Israel

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State of Israel

מדינת ישראל (Medīnat (Y)isra'el)
دولة إسرائيل (Dawlat Isrā'īl)

Flag Coat of arms
Official flag Official Coat of Arms
National information
National motto: none
National anthem: "Hatikvah"
About the people
Official languages: Hebrew, Arabic
Population:
(# of people)
  • Total: 7,005,400
    (ranked #97)
  • Density: 333 per km²
Geography / Places
country map
Here is the country on a map of the world.
Capital city: Jerusalem
Largest city: Jerusalem
Area
  • Total: 20,770
    (ranked #150)
  • Water: n/a km² (2%)
Politics / Government
Established: May 14, 1948
Leaders: President: Moshe Katsav

Prime Minister: Ehud Olmert

Economy / Money
Currency:
(Name of money)
New Israeli sheqel (₪) (NIS)
International information
Time zone: +2 (DST: +3)
Telephone dialing code: +972
Internet domain: .il

For the people of Israel, see Israelite.

The State of Israel is a small, new country in the Middle East. Most of the citizens of Israel are Jewish and most others are Arab. Canaanites are the first people recorded in history to have lived in the area. With the help of the United Nations, the country was established in the region that was called Palestine-Eretz Yisrael by the British. Israel is on the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea. It shares borders with Lebanon and Syria on the north, Jordan on the east, and Egypt to the southwest. Israel also controls areas on the Jordan River's and West Bank. It shares the coastlines of the Mediterranean, the Gulf of Eilat / Aqaba, the Dead Sea, and the Sea of Galilee.

The story of Israel does not begin in 1948: it goes back 2,500 years to the destruction of the first Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem in 587 BC, and the scattering of the Jewish people, called the Diaspora; the Jewish people were left without a country.

Since the Diaspora, there have been many attempts to make a homeland for the Jewish people. In the 1880s, this desire for the nation became a movement called Zionism. Jews from all over the world began to come to the area, then taken care of by the British Government. World War II and the Holocaust killed most of the jews in Europe. After that, the Zionist movement asked Great Britain and the U.N to split the area into Arab and Jewish States. They were successful, and the country was split. On May 14th, 1948, the Israelis (under the leadership of David Ben-Gurion) declared independence for the new Jewish state.

Contents

[edit] Geography

The borders of Israel are disputed, and several wars have been fought about where the borders should be. The land is desert in the south with flat in the west near the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Israel also has a range of mountains near its center. The weather is normally warm, but is hot and dry in the desert areas; in the north, the weather is temperate. Two-thirds of the land is covered with desert. Jerusalem is the biggest city in Israel, and Tel Aviv is another big city.

[edit] Politics

Israel is a parliamentary democracy. The President is Moshe Katsav. The Prime Minister is Ehud Olmert, who took over Ariel Sharon in 2006 when Sharon fell in a coma, never waking up. Jerusalem is the capital city and the seat of government.

[edit] Economy

Most of the Israeli economy is based on technology, tourism, and agriculture. Also, aid from the United States of America, through money and trading, contributes to the development of Israel. America and the United Nations have greatly helped the country grow.

[edit] Other Related Websites

Map of Israel
Map of Israel
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