Israel is a small Middle Eastern country. It occupies a narrow strip of land in southwestern Asia on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Israel was founded in 1948 as a homeland for Jews from all parts of the world, and about 3 out of 4 of its people are Jews. Even Jews who live elsewhere consider Israel their spiritual home. Almost all the non-Jews in Israel are Palestinians and other Arabs. Israel identifies Jerusalem as its capital. Until 2018, however, most foreign countries had their embassies in the city of Tel Aviv.
Israel makes up most of the Biblical Holy Land, the place where the religious and national identity of the Jews developed. According to the Bible, Abraham, the father of the Jewish people, established a Semitic population in the Holy Land. Many scholars believe this happened sometime between 1800 and 1500 B.C.
Eventually this land fell to a series of conquerors, including—in 63 B.C.—the Romans. Following unsuccessful Jewish revolts against Roman rule in A.D. 66-70 and A.D. 132-135, the Romans forced most of the Jews to leave. The Romans then began to call this region by the word that became Palestine in English. Palestine was ruled by the Roman and then the Byzantine empires until the A.D. 600’s, when Arabs conquered the region. From that time until the mid-1900’s, the majority of people in Palestine were Arabs. For more information on the ancient history of Israel, see the Palestine article.
In the late 1800’s, some European Jews formed a movement called Zionism, which sought to establish a Jewish state in Palestine. Jewish immigrants began arriving in Palestine in large numbers, and by the early 1900’s friction had developed between the Jewish and Arab populations. In 1947, the United Nations (UN) proposed dividing the region into an Arab state and a Jewish state.
On May 14, 1948, the nation of Israel officially came into being. The surrounding Arab countries immediately attacked the new state, in the first of several Arab-Israeli wars. In 1967, at the end of one of the wars, Israeli troops occupied the Gaza Strip and the West Bank—territories that are home to large numbers of Palestinians. Israel’s occupation of these territories further inflamed Arab-Israeli tensions. In the 1990’s, Israeli troops withdrew from most of the Gaza Strip and portions of the West Bank. The withdrawals were part of agreements with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), which represents the Palestinian people. In the early 2000’s, however, violent clashes between Palestinians and Israelis interrupted the peace process. For more details, see the Recent developments section of this article.
Israel has few natural resources and imports more goods than it exports. Still, it has achieved a relatively high standard of living. Almost all of its adults can read and write, and the level of unemployment is low. Jewish settlers have established major industries, drained swamps, and irrigated deserts.
Although it is a small country, Israel has a diverse terrain that includes mountains, deserts, seashores, and valleys. Israel has a pleasant climate, with hot, dry summers, and cool, mild winters.
Government
National government.
Israel is a democratic republic. It has no written constitution. Instead, the government follows “basic laws” that have been passed by the Knesset, the Israeli parliament. The Knesset is a one-house body made up of 120 members, each elected to a term not to exceed four years. The Knesset passes legislation, participates in the formation of national policy, and approves budgets and taxes.
All Israeli citizens 18 years or older may vote. Voters do not cast ballots for individual candidates in Knesset elections. Instead, they vote for a party list, which includes all the candidates of a particular political party. The list may range from a single candidate to a full slate of 120 candidates. Elections are determined by the percentage of the vote received by each list. For example, if a particular party list received 33 percent of the vote, it would get 40 Knesset seats.
The prime minister is the head of Israel’s government and normally the leader of the party that controls the most seats in the Knesset. The prime minister must maintain the support of a majority of Knesset members to stay in office. He or she forms and heads the Cabinet, Israel’s top policymaking body. Appointments to the Cabinet must be approved by the Knesset. The prime minister determines the topics of Cabinet meetings and has the final word in policy decisions.
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In 1992, a law was passed allowing voters to directly elect the prime minister. Direct elections for prime minister were held in 1996, 1999, and 2001. Israel abandoned the direct election system after the 2001 election.
The president functions as the head of state. The Knesset elects the president to a seven-year term. Most of the president’s duties are ceremonial.
Local government.
Elected councils are the units of local government in Israel. Municipal councils serve the larger cities, and local councils govern the smaller urban areas. Regional councils serve rural areas. Councils are responsible for providing education, health and sanitation services, water, road maintenance, fire protection, and park and recreation facilities. They also set and collect local taxes and fees.
The national government divides the country into 6 administrative districts and 15 subdistricts. The minister of interior, one of the Cabinet members, appoints officials to head the districts and subdistricts. These officials oversee and approve the actions of the councils.
Politics.
Israel has many political parties, representing a wide range of views. Two parties—the Labor Party and the Likud bloc—traditionally dominated the country’s national elections. However, in the early 2000’s, the Labor Party’s influence began to decline.
The Labor Party is a moderate party that has tended to support some government control of the economy, but also believes in a limited amount of free enterprise. The party favors a negotiated settlement with the Arab countries and the Palestinians. The Likud bloc is an alliance of a number of smaller parties. It supports limited government involvement in the economy. Likud favors a more hard-line policy toward the Arab countries and the Palestinians.
Israel also has a number of smaller religious and special-interest parties. Each of these parties focuses on a particular subject or theme. If one of the major parties controls too few seats in the Knesset to form a majority, it usually seeks support from the other parties, including the religious parties. These parties thus have considerable power.
Courts.
Israel’s court system consists of both religious and secular (nonreligious) courts. The Supreme Court is the country’s highest secular court. The secular court system also includes magistrate, district, municipal, and specialized courts. The Supreme Court hears appeals from these courts and acts to protect the rights of Israeli citizens.
Religious courts hear cases involving certain personal matters, such as marriage problems, divorces, alimony settlements, and inheritances. Jews, Christians, Muslims, and Druses each have their own religious courts.
