Israel Society & Culture: Annual Statistical Glimpse

Geography

Israel stands at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa. Geographically, it belongs to the Asian continent. Its western border is the Mediterranean Sea. To the north it is bound by Lebanon and Syria, to the east by Jordan and to the south by the Red Sea and Egypt. Long and narrow in shape, Israel is about 290 miles (470 km.) long and 85 miles (135 km.) across at its widest point. Its total area is 22,072 sq km, of which 21,643 sq km is land area (Sea of Galilee: 164 sq km; Dead Sea: 265 sq km). Israel’s total land border measures 857 km, its Mediterranean coastline 194 km, and 12 km on the Red Sea.

- The only river in Israel: The Jordan River, approximately 250 km.
- Main streams: Alexander, Besor, Hadera, Yarqon, Sa'ar, Qishon, and Soreq.

Geographical Regions Arid zones 45% Plains and valleys 25% Mountains 16% Rift valley 9% Coastal strip 5%

Selected Elevations: Mt. Hermon, Golan - highest point in Israel 7,300 ft. 2,224 m. Mt. Meron, Upper Galilee 3,964 ft. 1,208 m. Mt. Ramon, Negev 3,396 ft. 1,035 m. Mt. of Olives, Jerusalem 2,739 ft. 835 m. Mt. Tabor, Lower Galilee 1,930 ft. 588 m. Mt. Carmel, Haifa 1,792 ft. 546 m. Dead Sea - lowest point on earth - 1,368 ft. - 417 m.

Natural Resources:

Raw materials for construction of buildings and roads: gravel and stone, sand, kurkar, clay, limestone, gypsum, and tuff.
Raw materials for manufacturing: potash, bromine, magnesium, salt, phosphates, sand, clay, and limestone.
Energy sources: natural gas, oil shale.

Climate:

Israel is on a "climatic crossroad", which is a transitional area between a temperate and arid climate. The southern and eastern areas of Israel are characterized by an arid climate, while the other areas are characterized by a Mediterranean climate. Due to this climatic formation, there is high variability in the amount of precipitation from year to year, and in the different areas of the country.

- The highest temperature ever recorded in Israel was 54°C (Tirat Zvi on 21 June 1942)
- The lowest temperature ever recorded in Israel was -13.7°C (Bet Netofa Valley on 7 February 1950)

People

1980 1990 2012 End of 2013 Population 3,921,700 4,821,700 8,018,000 8,309,400 Civilian Labor Force 1,318,100 1,649,900 3,204,200 3,677,800 Jews in Israel (% of World Jewry) 25 30 43 43 Life expectancy:             Females             Males 75.7 72.1 78.4 75.7 83.6 80.0 83.9 80.3 Infant Mortality (per 1000 live births) 15.6 9.9 3.7 3.1 School Population 1,200,700 1,451,300 1,564,700 2,167,250 % of Population with 13 years+ of schooling 19.2 25.3 44.4 46.8

Population, by Religion Jews 75% Muslims 17.5% Christians 2.0% Druze 1.6% Not Classified 3.9% Population Distribution Urban 91.4% Rural    Moshavim    Kibbutzim 8.6% 3.7% 1.9%

Largest Cities, by Population Jerusalem 829,900 Tel Aviv-Yafo 418,600 Haifa 273,200 Rishon Lezion 237,600 Petah Tikva 219,300 Immigrants, by Decade 1948-1959 960,000 1960-1969 374,000 1970-1979 346,000 1980-1989 154,000 1990-1999 956,300 2000-2009 268,300 2010-2013 66,900

Today, 73.6 percent of Israel's Jewish population were born in Israel.

Economy

	1980	1990	2011	2013
Gross Domestic Product (NIS mil.)	116	111,804	871,800	1,380,110
Net exports of goods (US$ bil.)    Industrial products (excl. diamonds)    Agricultural products	5,291.9 3,340.4 555.7	11,603.1 7,696.8 657.2	67,802.2 45,752.3 1,380.6	56,870.9 46,271.9 1,495.2
Net imports of goods (US$ bil.)	7,845.7	15,107.1	73,536.2	71,102.0
Tourists Arriving	1,065,800	1,131,700	2,820,200	3,539,700
Air Passengers	2,847,000	3,720,000	12,343,000	13,559,000
Air Freight Shipped (tons)	105,800	194,160	287,762	266,422
Electricity Production (mil of kw/hr)	12,400	20,900	57,145	60,469
Private cars	410,000	803,000	2,164,385	2,338,700

Education

Students in Universities & Colleges 1969/1970 35,374 1979/1980 53,355 1989/1990 75,487 1999/2000 170,953 2009/2010 243,858 2010/2011 251,000 2013/2014 264,844

University Students, by Field of Study (Total 124,957 students in 9 universities)  Social Sciences 22.5% Humanities 22.0% Science/Math 15.7% Engineering/Architecture 15.0% Medicine 11.5% Business 7.6% Law 4.2% Agriculture 1.4%

Sources: “Israel at 67, a Statistical Glimpse,” Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (March 24, 2015)