Israel

Israel has become a regional economic and military powerhouse, leveraging its prosperous high-tech sector, large defense industry, and concerns about Iran to foster partnerships around the world. The State of Israel was established in 1948. The UN General Assembly proposed in 1947 partitioning the British Mandate for Palestine into an Arab and Jewish state. The Jews accepted the proposal, but the local Arabs and the Arab states rejected the UN plan and launched a war. The Arabs were subsequently defeated in the 1947-1949 war that followed the UN proposal and the British withdrawal. Israel joined the UN in 1949 and saw rapid population growth, primarily due to Jewish refugee migration from Europe and the Middle East. Israel and its Arab neighbors fought wars in 1956, 1967, and 1973, and Israel signed peace treaties with Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. Israel took control of the West Bank, the eastern part of Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, and the Golan Heights in the course of the 1967 war. It ceded the Sinai back to Egypt in the 1979-1982 period but has continued to administer the other territories through military authorities. Israel and Palestinian officials signed interim agreements in the 1990s that created a period of Palestinian self-rule in parts of the West Bank and Gaza. Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005. The most recent formal efforts between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to negotiate final status issues occurred in 2013 and 2014, and the US continues its efforts to advance peace. Israel signed the US-brokered normalization agreements (the Abraham Accords) with Bahrain, the UAE, and Morocco in 2020 and reached an agreement with Sudan in 2021. Immigration to Israel continues, with more than 44,000 estimated new immigrants, mostly Jewish, in the first 11 months of 2023.

Former Prime Minister Benjamin NETANYAHU returned to office in 2022, continuing his dominance of Israel's political landscape at the head of Israel's most rightwing and religious government. NETANYAHU previously served as premier from 1996 to 1999 and from 2009 to 2021, becoming Israel's longest serving prime minister.

On 7 October 2023, HAMAS militantslaunched a combined unguided rocket and ground terrorist attack from Gaza into southern Israel. The same day Israel’s Air Force launched air strikes inside Gaza and initiated a sustained air campaign against HAMAS targets across the Gaza Strip. The following day, NETANYAHU formally declared war on HAMAS, and on 28 October, the Israel Defense Forces launched a large-scale ground assault inside Gaza.

The Israeli economy has undergone a dramatic transformation in the last 30 years, led by cutting-edge high-tech sectors. Offshore gas discoveries in the Mediterranean place Israel at the center of a potential regional natural gas market. In 2022, a US-brokered agreement between Israel and Lebanon established their maritime boundary, allowing Israel to begin production on additional gas fields in the Mediterranean. However, Israel's economic development has been uneven. Structural issues such as low labor-force participation among religious and minority populations,low workforce productivity, high costs for housing and consumer staples, and high income inequality concern both economists and the general population. The current war with Hamas disrupted Israel’s solid economic fundamentals, but it is not likely to have long-term structural implications for the economy. 

31 30 N, 34 45 E

sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes

slightly larger than New Jersey

limited arable land and restricted natural freshwater resources; desertification; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; groundwater pollution from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides

Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

Signed, but not ratified: Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Marine Life Conservation

temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas

273 km

Total: 1,068 km

Border countries (6): Egypt 208 km; Gaza Strip 59 km; Jordan 327 km (20 km are within the Dead Sea); Lebanon 81 km; Syria 83 km; West Bank 330 km

Agricultural land: 24.8% (2023 est.)

Arable land: 12.5% (2023 est.)

Permanent crops: 4.7% (2023 est.)

Permanent pasture: 7.6% (2023 est.)

Forest: 6.7% (2023 est.)

Other: 68.5% (2023 est.)

Territorial sea: 12 nm

Continental shelf: To depth of exploitation

timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand

Note 1: Lake Tiberias (Sea of Galilee) is an important freshwater source; the Dead Sea is the second saltiest body of water in the world (after Lake Assal in Djibouti)

Note 2:  The Malham Cave in Mount Sodom is the world's longest salt cave at 10 km (6 mi); Mount Sodom is a hill about 220 m (722 ft) high that is 80% salt, with multiple salt layers covered by a veneer of rock

Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley

Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon

Middle East

1,927 sq km (2022)

1.78 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

population concentrated in and around Tel-Aviv, as well as around the Sea of Galilee; the south remains sparsely populated, with the exception of the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba

