“Defense News” ranked Israel 17th in a list of the world’s top 25 defense spenders based on absolute numbers, not as a percentage of GDP. The list is based on updated information from the CIA’s “World Fact Book” and from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Most of the figures in the list, including those for Israel, refer to the 2005 fiscal year. The numbers are mostly consistent with official data from the relevant countries. Only one Arab country, Saudi Arabia, made the list, although Iran, with $4.3 billion in military spending in 2005, just lost the 25th place to Argentina.