Most religious court justices and all secular court justices are appointed by the president. The appointments are based on recommendations that are made by nomination committees consisting of officials from all branches of the Israeli government. Justices must retire at age 70.
Armed forces.
Because of its conflicts with Arab states, Israel has maintained a strong military. However, the large amount of money Israel spends on defense puts a strain on the nation’s economy.
Israel has an army, navy, and air force. The country requires almost all Jewish men and most unmarried Jewish women to enter the military at age 18. Men must serve about three years, and women for two years. Annual reserve service is required of both men and women.
People
The area along the Mediterranean coast is Israel’s most densely populated region. The Negev Desert, in southwestern Israel, is the least densely populated region.
Jews.
About 75 percent of Israel’s people are Jews. The modern state of Israel was created as a homeland for the Jewish people. Since 1948, about 3 1/3 million Jews have migrated to Israel, many to escape persecution in their home countries. In 1950, the Knesset passed the Law of the Return, which allows any Jew, with a few minor exceptions, to settle in Israel. A 1970 amendment to this law defined a Jew as “a person who was born of a Jewish mother or has become converted to Judaism and who is not a member of another religion.” The Israeli government provides temporary housing and job training to immigrants.
Israel’s Jewish population shares a common spiritual and historical heritage. But because they have come from many countries, Israel’s Jews belong to a number of different ethnic groups, each with its own cultural, political, and recent historical background.
The two main groups in Israel’s Jewish population have traditionally been the Ashkenazim and the Sephardim, or Orientals. The Ashkenazim, who came to Israel from Europe and North America, are descended from Jewish communities in central and eastern Europe. The Sephardim immigrated from the Middle East and the Mediterranean. Today, the designations Ashkenazim and Sephardim are less important because there are many Jews who immigrated from other areas, or who grew up in Israel. At the time of independence, most Jews were Ashkenazim. As a result, Israel’s political, educational, and economic systems are primarily Western in orientation. Israel’s Sephardic population has had to adapt to this society.
Arabs
make up most of the remaining 25 percent of the population of Israel. Most are Palestinians whose families remained in Israel after the 1948-1949 Arab-Israeli war. They usually live in their own farm villages or in the Arab neighborhoods of Israeli cities.
The nation’s Jewish and Arab communities are often suspicious of one another, and Arab and Jewish Israelis have limited contact. Most Arabs and Jews live in separate areas, attend separate schools, speak different languages, and follow different cultural traditions.
Language.
Israel’s official language is Hebrew, the language spoken by most of the Jewish population. Until 2018, Arabic, spoken mainly by the Arabs, was also an official language. Many Israelis also speak English. Many Ashkenazi Jews speak Yiddish, a Germanic language that developed in the Jewish communities of Europe. Immigrants from the former Soviet Union speak Russian.
Way of life
Israel has a relatively high standard of living, with income levels similar to those in such European countries as Spain or Greece. Israel’s life expectancy levels rank among the highest in the world. The country has an excellent system of health and medical care.
City life.
Jerusalem, the largest city, is the spiritual center of the Jewish religion. It is also a holy city of Christians and Muslims. The city is divided into three sections—the Old City, West Jerusalem, and East Jerusalem. All three sections contain many ancient holy places, but the Old City is the historical heart of Jerusalem. It occupies much of the area that was inhabited during Biblical times. West Jerusalem, inhabited mainly by Jews, is the newer part of the city. It contains concrete apartment houses and modern public buildings. It also has several ancient holy places. East Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in 1967, is inhabited mainly by Arabs. See Jerusalem.
Tel Aviv, Israel’s second largest city in size and importance, serves as the nation’s commercial, financial, and industrial center. Haifa is Israel’s major port city and the administrative and industrial center of northern Israel. Beersheba is the most important city in the Negev Desert region.
In the 1950’s, the Israeli government began creating “development towns.” These towns, which include Arad and Karmiel, were established to attract industry to lightly populated parts of Israel and to provide homes for new immigrants.
Rural life.
Many people in rural areas of Israel live in collective or cooperative communities. In a collective community, called a kibbutz, members receive food, housing, education, child care, and medical care in exchange for labor. All property is shared. The kibbutz was traditionally agricultural, but many now engage primarily in industrial activity. In a cooperative community, called a moshav, each family works its land separately and has its own living quarters. The village administration provides the family’s equipment and supplies, and markets its produce. 
Clothing.
Most Israelis wear Western-style clothing, although styles in Israel are generally less formal than they are in Western countries. However, some Israelis still dress in the traditional clothing of their ethnic or religious group.
Food and drink.
Israel’s food and drink reflect the ethnic diversity of its population. Traditional European Jewish dishes, such as chopped liver, chicken soup, and gefilte fish, are common. But so also are traditional Middle Eastern foods such as felafel—small, deep-fried patties of ground chickpeas. Raw vegetables and fruits are among the most popular foods.
All government buildings and most hotels and restaurants serve only kosher foods, which are prepared according to Jewish dietary laws (see Kosher). But there are nonkosher restaurants as well. Israel also has fast-food restaurants, which serve local dishes in addition to Western foods. Popular beverages in Israel include Turkish coffee, cola, beer, and wine.
Religion.
Israeli law guarantees religious freedom and allows members of all faiths to have days of rest on their Sabbath and holy days. Many public facilities are closed on the Jewish Sabbath—from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday. 
About one-fifth of Israel’s Jewish population strictly observe the principles of Judaism. These people are called Orthodox Jews. About half of the country’s Jews observe some of the principles. The rest observe few or none of the rules of Judaism. Israel’s Jews disagree on the proper relationship between religion and the state. Orthodox Jews tend to believe that Jewish religious values should play an important role in shaping government policy. But many other members of the Jewish population seek to limit the role of religion in the state.
