ISRAEL
(also see separate Gaza Strip and West Bank entries)
Note: The Arab territories occupied by Israel since the 1967 war
are not included in the data below. As stated in the 1978 Camp David
Accords and reaffirmed by President Reagan's 1 September 1982 peace
initiative, the final status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, their
relationship with their neighbors, and a peace treaty between Israel
and Jordan are to be negotiated among the concerned parties. The Camp
David Accords further specify that these negotiations will resolve the
location of the respective boundaries. Pending the completion of this
process, it is US policy that the final status of the West Bank and
Gaza Strip has yet to be determined (see West Bank and Gaza Strip
entries). On 25 April 1982 Israel relinquished control of the Sinai to
Egypt. Statistics for the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights are included in
the Syria entry.
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 20,770 km2; land area: 20,330 km2
Comparative area: slightly larger than New Jersey
Land boundaries: 1,006 km total; Egypt 255 km, Jordan 238 km,
Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307, Gaza Strip 51 km
Coastline: 273 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: to depth of exploitation;
Territorial sea: 6 nm
Disputes: separated from Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank by the
1949 Armistice Line; differences with Jordan over the location
of the 1949 Armistice Line which separates the two countries;
West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli occupied with status
to be determined; Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; Israeli troops in
southern Lebanon since June 1982; water-sharing issues with Jordan
Climate: temperate; hot and dry in desert areas
Terrain: Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central
mountains; Jordan Rift Valley
Natural resources: copper, phosphates, bromide, potash, clay, sand,
sulfur, asphalt, manganese, small amounts of natural gas and crude oil
Land use: arable land 17%; permanent crops 5%; meadows and pastures
40%; forest and woodland 6%; other 32%; includes irrigated 11%
Environment: sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; limited
arable land and natural water resources pose serious constraints;
deforestation
Note: there are 175 Jewish settlements in the West Bank, 38 in the
Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 18 in the Gaza Strip, and 14
Israeli-built Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem
PEOPLE
Population: 4,477,105 (July 1991), growth rate 1.5% (1991);
includes 90,000 Jewish settlers in the West Bank, 13,000 in the
Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 2,500 in the Gaza Strip, and 120,000 in
East Jerusalem (1990 est.)
Birth rate: 21 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 76 years male, 79 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 2.9 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--Israeli(s); adjective--Israeli
Ethnic divisions: Jewish 83%, non-Jewish (mostly Arab) 17%
Religion: Judaism 82%, Islam (mostly Sunni Muslim) 14%,
Christian 2%, Druze and other 2%
Language: Hebrew (official); Arabic used officially for Arab
minority; English most commonly used foreign language
Literacy: 92% (male 95%, female 89%) age 15 and over can
read and write (1983)
Labor force: 1,400,000 (1984 est.); public services 29.3%;
industry, mining, and manufacturing 22.8%; commerce 12.8%; finance and
business 9.5%; transport, storage, and communications 6.8%; construction
and public works 6.5%; personal and other services 5.8%; agriculture,
forestry, and fishing 5.5%; electricity and water 1.0% (1983)
Organized labor: 90% of labor force
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: State of Israel
Type: republic
Capital: Israel proclaimed Jerusalem its capital in 1950, but the
US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv
Administrative divisions: 6 districts (mehozot, singular--mehoz);
Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
Independence: 14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under
British administration)
Constitution: no formal constitution; some of the functions of a
constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the
basic laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law
Legal system: mixture of English common law, British Mandate
regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim
legal systems; in December 1985 Israel informed the UN Secretariat that
it would no longer accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday: Independence Day, 10 May 1989; Israel declared
independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar and the
holiday may occur in April or May
Executive branch: president, prime minister, vice prime minister,
Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral parliament (Knesset)
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders:
Chief of State--President Chaim HERZOG (since 5 May 1983);
Head of Government--Prime Minister Yitzhak SHAMIR (since 20 October
1986)
Political parties and leaders: Israel currently has a coalition
government comprising eleven parties that hold 66 of the Knesset's
120 seats;
Members of the government--Likud bloc, Prime Minister Yitzhak
SHAMIR;
Sephardic Torah Guardians (SHAS), Minister of Interior Arieh DER'I;
National Religious Party, Minister of Education Zevulun HAMMER;
Agudat Yisrael, Moshe Zeev FELDMAN;
Degel HaTorah, Avraham RAVITZ;
Moriya, Minister of Immigrant Absorption, Yitzhak PERETZ;
Ge'vlat Yisrael, Elizer MIZRAHI;
Party for the Advancement of Zionist Ideology (PAZI), Minister of
Finance Yitzhak MODAI;
Tehiya Party, Minister of Science, Technology, Energy, and Infrastructure
Yuval NE'EMAN;
Tzomet Party, Minister of Agriculture Rafael EITAN;
Unity for Peace and Aliyah, Efrayim GUR;
Moledet Party, Rehavam ZE'EVI;
Opposition parties--Labor Party, Shimon PERES;
Citizens' Rights Movement, Shulamit ALONI;
United Workers' Party (MAPAM), Yair TZABAN;
Center Movement-Shinui, Amnon RUBENSTEIN;
New Israeli Communist Party (MAKI), Meir WILNER;
Progressive List for Peace, Muhammad MI'ARI;
Arab Democratic Party, Abd Al Wahab DARAWSHAH;
Black Panthers, Charlie BITON
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
President--last held 23 February 1988 (next to be held February
1994); results--Chaim HERZOG reelected by Knesset;
Knesset--last held 1 November 1988 (next to be held by
November 1992);
seats--(120 total) Labor Party 38, Likud bloc 37, SHAS 5, National
Religious Party 5, Citizens' Rights Movement 5, Agudat Yisrael 4,
PAZI 3, MAKI 3, Tehiya Party 3, MAPAM 3, Tzomet Party 2, Moledet Party 2,