Highest point: Mitspe Shlagim 2,224 m; note - this is the highest named point, the actual highest point is an unnamed dome slightly to the west of Mitspe Shlagim at 2,236 m; both points are on the northeastern border of Israel, along the southern end of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range

Lowest point: Dead Sea -431 m

Mean elevation: 508 m

Salt water lake(s): Dead Sea (shared with Jordan and West Bank) - 1,020 sq km
Note - endorheic hypersaline lake; 9.6 times saltier than the ocean; lake shore is 431 meters below sea level

Total : 21,937 sq km

Land: 21,497 sq km

Water: 440 sq km

0-14 years: 27.5% (male 1,320,629/female 1,260,977)

15-64 years: 60.3% (male 2,885,485/female 2,781,777)

65 years and over: 12.3% (2024 est.) (male 525,161/female 628,588)

At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female

Total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

Noun: Israeli(s)

Adjective: Israeli

Total: 15 years (2022 est.)

Male: 14 years (2022 est.)

Female: 16 years (2022 est.)

Urban population: 92.9% of total population (2023)

Rate of urbanization: 1.51% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Improved:

Urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)

Rural: 100% of population (2022 est.)

Total: 100% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved:

Urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)

Rural: 0% of population (2022 est.)

Total: 0% of population (2022 est.)

4.421 million Tel Aviv-Yafo, 1.174 million Haifa, 970,000 JERUSALEM (capital) (2023)

3.8 physicians/1,000 population (2023)

3.1 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)

27.7 years (2019 est.)

Total dependency ratio: 65.9 (2024 est.)

Youth dependency ratio: 45.6 (2024 est.)

Elderly dependency ratio: 20.4 (2024 est.)

Potential support ratio: 4.9 (2024 est.)

Improved:

Urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)

Rural: 99% of population (2022 est.)

Total: 99.9% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved:

Urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)

Rural: 1% of population (2022 est.)

Total: 0.1% of population (2022 est.)

Jewish 73.5% (of which Israel-born 79.7%, Europe/America/Oceania-born 14.3%, Africa-born 3.9%, Asia-born 2.1%), Arab 21.1%, other 5.4% (2022 est.)

Jewish 73.5%, Muslim 18.1%, Christian 1.9%, Druze 1.6%, other 4.9% (2022 est.)

Hebrew (official), Arabic (special status under Israeli law), English (most commonly used foreign language)

Major-language sample(s):
ספר עובדות העולם, המקור החיוני למידע בסיסי (Hebrew)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

7.9% of GDP (2021)

13% of national budget (2022 est.)

1.42 (2024 est.)

50.4% (2021 est.)

Total: 6.1% (2024 est.)

Male: 6.2% (2024 est.)

Female: 6% (2024 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

1.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Total: 30.1 years (2024 est.)

Male: 29.6 years

Female: 30.7 years

2 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

2.92 children born/woman (2024 est.)

Total: 9,402,617 (2024 est.)

Male: 4,731,275

Female: 4,671,342

Note: Approximately 236,600 Israeli settlers live in East Jerusalem (2021); following the March 2019 US recognition of the Golan Heights as being part of Israel, The World Factbook no longer includes Israeli settler population of the Golan Heights (estimated at 23,400 in 2019) in its overall Israeli settler total

Total: 2.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

Male: 3.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Female: 2.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Total: 18.6% (2025 est.)

Male: 24.9% (2025 est.)

Female: 12.4% (2025 est.)

26.1% (2016)

5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)

19.1 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Total: 3.07 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Beer: 1.78 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Wine: 0.08 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Spirits: 1.16 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Other alcohols: 0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Total population: 83.1 years (2024 est.)

Male: 81.1 years

Female: 85.1 years

5.9% of GDP (2022 est.)

16.1% national budget (2022 est.)

1.58% (2024 est.)

Municipal: 1 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

Industrial: 104.834 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

Agricultural: 1.215 billion cubic meters (2022)

Municipal solid waste generated annually: 5.4 million tons (2024 est.)

Percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 30.4% (2022 est.)

20.4 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

64.401 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

From coal and metallurgical coke: 11.542 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

From petroleum and other liquids: 28.793 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

From consumed natural gas: 24.066 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)

112.437 million Btu/person (2023 est.)