About 15 percent of Israel’s populace are Arab Muslims, most of whom follow the Sunni division of Islam (see Islam (Divisions of Islam)). About 2 percent of Israel’s population are Arab Christians, mostly Eastern Catholic and Eastern Orthodox. Another 2 percent are Druses, an Arabic-speaking people who follow a religion that developed out of Islam. A few of the non-Jewish people are members of the Baha’is or other smaller religious communities.
Education.
Education is given a high priority in Israel. One of the first laws passed in Israel established free education and required school attendance for all children from the ages of 5 to 14. Attendance is now required to age 16.
Israeli children normally attend one year of preschool, one year of kindergarten, six years of elementary school, three years of junior high school, and three years of high school. Education is free until age 18.
Israel has a Jewish school system in which instruction is in Hebrew, and an Arab/Druse school system in which instruction is in Arabic. The government recognizes and funds both systems.
The Jewish system consists of state schools, state-religious schools, and independent religious schools. State and state-religious schools offer similar academic programs, but state-religious schools emphasize Jewish studies. Independent religious schools are affiliated with Orthodox Judaism and offer more intensive religious instruction.
The Arab/Druse school system includes separate schools for Arab and Druse students. These schools emphasize Arab or Druse history and culture. The Arab schools also provide religious instruction in Islam or Christianity. In Druse schools, community elders choose whether or not to provide religious training.
Israel has a number of well-known institutions of higher education. They include Bar-Ilan University, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, the University of Haifa, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Tel Aviv University, and the Weizmann Institute of Science.
The arts.
In music, dance, theater, literature, painting, and sculpture, many Israeli artists work within the traditions of their ethnic group. Other artists have blended different cultural art forms to create a uniquely Israeli artistic tradition. The arts in Israel not only reflect the country’s immigrant diversity, they also draw upon Jewish history and religion and address the social and political problems of modern Israel. Loading the player...
Israeli contemporary music
The number of books published per person in Israel is among the highest in the world. Most Israeli authors write in Hebrew, and some have achieved international fame. Shmuel Yosef Agnon, a novelist and short-story writer, shared the 1966 Nobel Prize for literature. Other important writers have included Aharon Appelfeld, Chaim Nachman Bialik, Saul Tchernichovsky, Amos Oz, and A. B. Yehoshua.
Israel has several theatrical companies. Habimah, the national theater, was founded in Moscow in 1917. It moved permanently to Tel Aviv in 1932. The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra performs throughout Israel and often tours abroad. Jerusalem has a symphony orchestra. Israel also has several professional ballet and modern dance companies. Haifa and Tel Aviv boast a number of outstanding museums.
The land
Israel has four major land regions. They are (1) the Coastal Plain, (2) the Judeo-Galilean Highlands, (3) the Rift Valley, and (4) the Negev Desert.
The Coastal Plain
is a narrow strip of fertile land along the Mediterranean Sea. Most Israelis live in the Coastal Plain, and most of the nation’s industry and agriculture are located there. Haifa, Israel’s major port, is on the northern coast. The northern part of the Coastal Plain includes part of the fertile Plain of Esdraelon. The Qishon, a broad stream, flows through this plain. Most of Israel’s important citrus crop is produced in the Plain of Sharon, which forms part of the central Coastal Plain. Farther south is the city of Tel Aviv.
The Judeo-Galilean Highlands
include a series of mountain ranges that run from Galilee—the northernmost part of Israel—to the edge of the Negev Desert in the south. The southern part of the highlands includes the West Bank.
The mountains of Galilee stretch southward to the Plain of Esdraelon. Galilee is the home of most of Israel’s Arabs and includes the city of Nazareth, the largest Arab center. Galilee also contains the highest mountain in Israel, 3,963-foot (1,208-meter) Mount Meron.
Jerusalem is located in the northern part of the Judean Hills. Rural residents of these hills farm on the hillsides and in the broad valleys. The land to the south is more rugged and agriculture is limited to grazing.
The Rift Valley
is a long, narrow strip of land in far eastern Israel. It makes up a small part of the Great Rift Valley, a series of valleys that extends from Syria to Mozambique (see Great Rift Valley).
The edges of the Rift Valley are steep, but the floor is largely flat. Much of the region lies below sea level. The region includes the Dead Sea, a saltwater lake. The shore of the Dead Sea lies about 1,411 feet (430 meters) below sea level—the lowest land area on Earth. 
Few areas of the Rift Valley are fertile. The most fertile section is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of the Sea of Galilee. There, during the 1950’s, Israel drained Lake Hula and nearby swamps to create about 15,000 acres (6,100 hectares) of farmland. 
The Jordan River, the longest of Israel’s few rivers, flows through the northern Rift Valley. It travels through the Sea of Galilee and empties into the Dead Sea.
The Negev Desert,
Israel’s driest region, is an arid area of flatlands and mountains. The Negev has traditionally been used for grazing because its limited rainfall cannot support crops. But sections of the Negev are being brought under cultivation by means of irrigation. Water from the Sea of Galilee is pumped southward through the National Water Carrier, an extensive system of canals, pipelines, and tunnels. Regional systems connect with the carrier and extend to the northern Negev. 
Climate
Israel has hot, dry summers and cool, mild winters. The climate varies somewhat from region to region, partly because of altitude. Temperatures are generally cooler at higher altitudes and warmer at lower altitudes. In August, the hottest month, the temperature may reach 98 °F (37 °C) in the hilly regions and as high as 120 °F (49 °C) near the Dead Sea. July temperatures average 85 °F (31 °C) in Jerusalem and 82 °F (28 °C) in Tel Aviv. In January, the coldest month, temperatures average 55 °F (13 °C) in Jerusalem and 64 °F (18 °C) in Tel Aviv.
Israel has almost continuous sunshine from May through mid-October. A hot, dry, dusty wind called the khamsin sometimes blows in from deserts to the east, particularly in the spring and fall.
