Israel (country)

I

Introduction

Israel (country), country in southwestern Asia, formed in 1948 as a Jewish state in the historic region of Palestine, and located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Israel is bounded on the north by Lebanon, on the northeast by Syria, on the east by Jordan, and on the southwest by Egypt. Its southernmost tip extends to the Gulf of Aqaba, an arm of the Red Sea. Israel’s isolated position as a Jewish state surrounded by Arab and predominantly Islamic countries has influenced nearly every aspect of its foreign relations, demography, and economic policy throughout its history.

The origins of the present-day struggle between Israel and Arab nations predate the creation of Israel. Throughout the early 20th century Palestine, as the birthplace of Judaism and site of the ancient Hebrew Kingdom of Israel, became a center of Jewish immigration, encouraged and organized by a movement known as Zionism. Jews clashed with the Palestinian Arab inhabitants of the region throughout the British administration of Palestine from 1918 to 1948. In the years after World War II (1939-1945) the United Nations (UN) developed a plan to partition Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. The Arabs rejected the plan, but the Jews accepted it, and the independent nation of Israel was created in 1948. Five Arab nations—Egypt, Transjordan (now Jordan), Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq—immediately attacked Israel. In the Arab-Israeli War of 1948-1949 and subsequent wars with its Arab neighbors Israel acquired territory beyond its 1948 boundaries. As a result of the Six-Day War of 1967 Israel took and later annexed the Syrian territory of the Golan Heights, a claim not recognized by most nations. Israel also occupied the West Bank (formerly of Jordan) and the Gaza Strip (formerly of Egypt), areas now partially under Palestinian Arab administration. Even Jerusalem, the city Israel claims as its capital, remains an area of dispute. Predominantly Jewish West Jerusalem has been part of Israel since independence in 1948; Israel captured mostly Arab East Jerusalem in 1967. Israel has since claimed the entire city as its capital. However, the United Nations does not recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

These territorial conflicts, combined with continued Jewish immigration, have caused major changes in population structure since Israel’s independence. Much of the Palestinian Arab population in the territory that became Israel fled during the 1948-1949 war and became refugees in surrounding Arab countries. Still more Palestinians fled from the areas captured by Israel in 1967 (known collectively as the Occupied Territories; often referred to in Israel as “administered territories”), and thousands of Jews have settled in these areas. Meanwhile, Jewish immigration continued. By the late 1990s Israel had absorbed 2.1 million immigrants since 1948, four times the Jewish population before independence.

Economically, the twin challenges of national security and immigration have been very costly. The economic burden of the military fosters dependence on foreign economic aid, particularly from the United States. Further, political conflict has severely isolated Israel economically from much of the region. Meanwhile, although the absorption and integration of so many immigrants from all over the world is an immense financial undertaking, the constant influx of people with many different skills and backgrounds also contributes to Israel’s economic well-being. Both factors have stimulated the drive to create a successful industrial economy to help pay for necessary infrastructure and services.

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II

Land and Resources

The total area of Israel, based on the frontiers established at the end of the Arab-Israeli War of 1948-1949, is about 20,700 sq km (about 8,000 sq mi). Areas occupied by Israel as a result of the Six-Day War included the West Bank (5,860 sq km/2,263 sq mi), the Gaza Strip (378 sq km/146 sq mi), the Golan Heights (1,250 sq km/483 sq mi), and East Jerusalem (70 sq km/27 sq mi). Because Israel annexed the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem in 1981, the country officially includes them in total area and population figures. The United Nations (UN) and most countries do not recognize these annexations, however. Israel stretches north to south to a maximum length of 420 km (260 mi); from east to west it varies from 16 to 115 km (10 to 70 mi).

A

Natural Regions

There are five major geographical regions of Israel. The mountainous Galilee region dominates the northern section of Israel, extending east 40 km (25 mi) from a narrow coastal plain across to the Sea of Galilee (also called Lake Tiberias). Mount Meron (1,208 m/3,963 ft) in central Galilee is the highest point in Israel. South of Galilee lies the Plain of Esdraelon, a densely populated and productive agricultural region 55 km (35 mi) long and 25 km (15 mi) wide. The plain runs across Israel from the vicinity of Haifa on the Mediterranean coast to the Jordan River, which forms Israel’s eastern border. The coastal plains, containing most of Israel’s large cities, industry, and commerce, extend 195 km (120 mi) along the Mediterranean from just north of Haifa to Gaza. This region ranges in width from less than 1 km (0.6 mi) to 30 km (20 mi). The Judean and Samarian hills run north and south throughout most of Israel. The Negev is a triangular desert region in southern Israel extending north from the Gulf of Aqaba to a line connecting the southern end of the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean, passing to the north of the city of Beersheba.

B

Plant and Animal Life

Israel’s variety of natural environments—marked by regional differences in elevation, rainfall, topography and soils, and latitude—produces equally varied plant life. Of about 2,500 species of plants, the majority is xerophytic, or capable of enduring prolonged dry spells. Three distinct vegetative regions, each comprising many subregions, cover Israel: Mediterranean in most of the northern reaches, steppe in the northern Negev, and desert in the rest of the Negev. This variety of geographical regions supports a wide range of agricultural products, including citrus fruits, bananas, cotton, tobacco, grapes, dates, figs, olives, almonds, and avocados. Original evergreen forests largely disappeared because of centuries of cultivation and herding. Through a reforestation program millions of trees have been planted, especially in the hilly regions. Today natural woodlands and reforested areas cover 8 percent of the land.

Animal life is similarly varied. About 100 species of mammals inhabit Israel, including wild boars, gazelles, ibexes, jackals, hyenas, wildcats, and badgers. There are about 380 species of birds, including about 100 that migrate seasonally to other areas. Partridges, cuckoos, bustards, sand grouses, and desert larks inhabit the area. A variety of reptiles, fishes, and insects (including locusts) also prevail.

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