Chief of mission: Ambassador Mike HUCKABEE (21 April 2025)

Embassy: 14 David Flusser Street, Jerusalem, 9378322

Mailing address: 6350 Jerusalem Place, Washington DC  20521-6350

Telephone: [972] (2) 630-4000

FAX: [972] (2) 630-4070

Email address and website:
JerusalemACS@state.gov

https://il.usembassy.gov/

Branch office(s): Tel Aviv

Note: On 14 May 2018, the US Embassy relocated to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv; on 4 March 2019, Consulate General Jerusalem merged into US Embassy Jerusalem to form a single diplomatic mission

6 districts (mehozot, singular - mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv

Name: Jerusalem

Geographic coordinates: 31 46 N, 35 14 E

Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Daylight saving time: +1hr, Friday before the last Sunday in March; ends the last Sunday in October

Etymology: The meaning of the ancient name is unclear; the city is called Ursalim or Urusalimmi in Egyptian texts from the 14th century B.C., which may come from the Western Semitic verb yaru, meaning "to establish," and the name Shalim, the Canaanite god of dusk; another theory says the root letters s-l-m in the name refer to shalom, meaning "peace" 

Note: The US recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in 2017, without taking a position on the specific boundaries of Israeli sovereignty

History: No formal constitution; some functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws, and the Law of Return (as amended)

Amendment process: Proposed by Government of Israel ministers or by the Knesset; passage requires a majority vote of Knesset members and subject to Supreme Court judicial review

Chief of state: President Isaac HERZOG (since 7 July 2021)

Head of government: Prime Minister Benyamin NETANYAHU (since 29 December 2022)

Cabinet: Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved by the Knesset

Election/appointment process: President indirectly elected by the Knesset for a single 7-year term; following legislative elections, the president, in consultation with party leaders, tasks a Knesset member (usually the member of the largest party) with forming a new government

Most recent election date: 2 June 2021

Election results:
2021: Isaac HERZOG elected president; Knesset vote in first round - Isaac HERZOG (independent) 87, Miriam PERETZ (independent) 26, invalid/blank 7

2014: Reuven RIVLIN elected president in second round; Knesset vote - Reuven RIVLIN (Likud) 63, Meir SHEETRIT (The Movement) 53, other/invalid 4

Expected date of next election: June 2028

Description: White with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Star of David or Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag

History: The design resembles a traditional Jewish prayer shawl (tallit), which is white with blue stripes; the hexagram as a Jewish symbol dates back to medieval times

Note: The Israeli flag proclamation states that the flag colors are sky blue and white, but the exact shade of blue has never been set and can vary

14 May 1948 (following League of Nations mandate under British administration)

Highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the president, deputy president, 13 justices, and 2 registrars) and normally sits in panels of 3 justices; in special cases, the panel is expanded with an uneven number of justices

Judge selection and term of office: Judges selected by the 9-member Judicial Selection Committee, consisting of the Minister of Justice (chair), the president of the Supreme Court, two other Supreme Court justices, 1 other Cabinet minister, 2 Knesset members, and 2 representatives of the Israel Bar Association; judges can serve up to mandatory retirement at age 70

Subordinate courts: District and magistrate courts; national and regional labor courts; family and juvenile courts; special and Rabbinical courts

mixed system of English common law, British Mandate regulations, and Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religious laws

Legislature name: Parliament (Knesset)

Legislative structure: Unicameral

Number of seats: 120 (all directly elected)

Electoral system: Proportional representation

Scope of elections: Full renewal

Term in office: 4 years

Most recent election date: 11/1/2022

Parties elected and seats per party: Likud (32); Yesh Atid (24); Religious Zionism (14); National Unity (12); Shas (11); United Torah Judaism (Yahadut Hatorah) (7); Yisrael Beiteinu (6); Other (14)

Percentage of women in chamber: 24.2%

Expected date of next election: October 2026

Note 1: A 3.25% vote threshold is required to gain representation

Note 2: Following the 1 November 2022 election, the Religious Zionism Alliance split into its three constituent parties in the Knesset:  Religious Zionism 7 seats, Jewish Power (Otzma Yehudit) 6, and Noam 1

BIS, BSEC (observer), CE (observer), CERN, CICA, EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW (signatory), OSCE (partner), Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, SELEC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Independence Day, 14 May (1948)