Almost all of Israel’s rain falls between November and March, much of it in December. There are great regional variations in rainfall. In general, rainfall declines from north to south and from west to east. In the driest area, the southern Negev Desert, the average yearly rainfall is only 1 inch (25 millimeters). In the wettest area, the hilly parts of Upper Galilee, average annual rainfall is 421/2 inches (1,080 millimeters). Brief snowfalls also sometimes occur in the hilly regions.
Economy
At independence, Israel was a poor country with little agricultural or industrial production. But Israel’s economy has grown tremendously since 1948. The nation now enjoys a relatively high standard of living, despite having few natural resources and a limited water supply.
Many immigrants came to Israel in the years immediately after independence. Many of these immigrants were skilled laborers and professionals who greatly aided the nation’s economic development. Financial assistance from Western nations, especially the United States, is also vital to Israel’s economic well-being.
Most of the businesses in Israel are privately owned, but a significant number are owned by the government. Since the 1990’s, the government has moved to privatize more businesses in areas such as banking and communications. The Histadrut (General Federation of Labor), a powerful organization of labor unions, also owns a number of the businesses, farms, and industries.
Service industries
—economic activities that provide services rather than produce goods—account for about three-fourths of Israel’s gross domestic product (GDP). GDP is the value of all goods and services produced yearly within the country. Service industries employ about four-fifths of Israel’s workers. Many of Israel’s service industry workers are employed by the government or by businesses owned by the government. Government workers provide many of the services that are needed by Israel’s large immigrant population, such as housing, education, and vocational training. Tourist activities support many of Israel’s service industries, especially trade, restaurants, and hotels.
Manufacturing
is more diversified in Israel than in most areas of the Middle East. Israeli factories produce high-technology electronics, including communications and computer products. They also make other goods, such as machinery, metal products, paper and paper products, plastics products, pharmaceuticals (medicinal drugs) and other chemical products, processed foods, and textiles and clothing. The cutting of imported diamonds is a major industry. Tel Aviv and Haifa are major manufacturing centers.
Agriculture
accounts for a small percentage of both Israel’s GDP and its employment. Agriculture formerly employed a much larger percentage of Israel’s work force. But much of the work once performed by people is now performed by machines. Important agricultural products include apples, avocados, bananas, beef and dairy cattle, carrots, dates, grapes, olives, peppers, potatoes, poultry, and tomatoes. 
The government develops, helps finance, and controls agricultural activity, including fishing and forestry. Israel produces most of the food needed to feed its people. Most Israeli farmers use modern agricultural methods. Water drawn from the Jordan River irrigates large amounts of land in Israel.
Most Israeli farms are organized as moshavim or kibbutzim (see the Rural life section of this article). Israel also has some private farms, mostly owned by Arabs.
Mining.
The Dead Sea, the world’s saltiest body of water, is Israel’s leading mineral source. Compounds drawn from the sea yield bromine, magnesium, potash, and table salt. Clay, gypsum, and phosphates are mined in the Negev Desert. Israel is a leading producer of bromine, phosphate rock, and potash.
Energy sources.
Israel is poor in most energy sources. As a result, Israel depends primarily on natural gas that the country produces and imported crude oil and coal to meet its energy needs.
International trade.
Israel has few natural resources and must import many of its goods. The country’s chief imports include chemicals, computer equipment, grain, iron and steel, machinery, petroleum products, rough diamonds, and vehicles. Israel’s main exports include chemical products, citrus fruits, electronic equipment, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, and polished diamonds. The United States is Israel’s main trading partner. Other important trading partners include Belgium, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, the Netherlands, South Korea, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
Transportation and communication.
Israel has a well-developed transportation system. This system developed in part because of the need to move military troops and equipment quickly to any part of the country.
Most middle-class Israeli families either own an automobile or have one provided by their employer. Paved roads reach almost all parts of the country. Public transportation both in and between cities is provided primarily by bus. Since the mid-1990’s, the number of rail passengers has risen sharply.
Ben-Gurion Airport, Israel’s largest international airport, is at Lod, near Tel Aviv. Elat and Haifa have smaller airports. El Al, Israel’s international airline, flies regularly to the United States, Canada, Europe, and parts of Africa and Asia. Israel has three major deepwater ports—Ashdod, Elat, and Haifa.
Israel’s communication system is one of the best in the Middle East. Many of Israel’s daily newspapers are in Hebrew. The rest are in Arabic, English, Russian, and other languages. Israel has both state-owned and privately owned radio and television stations.
History
For detailed information on the early history of what is now Israel, see Palestine. See also Zionism.
Beginnings of a new state.
In the mid-1800’s, Eastern European Jews began to develop a desire to live in the Holy Land. By 1880, about 24,000 Jews were living in Palestine, which was controlled by the Ottoman Empire. In the late 1800’s, oppression of Jews in eastern Europe triggered the Zionist movement. This movement, which sought to establish a Jewish national state in Palestine, eventually led to a mass emigration of Jews there. By 1914, there were about 85,000 Jews in Palestine, out of a total population of about 700,000.
In 1917, during World War I (1914-1918), the United Kingdom issued the Balfour Declaration, which expressed British support for a national homeland for the Jews in Palestine. The United Kingdom was fighting to win control of Palestine from the Ottoman Empire as part of the war. The British hoped the declaration would rally Jewish leaders in the United Kingdom and the United States to support the British war efforts. At the same time, however, the British promised independence to various Arab groups in the Middle East, hoping to gain their support against the Ottomans. The promises were vague, but Arab leaders assumed they included Palestine.
Following the Ottoman defeat in World War I, the League of Nations made Palestine a mandated territory of the United Kingdom (see Mandated territory). According to the mandate, the British were to help Jews in Palestine build a national home. Many Zionists viewed the mandate as support for increased Jewish immigration to Palestine. But the British, fearful of the hostility of the large Arab population, proposed limits on Jewish immigration. But these limitations were not fully enforced.
