] (an alliance of three parties)
• Yachad [Eli YISHAI]
• Yesh Atid [Yair LAPID]
• Yisrael Beiteinu [Avigdor LIEBERMAN]

• Breaking the Silence or BtS [Yehuda SHAUL] collects testimonies from soldiers who served in the West Bank and Gaza Strip
• B'Tselem [Hagai EL-AD] (monitors human rights abuses)
• Peace Now [Yariv OPPENHEIMER] (supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip)
• YESHA Council [Avi ROEHD] (promotes settler interests and opposes territorial compromise)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Ron DERMER (since 3 December 2013)

chancery:

3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 364-5500

FAX:

[1] (202) 364-5607

consulate(s) general:

Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco

chief of mission:

Ambassador David FRIEDMAN (since 23 May 2017)

embassy:

71 HaYarkon Street, Tel Aviv 6343229

telephone:

[972] (3) 519-7475

FAX:

[972] (3) 516-4390

consular agent:

Haifa

• white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Star of David or Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag;
• the basic design resembles a traditional Jewish prayer shawl (tallit), which is white with blue stripes;
• the hexagram as a Jewish symbol dates back to medieval times

note: the Israeli flag proclamation states that the flag colors are sky blue and white, but the exact shade of blue has never been set and can vary from a light to a dark blue

name:

"Hatikvah" (The Hope)

lyrics/music:

Naftali Herz IMBER/traditional, arranged by Samuel COHEN

note: adopted 2004, unofficial since 1948; used as the anthem of the Zionist movement since 1897; the 1888 arrangement by Samuel COHEN is thought to be based on the Romanian folk song "Carul cu boi" (The Ox Driven Cart)

agriculture:

1.1%

industry:

17.3%

services:

81.6% (2015 est.)

lowest 10%:

1.7%

highest 10%:

31.3% (2010)

general assessment:

most highly developed system in the Middle East

domestic:

• good system of coaxial cable and microwave radio relay;
• all systems are digital;
• competition among both fixed-line and mobile cellular providers results in good coverage countrywide

international:

• country code - 972;
• submarine cables provide links to Europe, Cyprus, and parts of the Middle East;
• satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) (2015)

• state broadcasting network, operated by the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA), broadcasts on 2 channels, one in Hebrew and the other in Arabic;
• 5 commercial channels including a channel broadcasting in Russian, a channel broadcasting Knesset proceedings, and a music channel supervised by a public body;
• multi-channel satellite and cable TV packages provide access to foreign channels;
• IBA broadcasts on 8 radio networks with multiple repeaters and Israel Defense Forces Radio broadcasts over multiple stations;
• about 15 privately owned radio stations;
• overall more than 100 stations and repeater stations (2008)

number of registered air carriers:

6; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 60

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

6,064,478

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

758,633,996 mt-km (2015)

total:

1,250 km

standard gauge:

1,250 km 1.435-m gauge (2014)

country comparison to the world: 83

total:

18,566 km

paved:

18,566 km (includes 449 km of expressways) (2011)

country comparison to the world: 115

total:

8

by type:

cargo 1, container 7

registered in other countries:

48 (Bermuda 3, Georgia 1, Honduras 1, Liberia 34, Malta 3, Moldova 2, Panama 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3) (2010)

country comparison to the world: 121

major seaport(s):

Ashdod, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa

container port(s) (TEUs):

Ashdod (1,176,000), Haifa (1,238,000)

• 18 years of age for compulsory (Jews, Druze) military service;
• 17 years of age for voluntary (Christians, Muslims, Circassians) military service;
• both sexes are obligated to military service;
• conscript service obligation - 32 months for enlisted men and 24 months for enlisted women (varies based on military occupation), 48 months for officers;
• pilots commit to 9-year service;
• reserve obligation to age 41-51 (men), age 24 (women) (2015)

• West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation;
• Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank;
• Israel withdrew its settlers and military from the Gaza Strip and from four settlements in the West Bank in August 2005;
• Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights);
• since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization headquartered in Jerusalem monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region

refugees (country of origin):

27,812 (Eritrea) (2016)

stateless persons:

42 (2016)

• increasingly concerned about ecstasy, cocaine, and heroin abuse;
• drugs arrive in country from Lebanon and, increasingly, from Jordan;
• money-laundering center