Note: Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar, so the holiday can occur in April or May

Balad
Blue and White
Hadash
Labor Party or HaAvoda
Likud
Meretz
National Unity (alliance includes Blue and White and New Hope)
New Hope
Noam
Otzma Yehudit
Religious Zionist Party
Shas
Ta'al
United Arab List
United Torah Judaism or UTJ (alliance includes Agudat Israel and Degel HaTorah)
Yesh Atid
Yisrael Beiteinu

18 years of age; universal; 17 years of age for municipal elections

parliamentary democracy

Conventional long form: State of Israel

Conventional short form: Israel

Local long form: Medinat Yisra'el

Local short form: Yisra'el

Former: Mandatory Palestine

Etymology: Named after the ancient Kingdom of Israel; according to Biblical tradition, the Jewish patriarch Jacob received the name Israel (meaning "He who struggles with God") after he wrestled with an angel of the Lord

Chief of mission: Ambassador Yechiel (Michael) LEITER (since 4 February 2025)

Chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008

Telephone: [1] (202) 364-5500

FAX: [1] (202) 364-5607

Email address and website:
Consular@washington.mfa.gov.il

https://embassies.gov.il/washington/Pages/default.aspx

Consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco

Title: "Hatikvah" (The Hope)

Lyrics/music: Naftali Herz IMBER/traditional, arranged by Samuel COHEN

History: Adopted 2004, unofficial since 1948; used as the anthem of the Zionist movement since 1897; the 1888 arrangement by Samuel COHEN is thought to be based on the Romanian folk song "Carul cu boi" (The Ox-Driven Cart)

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; withdrew acceptance of ICCt jurisdiction in 2002

Star of David (Magen David), menorah (seven-branched lampstand)

Citizenship by birth: No

Citizenship by descent only: At least one parent must be a citizen of Israel

Dual citizenship recognized: Yes, but naturalized citizens are not allowed to maintain dual citizenship

Residency requirement for naturalization: 3 out of the 5 years preceding the application for naturalization

Note: Israeli law (Law of Return, 5 July 1950) provides for the granting of citizenship to any Jew - defined as a person being born to a Jewish mother or having converted to Judaism while renouncing any other religion - who immigrates to and expresses a desire to settle in Israel on the basis of the Right of aliyah; the 1970 amendment of this act extended the right to family members including the spouse of a Jew, any child or grandchild, and the spouses of children and grandchildren

Total World Heritage Sites: 9 (all cultural)

Selected World Heritage Site locales: Masada; Old City of Acre; White City of Tel-Aviv - the Modern Movement; Biblical Tels - Megiddo, Hazor, Beer Sheba; Incense Route - Desert Cities in the Negev; Bahá’i Holy Places; Sites of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel; Caves of Maresha and Bet-Guvrin; Necropolis of Bet She’arim

blue, white

Lowest 10%: 2% (2021 est.)

Highest 10%: 26.6% (2021 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

integrated circuits, diamonds, broadcasting equipment, medical instruments, refined petroleum (2023)

note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars

USA 29%, China 10%, Ireland 6%, Germany 4%, Hong Kong 4% (2023)

note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports

milk, chicken, potatoes, tomatoes, tangerines/mandarins, bananas, eggs, avocados, beef, carrots/turnips (2023)

note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

Revenues: $162.524 billion (2023 est.)

Expenditures: $188.905 billion (2023 est.)

note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

cars, diamonds, crude petroleum, broadcasting equipment, garments (2023)

note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars

new Israeli shekels (ILS) per US dollar -

Exchange rates:
3.7 (2024 est.)
3.667 (2023 est.)
3.36 (2022 est.)
3.23 (2021 est.)
3.442 (2020 est.)

high-technology products (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics, fiber optics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, pharmaceuticals, construction, metal products, chemical products, plastics, cut diamonds, textiles, footwear

high-income, technology- and industrial-based economy; economic contraction and fiscal deficits resulting from war in Gaza; labor force stabilizing following military reservist mobilization; high-tech industry remains resilient while construction and tourism among hardest-hit sectors

$540.38 billion (2024 est.)

note: data in current dollars at official exchange rate

Household consumption: 48% (2023 est.)

Government consumption: 22.3% (2023 est.)