Large numbers of European Jews came to Palestine in the 1930’s to escape persecution by the Nazis. Alarmed by the Jewish immigration, the Palestinian Arabs revolted against British rule during the late 1930’s. In 1939, the United Kingdom began attempting to limit Jewish immigration to Palestine. Jews strongly opposed this policy.
During World War II (1939-1945), the Nazis killed about 6 million European Jews. This led to increased demands for a Jewish state, but the British continued to limit Jewish immigration to Palestine. In 1947, the United Kingdom submitted the issue to the United Nations (UN).
Independence and conflict.
On Nov. 29, 1947, the UN General Assembly agreed to divide Palestine into an Arab state and a Jewish state and to place Jerusalem under international control. The Jews in Palestine accepted this plan, but the Arabs rejected it. Fighting broke out immediately. 
Israel officially came into existence on May 14, 1948, under the leadership of David Ben-Gurion. On May 15, Arab armies, chiefly from Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and Transjordan (which became known as Jordan in 1949), attacked Israel, aiming to destroy the new nation. By early 1949, Israel had defeated the Arabs and gained control of about half the land planned for the new Arab state. Egypt and Jordan held the rest of Palestine. Israel controlled the western half of Jerusalem, and Jordan held the eastern half. Israel incorporated the gained territory into the new country, adding about 150,000 resentful Arabs to its population. Hundreds of thousands of other Palestinian Arabs settled as refugees in parts of Palestine not under Israeli control and in Arab countries.
By mid-1949, Israel had signed armistice agreements with Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. But formal peace treaties were not signed because the Arab countries refused to recognize the existence of Israel.
Israel held its first election in January 1949. In February, the Knesset elected Chaim Weizmann president. He officially appointed Ben-Gurion prime minister.
The Sinai invasion.
Border clashes between Arab and Israeli troops occurred frequently in the early 1950’s. In the mid-1950’s, Egypt began giving financial aid and military supplies to Palestinian Arab fedayeen (commandos). The fedayeen raided Israel from the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian-occupied part of Palestine. The Israelis raided the Gaza Strip in return. Egypt also blocked Israeli ships from using the Suez Canal and stopped Israeli ships at the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba. In July 1956, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal, which at the time was owned mainly by the United Kingdom and France.
In response to the Egyptian actions, on Oct. 29, 1956, Israeli forces invaded Egypt. The United Kingdom and France attacked Egypt two days later. By November 5, the Israelis occupied the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula, and the British and French controlled the northern entrance to the Suez Canal. The UN ended the fighting and arranged the withdrawal of foreign troops from Egyptian territory. The UN also set up a peacekeeping force in the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula.
The Six-Day War.
In May 1967, the UN removed its peacekeeping force from the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula in response to demands by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser. Nasser then sent large numbers of troops into the Sinai. He also announced the closing of the Strait of Tiran to Israeli ships, thus blocking the Israeli port of Elat. 
Fearing that Arabs would soon attack, Israel launched a surprise air strike against Egypt on June 5, 1967. Syria, Jordan, and Iraq, which had signed defense agreements with Egypt, immediately joined in the fighting. In one day, Israeli planes almost completely destroyed the Arab air forces. Israel’s ground forces then defeated those of the Arab states. The UN arranged a cease-fire, ending the war after six days.
At the war’s conclusion, Israel held the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip, as well as Syria’s Golan Heights. It also occupied the West Bank, which had been claimed by Jordan. Israel vowed not to withdraw from these territories until the Arab states recognized Israel’s right to exist. In June 1967, Israel officially made the eastern half of Jerusalem part of Israel.
The Six-Day War again proved the superiority of Israel’s military forces, but it also planted the seeds of additional Arab-Israeli problems. The occupation of the Gaza Strip and West Bank placed Israel in control of about 1 million hostile Palestinian inhabitants.
The rise of the PLO.
Following the Six-Day War, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) became prominent in the Middle East. The PLO is a confederation of Palestinian groups that work to establish an independent state for the Palestinian people. It adopted guerrilla tactics, including terrorist attacks and commando raids against military and civilian targets.
After the defeat of the regular Arab armies in the 1967 war, Arab leaders began increasing their support of the PLO’s forces. These forces then stepped up guerrilla activity against Israel. Israel retaliated with raids against PLO bases in neighboring Arab countries.
The Yom Kippur War.
Israeli and Egyptian forces engaged in intense border fighting along the Suez Canal between April 1969 and August 1970. The Soviet Union provided military assistance to Egypt in the conflict, which was ended by a U.S.-sponsored cease-fire. On October 6, 1973, full-scale war broke out again when Egyptian and Syrian forces attacked Israeli positions along the Suez Canal and in the Golan Heights. The attack occurred on Yom Kippur, the most sacred Jewish holy day. Israel pushed back the Arab forces. It recaptured the Golan Heights and some additional Syrian territory. A cease-fire went into effect on October 25. 
The Yom Kippur War had far-reaching effects. The Israeli economy suffered severely. Although Israel won the war, it suffered heavy losses of men and equipment. Many Israelis criticized the government’s handling of the conflict. As a result, Prime Minister Golda Meir resigned in April 1974. Yitzhak Rabin succeeded her in June. The war also greatly increased Israel’s dependence on the United States, which supplied Israel with arms.
The Camp David Accords.
The Labor Party and the party from which it developed, the Mapai, controlled Israel’s government from independence until 1977. Under Israel’s political system of the time, the prime minister was usually the leader of the party with the most seats in the Knesset. In 1977, parliamentary elections transferred control of the country to the Likud bloc. Menachem Begin, the Likud leader, became prime minister.