Degel HaTorah 2, Center Movement-Shinui 2, Progressive List for Peace 1,
Arab Democratic Party 1; Black Panthers 1, Moriya 1, Ge'ulat
Yisrael 1, Unity for Peace and Aliyah 1
Communists: Hadash (predominantly Arab but with Jews in its
leadership) has some 1,500 members
Other political or pressure groups: Gush Emunim, Jewish
nationalists advocating Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza
Strip; Peace Now, critical of government's West Bank/Gaza Strip and
Lebanon policies
Member of: AG (observer), CCC, EBRD, FAO, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT,
INTERPOL, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, OAS (observer), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Zalman SHOVAL; Chancery at
3514 International Drive NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202)
364-5500; there are Israeli Consulates General in Atlanta, Boston,
Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, and San
Francisco;
US--Ambassador William A. BROWN; Embassy at 71 Hayarkon Street,
Tel Aviv (mailing address is APO New York 09672); telephone 972 (3)
654338; there is a US Consulate General in Jerusalem
Flag: white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as
the Magen David (Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal
blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag
ECONOMY
Overview: Israel has a market economy with substantial government
participation. It depends on imports for crude oil, food, grains, raw
materials, and military equipment. Despite limited natural resources,
Israel has developed its agricultural and industrial sectors on an
intensive scale over the past 20 years. Industry accounts for about 23%
of the labor force, agriculture for 5%, and services for most of the
balance. Diamonds, high-technology machinery, and agricultural products
(fruits and vegetables) are the biggest export earners. The balance of
payments has traditionally been negative, but is offset by large transfer
payments and foreign loans. About half of Israel's $18 billion external
government debt is owed to the US, which is its major source for economic
and military aid. To earn needed foreign exchange, Israel must continue
to exploit high-technology niches in the international market, such as
medical scanning equipment. Iraq's invasion of Kuwait on 2 August dealt
a blow to Israel's economy in 1990. Higher world oil prices added an
estimated $300 million to Israel's 1990 oil import bill, and helped
keep the inflation rate at 18% for the year. Regional tensions
and continuing acts of the Palestinian uprising
(intifadah)-related violence contributed to a sharp dropoff in
tourism--a key source of foreign exchange--to the lowest level since the
1973 Arab-Israeli war. In 1991, the influx of up to 400,000 Soviet
immigrants will increase unemployment, intensify the country's
housing crisis, and contribute to a widening budget deficit.
GNP: $46.5 billion, per capita $10,500; real growth rate 3.5%
(1990 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 18% (1990)
Unemployment rate: 9.8% (March 1991)
Budget: revenues $28.7 billion; expenditures $33.0 billion,
including capital expenditures of $NA (FY91)
Exports: $10.7 billion (f.o.b., 1989);
commodities--polished diamonds, citrus and other fruits, textiles
and clothing, processed foods, fertilizer and chemical products, military
hardware, electronics;
partners--US, UK, FRG, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy
Imports: $14.2 billion (c.i.f., 1989 est.);
commodities--military equipment, rough diamonds, oil, chemicals,
machinery, iron and steel, cereals, textiles, vehicles, ships, aircraft;
partners--US, FRG, UK, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg
External debt: $24.5 billion, of which government debt is
$18 billion (December 1990)
Industrial production: growth rate - 1.5% (1989); accounts
for about 40% of GDP
Electricity: 4,392,000 kW capacity; 17,500 million kWh produced,
4,000 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: food processing, diamond cutting and polishing,
textiles, clothing, chemicals, metal products, military equipment,
transport equipment, electrical equipment, miscellaneous machinery,
potash mining, high-technology electronics, tourism
Agriculture: accounts for 5% of GNP; largely self-sufficient in
food production, except for bread grains; principal products--citrus and
other fruits, vegetables, cotton; livestock products--beef, dairy, and
poultry
Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-90), $18.2
billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-88), $2.5 billion
Currency: new Israeli shekel (plural--shekels);
1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot
Exchange rates: new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1--2.35
(May 1991), 2.0162 (1990), 1.9164 (1989), 1.5989 (1988), 1.5946
(1987), 1.4878 (1986), 1.1788 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March; changing to calender year basis
starting January 1992
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 594 km 1.435-meter gauge, single track; diesel operated
Highways: 4,500 km; majority is bituminous surfaced
Pipelines: crude oil, 708 km; refined products, 290 km; natural
gas, 89 km
Ports: Ashdod, Haifa, Elat
Merchant marine: 30 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 516,714
GRT/611,795 DWT; includes 7 cargo, 21 container, 2 refrigerated cargo;
note--Israel also maintains a significant flag of convenience fleet,
which is normally at least as large as the Israeli flag fleet; the
Israeli flag of convenience fleet typically includes all of its POL
tankers
Civil air: 27 major transport aircraft
Airports: 51 total, 44 usable; 26 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 6 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
12 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: most highly developed in the Middle East
though not the largest; good system of coaxial cable and radio relay;
1,800,000 telephones; stations--11 AM, 24 FM, 54 TV; 2 submarine cables;
satellite earth stations--2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Indian Ocean
INTELSAT
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches: Israel Defense Forces includes ground, naval, and air
components; historically there have been no separate Israeli military
services
Manpower availability: eligible 15-49, 2,213,808; of the 1,117,733
males 15-49, 920,449 are fit for military service; of the 1,096,075
females 15-49, 899,022 are fit for military service; 44,429 males and
42,249 females reach military age (18) annually; both sexes are liable
for military service; Nahal or Pioneer Fighting Youth, Frontier Guard,
Chen
Defense expenditures: $5.3 billion, 13.9% of GNP (1991);
note--includes an estimated $1.8 billion in US military aid