Investment in fixed capital: 24.4% (2023 est.)

Investment in inventories: 1.7% (2023 est.)

Exports of goods and services: 30.4% (2023 est.)

Imports of goods and services: -27.6% (2023 est.)

note: figures may not total 100% due to rounding or gaps in data collection

China 17%, USA 12%, Germany 7%, Turkey 6%, Italy 4% (2023)

note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports

On food: 15.8% of household expenditures (2023 est.)

On alcohol and tobacco: 2.6% of household expenditures (2023 est.)

0.2% of GDP (2024 est.)
0.2% of GDP (2023 est.)
0.2% of GDP (2022 est.)

note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities

4.71 million (2024 est.)

note: number of people ages 15 or older who are employed or seeking work

$214.544 billion (2024 est.)
$204.661 billion (2023 est.)
$194.231 billion (2022 est.)

note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars

3.2% (2024 est.)
3.6% (2023 est.)
3.7% (2022 est.)

note: % of labor force seeking employment

22.1% (of GDP) (2023 est.)

note: central government tax revenue as a % of GDP

$472.177 billion (2024 est.)
$468.095 billion (2023 est.)
$459.698 billion (2022 est.)

note: data in 2021 dollars

3.1% (2024 est.)
4.2% (2023 est.)
4.4% (2022 est.)

note: annual % change based on consumer prices

$16.713 billion (2024 est.)
$18.604 billion (2023 est.)
$17.104 billion (2022 est.)

note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars

$47,300 (2024 est.)
$47,500 (2023 est.)
$48,100 (2022 est.)

note: data in 2021 dollars

$140.438 billion (2024 est.)
$140.432 billion (2023 est.)
$153.388 billion (2022 est.)

note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

$153.248 billion (2024 est.)
$154.638 billion (2023 est.)
$164.407 billion (2022 est.)

note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

0.9% (2024 est.)
1.8% (2023 est.)
6.3% (2022 est.)

note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

-4.2% (2024 est.)

note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency

Agriculture: 1.3% (2024 est.)

Industry: 17.3% (2024 est.)

Services: 72.5% (2024 est.)

note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

Electrification - total population: 100% (2022 est.)

Consumption: 5.297 million metric tons (2023 est.)

Exports: 9 metric tons (2022 est.)

Imports: 4.887 million metric tons (2023 est.)

Fossil fuels: 89.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Solar: 9.4% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Wind: 1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Biomass and waste: 0.1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Production: 24.186 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

Consumption: 12.608 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

Exports: 11.505 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

Imports: 59.369 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

Proven reserves: 176.018 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)

Total petroleum production: 15,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

Refined petroleum consumption: 219,000 bbl/day (2024 est.)

Crude oil estimated reserves: 12.73 million barrels (2021 est.)

Installed generating capacity: 22.612 million kW (2023 est.)

Consumption: 63.964 billion kWh (2023 est.)

Exports: 6.93 billion kWh (2023 est.)

Transmission/distribution losses: 3.51 billion kWh (2023 est.)

Percent of population: 87% (2023 est.)

.il

the Israel Broadcasting Corporation (IBC) has 3 channels, two in Hebrew and one in Arabic; multi-channel satellite and cable TV packages provide access to foreign channels; IBC broadcasts on 8 radio networks with multiple repeaters, and Israel Defense Forces Radio broadcasts over multiple stations; about 15 privately owned radio stations (2019)

Total subscriptions: 13.8 million (2022 est.)

Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 152 (2022 est.)

Total: 2.76 million (2023 est.)

Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 30 (2023 est.)

Total subscriptions: 2.905 million (2023 est.)

Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 31 (2023 est.)

Total: 1,497 km (2021) (2019)

Standard gauge: 1,497 km (2021) 1.435-m gauge

4X

40 (2025)

Total: 41 (2023)

By type: Container ship 4, general cargo 1, oil tanker 4, other 32

13 (2025)

18 years of age for compulsory military service; 17 years of age for voluntary military service; Jews and Druze can be conscripted; Christians, Circassians, and Muslims may volunteer; both sexes are obligated to military service; conscript service obligation is 32 months for enlisted men and about 24 months for enlisted women (varies based on military occupation); officers serve 48 months; Air Force pilots commit to 9 years of service; reserve obligation to age 41-51 (men), age 24 (women) (2024)

Note: The IDF recruits foreign Jews and non-Jews with a minimum of one Jewish grandparent, as well as converts to Judaism; each year the IDF brings in about 800-1,000 foreign recruits from around the world

8% of GDP (2024 est.)
5% of GDP (2023 est.)
4.5% of GDP (2022 est.)
5% of GDP (2021 est.)
5% of GDP (2020 est.)