Israeli-Egyptian tensions eased after the Yom Kippur War. In November 1977, Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat announced that he was ready to negotiate a peace settlement with Israel. That month, he met with Begin in Jerusalem. In September 1978, Begin, Sadat, and U.S. President Jimmy Carter met at Camp David in the United States for talks arranged by Carter. The talks resulted in the Camp David Accords, which focused on achieving two objectives: (1) peace between Egypt and Israel, and (2) a comprehensive peace in the Middle East. 
The first objective of the Camp David Accords was met when Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in March 1979. In February 1980, they exchanged diplomats for the first time. Israel completed its withdrawal from Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula in 1982. No immediate progress was made on the second objective.
Invasion of Lebanon.
Tensions between Israel and the PLO escalated in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. In 1978, Israel invaded southern Lebanon in an attempt to drive out Palestinian guerrillas who had been attacking Israel for several years. In June 1982, a large Israeli force attacked southern and central Lebanon in retaliation for PLO attacks on northern Israel. The PLO withdrew most of its forces from Lebanon in August 1982 In 1985, Israel withdrew its forces from all of Lebanon except a security zone along the Lebanon-Israeli border.
Unity government.
Begin resigned as prime minister in September 1983. Yitzhak Shamir of the Likud bloc succeeded him. Parliamentary elections were held in July 1984. The Labor Party won more seats than the Likud bloc, but neither party won a majority and neither was able to form a coalition government. In September, Labor and Likud agreed to form a unity government for 50 months. Under the agreement, Shimon Peres, leader of the Labor Party, served as prime minister for a term of 25 months. Shamir served as vice prime minister and foreign minister. The roles of Peres and Shamir were reversed after 25 months, in October 1986.
The unity government included Cabinet members of both parties. It succeeded in reducing a high inflation rate in Israel. But the government was divided on how to attain peace with Arab countries and the Palestinians. The Labor camp favored giving up portions of the occupied territories in return for peace agreements. The Likud bloc, however, supported the establishment of Jewish settlements in the territories and their retention by Israel.
In late 1987, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank began staging widespread demonstrations against Israel’s occupation. These demonstrations became known as the intifada (uprising). Some protests became violent. Israeli troops killed a number of Palestinians, a few Israelis also were killed, and hundreds of Palestinians and Israelis were injured.
In November 1988, new parliamentary elections were held. The Likud bloc won one more seat than the Labor Party, but again neither party won a majority. In December, Likud and Labor formed a new coalition government with Shamir continuing as prime minister. In 1990, Shamir refused to compromise on peace plans for the occupied territories. The Labor Party then left the coalition, and the government fell in March. In June 1990, Likud and small conservative parties formed a new coalition government with Shamir as prime minister.
From the mid-1980’s to the early 1990’s, thousands of Ethiopian Jews moved to Israel. Also, hundreds of thousands of Soviet Jews moved there. The influx of newcomers led to problems in housing and employment. Israel continued to build new settlements in occupied territories, in part to accommodate the immigrants. Despite protests from Palestinians, Shamir and Likud backed these construction projects.
The 1990’s.
In August 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait. In early 1991, the United States and other countries defeated Iraq in the Persian Gulf War of 1991. During the war, Iraq fired missiles at Israel. See Persian Gulf War of 1991.
In October 1991, peace talks began between Israel, Syria, Lebanon, and a joint Jordanian-Palestinian delegation. Israel’s Labor Party gained control of the government in June 1992 parliamentary elections. In July, Labor Party leader Yitzhak Rabin replaced Shamir as prime minister. Rabin agreed to limit construction of new Jewish settlements in the occupied territories as a step toward a peace agreement.
The PLO was not a participant in the peace talks that began in October 1991. But in September 1993, following secret talks in Oslo, Norway, Israel and the PLO recognized each other and signed an agreement that included steps to end their conflicts. As a result of this agreement and later ones, Israel withdrew its troops from most of the Gaza Strip and portions of the West Bank. Palestinians took control of these areas. In October 1994, Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty that formally ended the state of war that had technically existed between the countries since 1948. 
Not all Israelis agreed with the peace process, and some protested it. Some opponents argued, for example, that Israel was giving away land that should historically belong to it. On Nov. 4, 1995, Rabin was assassinated in Tel Aviv by a right-wing Israeli university student who was opposed to his policies. Following Rabin’s death, Peres, who had been foreign minister, became prime minister.
In May 1996, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Likud leader and a critic of the Israeli-PLO peace agreements, defeated Peres in an election for prime minister. Netanyahu claimed that the peace agreements did not include enough provisions for Israel, such as guaranteed security and allowance for its population growth. 
Tensions between Israel and the Palestinians grew after the 1996 elections, and the peace process slowed. In 1996 and 1997, Israel announced plans to expand Israeli settlements in the West Bank and to build new Israeli housing in East Jerusalem. Both decisions met with angry protests from the Palestinians. Also in 1997, however, Israel completed an agreement with the PLO over the withdrawal of Israeli troops from most of the West Bank city of Hebron.
In October 1998, Israel and the Palestinians signed another agreement, called the Wye River Memorandum. The accord called for Israel to turn over more land in the West Bank to Palestinian control. Also as a result of the agreement, the PLO revised its charter to remove language calling for the destruction of Israel. Many conservative members of the Israeli parliament and in Netanyahu’s Cabinet opposed the accord. In December 1998, Netanyahu, claiming that the PLO was not fulfilling its security commitments, suspended Israeli troop withdrawals from the West Bank. That same month, the Israeli parliament voted to dissolve itself and scheduled new elections.
In May 1999, Ehud Barak, leader of the Labor Party, was elected prime minister of Israel. Barak favored renewing the peace process with the Palestinians. In September, Barak and Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat signed a new agreement that revived and expanded on the previous Wye River Memorandum. Israel resumed its troop withdrawals from the West Bank shortly after the agreement was signed.
The 2000’s.
In May 2000, Israel withdrew its troops from the security zone it had established in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah guerrillas immediately took control of the area. Hezbollah, also spelled Hizbollah, is a radical Islamic group that opposed the Israeli occupation of Lebanon. Guerrillas from the group had often clashed with the Israelis and the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army. By September, UN peacekeepers and Lebanese security forces had moved into most of southern Lebanon. But Hezbollah remained in control of the area near the Israel-Lebanon border.
The peace process between Israeli and Palestinian leaders continued in 2000. In July, Barak and Arafat met at Camp David in the United States for peace talks hosted by U.S. President Bill Clinton. However, the two sides were unable to agree on key issues, especially those involving Jerusalem. One point of dispute was how much control Palestinians should have over East Jerusalem. The two sides also disagreed about who should govern the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Temple Mount, known to Arabs as Haram al-Sharif, is a holy site for both Muslims and Jews.
In September 2000, Ariel Sharon, the leader of Likud and a controversial critic of the Israeli-Palestinian peace agreements, visited Temple Mount. Sharon said he was demonstrating Israel’s control over the site. This visit angered Palestinians, who began riots and demonstrations in Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, and the West Bank. These actions came to be known as the second Palestinian intifada. Israel responded to the intifada with police crackdowns and military strikes in Palestinian areas. 
After the violence began, Barak faced mounting pressure from opposition parties to hold new elections. In November 2000, he agreed to hold a new election for prime minister. In the vote, which was held in February 2001, Sharon defeated Barak. Sharon formed a coalition government that included the Labor Party and several other parties.
Both the Palestinian intifada and the Israeli military campaign continued and became more violent. Numerous attacks by Palestinian militias and suicide bombers took place throughout Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, killing hundreds of Israelis. Israeli forces repeatedly bombed and invaded the West Bank and Gaza Strip, killing thousands of Palestinians and demolishing hundreds of houses. In 2002, Israel reoccupied most West Bank cities. That same year, Israel began constructing a barrier that was designed to separate most of the West Bank from Israel.
In October 2002, the Labor Party withdrew from Sharon’s coalition government. Early parliamentary elections were scheduled for January 2003. In the elections, Sharon’s Likud party won the largest number of seats. Sharon formed a new coalition government and remained as prime minister.
Later in 2003, diplomats from the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations proposed a peace plan known as the “road map.” Israeli and Palestinian leaders resumed negotiations under this plan, but the negotiations soon broke down. Palestinian attacks and Israeli military strikes continued.
In late 2004, Sharon dissolved his coalition government. He soon formed a new one with the Labor Party as the key partner. In February 2005, Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas met in Egypt and declared an Israeli-Palestinian truce. However, some violence continued between the two sides.
In 2004, Sharon announced a plan to remove all Jewish settlements and Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip by the end of 2005. On Aug. 15, 2005, the Israeli government began the evacuation of all Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip and four West Bank settlements. Many settlers protested the evacuation, and Israeli troops forcibly removed them. The evacuation was completed on August 23. There are still about 120 Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
In late 2005, Sharon asked the president to dissolve parliament so elections could be held early. Sharon then left the Likud party to form his own party, called Kadima, which is Hebrew for forward. In January 2006, Sharon suffered a major stroke and fell into a coma. Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert became acting prime minister and acting head of Kadima. In March, parliamentary elections were held, and Kadima won the largest number of seats. Olmert became prime minister and formed a coalition government with Labor as the key partner.
In June 2006, Palestinian militant groups captured an Israeli soldier. The groups demanded Israel release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the soldier. Fighting between the two sides increased. Israel bombed parts of the Gaza Strip, and militants fired rockets into Israel. Israeli troops entered the Gaza Strip in an effort to retrieve the soldier. In November, Israel and Palestinian militant groups agreed to a cease-fire.
In July 2006, Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers near the border of Lebanon and Israel. In response, Israel began bombing Lebanon. Israel blamed the Lebanese government for not disarming Hezbollah. Hezbollah fired missiles into northern Israel. In August, Israel and Lebanon accepted a cease-fire agreement drafted by the UN Security Council. The conflict led to the deaths of over 1,000 people, most of them Lebanese. In July 2008, Hezbollah returned the bodies of the two soldiers, who had been killed in the 2006 attack, in exchange for Lebanese prisoners held by Israel.
In November 2007, Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas began peace talks. The talks were hosted by the United States in Annapolis, Maryland, and involved other leaders from the Middle East, including Syria and Saudi Arabia.
Beginning in late 2006, Olmert faced multiple corruption investigations. He denied any wrongdoing. However, in 2008, he resigned as prime minister and head of Kadima. Tzipi Livni replaced him as Kadima leader. After parliamentary elections in 2009, President Shimon Peres asked Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu to form the next government. Netanyahu became prime minister of Israel for the second time on March 31, 2009.
In 2008, Israel began air attacks on targets in the Gaza Strip. Israel stated that the air strikes were in response to rocket attacks from Hamas militants. In 2009, Israel began sending troops into the Gaza Strip. The fighting caused more than 1,300 deaths, almost all of them Palestinians, and wounded thousands more. On January 17, Israel declared a cease-fire. Hamas declared a cease-fire the next day, though some fighting continued.
Recent developments.
In 2012, violence in Gaza erupted again as Hamas rocket attacks were met with Israeli naval and air strikes. In roughly one week, about 170 people were killed, all but 6 of them Palestinian.
In 2013 elections, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud bloc narrowly retained power. In 2014, Likud legislator Reuven Rivlin was elected Israel’s new president. In July, Israeli soldiers again entered Gaza after a sharp increase in cross-border violence. Over the next several weeks, more than 2,000 Palestinians were killed in the fighting, as were dozens of Israelis. In 2015 elections, Likud retained power, and Netanyahu formed a new coalition government. Violence again flared up in the occupied Palestinian territories, resulting in the deaths of dozens of people, most of them Palestinian.