Israel Defense Forces (IDF): Ground Forces, Israel Naval Force (IN, includes commandos), Israel Air Force (IAF, includes air defense)

Ministry of National Security: Israeli Police (2025)

the IDF is responsible for external defense but also has some domestic security responsibilities; its primary operational focuses include the threat posed by Iran, instability in Syria, and terrorist organizations, including HAMAS, Hizballah, and Palestine Islamic Jihad; since its creation from armed Jewish militias during the First Arab-Israeli War in 1948-49, the IDF, particularly the Ground Force, has been guided by a requirement to rapidly mobilize and defend the country’s territory from numerically superior neighboring countries; the active-duty military is backed up by a large force of trained reserves--approximately 300-400,000 personnel--that can be mobilized rapidly 

Israel’s primary security partner is the US; consistent with a 10-year (2019-2028) Memorandum of Understanding, the US annually provides over $3 billion in military financing and cooperative military programs, such as missile defense; the US also provides Israel access to US-produced military weapons systems including advanced fighter aircraft; Israel has Major Non-NATO Ally status with the US, a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation

The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has operated in the Golan between Israel and Syria since 1974 to monitor the ceasefire following the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and supervise the areas of separation between the two countries; UNDOF consists of about 1,300 total personnel (2025)

approximately 170,000 active-duty Defense Forces (130,000 Ground Forces; 10,000 Naval; 30,000 Air Force); more than 400,000 reserves (2025)

the majority of the IDF's inventory is comprised of weapons that are domestically produced or imported from Europe and the US; the US has been the leading supplier of arms in recent years; Israel's defense industry can develop, produce, support, and sustain a wide variety of weapons systems for both domestic use and export, particularly armored vehicles, unmanned aerial systems, air defense, and guided missiles (2025)

Refugees: 27,413 (2024 est.)

IDPs: 68,000 (2024 est.)

Stateless persons: 35 (2024 est.)

Terrorist group(s): Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP); Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ); HAMAS

Note: Details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in the Terrorism reference guide

has an ambitious space program that is one of the most advanced in the region; designs, builds, operates, and launches communications, remote sensing (RS), and scientific satellites; designs, builds, and operates orbital satellite/space launch vehicles (SLVs); researches and develops a range of other space-related capabilities, with a focus on lightweight and miniaturized technologies; has relations with a variety of foreign space agencies and industries, including those of Canada, the ESA, individual ESA member states (such as France, Germany, and Italy), India, Japan, Mexico, and the US; has a substantial commercial space sector, as well as state-owned enterprises (2025)

Palmachim Airbase (Central district) (2025)

Israel Space Agency (ISA; established 1983 under the Ministry of Science and Technology; origins go back to the creation of a National Committee for Space Research, established 1960); Ministry of Defense Space Department (2025)

Total ports: 5 (2024)

Large: 0

Medium: 1

Small: 2

Very small: 2

Ports with oil terminals: 4

Key ports: Ashdod, Ashqelon, Elat, Hadera, Haifa

1961 - first sounding rocket launched

1988 - first operational launch of small-lift satellite launch vehicle (SLV) (Shavit) placed first domestically produced technology-demonstrator satellite (Ofeq-1) in orbit 

1995 - launched first fully operational remote sensing satellite (Ofeq-3) on Shavit SLV

2007 - unveiled Shavit-2 small-lift 3-stage SLV

2014 - joined ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) project; domestically built lunar probe (Beresheet) launched by US (crashed on Moon’s surface)

2022 - joined US Artemis Moon exploration project

Energy: 29.2 kt (2022-2024 est.)

Agriculture: 40.6 kt (2019-2021 est.)

Waste: 272.7 kt (2019-2021 est.)

Other: 0.7 kt (2019-2021 est.)

37.9 (2021 est.)

note: index (0-100) of income distribution; higher values represent greater inequality