In 2017, the United States officially recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. The U.S. Embassy moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018. The move sparked protests in Gaza, where Israeli security forces killed 62 Palestinians and injured about 2,700 others.
In elections to the Knesset in April 2019, Likud won the most seats. A new moderate party, the Blue and White Party led by former army chief of staff Benny Gantz, won the second most seats. Netanyahu was invited by President Rivlin to form a government, but he was unable to do so. After new elections held in September, in which Likud and Blue and White won almost the same number of seats, Netanyahu was again unable to form a government. Rivlin then asked Gantz to form a government, but Gantz was also unable to do so. In November, Israel’s attorney general announced criminal charges against Netanyahu, for alleged fraud, bribery, and breach of trust. Netanyahu denied any wrongdoing.
After another round of inconclusive elections in March 2020, Netanyahu and Gantz agreed to form a unity government. According to the agreement, Netanyahu was to continue as prime minister, with Gantz serving as alternate prime minister. After 18 months, Gantz was to become prime minister. In May, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that Netanyahu could serve as prime minister even as he was tried for the criminal charges against him. Netanyahu and Gantz then formed a government. In December, the government collapsed after failing to pass the budget for the coming year. New elections were scheduled for 2021.
In early 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a Middle East peace plan. The plan proposed that Israel be allowed to annex its settlements in the West Bank, as well as the area’s major water source, the Jordan Valley. A unified Jerusalem would serve as Israel’s capital. The Palestinians would receive some land near Gaza in exchange, and establish a capital northeast of Jerusalem. Israel would agree to freeze for four years its expansion of West Bank settlements. The Israeli government supported the plan. However, the Palestinians, who had had no role in drafting the plan, rejected it.
In August 2020, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel agreed to establish official diplomatic ties with each other. Among Arab nations, only Egypt and Jordan had previously established such relations with Israel. The deal required Israel to suspend annexation of its occupied West Bank territory. In September, representatives from the UAE, Israel, and Bahrain met in Washington, D.C., and signed the Abraham Accords. With the agreements, the UAE and Bahrain formally recognized the Jewish state. The normalization agreements also set up an avenue for further diplomatic relations. The issue of statehood for Palestinians was not addressed. In December, Morocco agreed to normalize relations with Israel. In turn, the United States recognized Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, a region that has long sought self-determination.
Also in 2020, Israel faced a public health crisis as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic (global epidemic). COVID-19 is a sometimes-fatal respiratory disease caused by a type of coronavirus. Israel reported its first case of COVID-19 in late February 2020. Israeli authorities limited travel, as well as business, educational, and social activities, to curb the spread of the disease. In the following months, authorities tightened or eased such restrictions based on infection rates. In December, Israel began vaccinating its citizens against COVID-19. By April 2021, more than half of the population had been vaccinated. Omicron, a new variant (strain) of the virus that causes COVID-19, spread rapidly through Israel in 2022. By early 2023, more than 4.8 million people in Israel had become infected with COVID-19, and more than 12,000 had died from it.
Elections took place in March 2021 for an unprecedented fourth time in two years. Netanyahu’s Likud party received the most votes, but failed to win a parliamentary majority. Netanyahu also failed to build a new coalition government. The opposition, led by Yair Lapid of the centrist Yesh Atid party, created an eight-party coalition that the Knesset approved in June. Naftali Bennett of the right-wing Yamina party became prime minister.
In April, a stampede broke out during a religious celebration attended by tens of thousands of people at Mount Meron, in northern Israel. At least 45 people were killed and dozens of others were injured in one of the worst civilian disasters in the nation’s history.
The worst violence in the region since 2014 broke out between Israel and Palestinians in May 2021. Violence erupted as Israeli police attempted to evict Palestinian families from East Jerusalem, where they had lived for decades. It escalated during an incident in which the police entered Al Aqsa Mosque, one of Islam’s holiest sites, during Ramadan. Hamas responded by launching air strikes into Israel, and Israel fired air strikes into Gaza in return. The rockets launched by Hamas at several Israeli cities were largely intercepted by Israel’s defense system. Israel’s rockets struck a number of high-rise buildings in Gaza, including the offices of Hamas, as well as those of the Associated Press and Al Jazeera news services. More than 260 people—the majority of them Palestinians—were killed in the conflict, and hundreds more were injured. Hundreds of buildings in Gaza were destroyed, and tens of thousands of Palestinians were displaced. On May 20, Hamas and Israel agreed to a cease-fire.
In June 2022, Naftali Bennett stepped down as prime minister. Yair Lapid took over as acting prime minister. In elections that November, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party won the most seats in the Knesset. Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, then asked Netanyahu to form a new government. Netanyahu formed a coalition government with a number of right-wing parties, including the far-right Religious Zionism party. He became prime minister again in December.
In early 2023, Netanyahu’s government proposed changes to Israel’s judicial system. These changes would give the prime minister more control over the appointment of judges. The changes also would take away some of the Supreme Court’s power to strike down laws. Thousands of Israelis protested against these changes, which they saw as harmful to democracy and the rule of law.
On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale surprise attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip. The group not only fired rockets into Israel, but also broke through a barrier around Gaza and invaded Israel by land. Hamas killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took more than 200 others back to Gaza as hostages. In response, Israel declared war for the first time since the Yom Kippur War in 1973, launching ground assaults against Hamas and massive air strikes against targets in Gaza. Thousands of people have been killed in the conflict and thousands more have been wounded, including many civilians on both sides. After the declaration of war, Prime Minister Netanyahu and opposition leaders formed a unity government to enable Israel to focus on its fight against Hamas.
