ers:
145,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2003)

Transportation West Bank

Highways:
total: 4,500 km
paved: 2,700 km
unpaved: 1,800 km
note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish
settlements (1997 est.)

Airports:
3 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Military West Bank

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
NA

Transnational Issues West Bank

Disputes - international:
West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status
subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent
status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel
continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along
parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel announced
its intention to pull out settlers and withdraw from four
settlements in the northern West Bank in 2005; since 1948, about 350
peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO),
headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice
agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist
other UN personnel in the region

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 665,246 (Palestinian Refugees
(UNRWA)) (2004)

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Western Sahara

Introduction Western Sahara

Background:
Morocco virtually annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara
(formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in
1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war with the
Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991
UN-brokered cease-fire; a UN-organized referendum on final status
has been repeatedly postponed.

Geography Western Sahara

Location:
Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Mauritania and Morocco

Geographic coordinates:
24 30 N, 13 00 W

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 266,000 sq km
land: 266,000 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:
about the size of Colorado

Land boundaries:
total: 2,046 km
border countries: Algeria 42 km, Mauritania 1,561 km, Morocco 443 km

Coastline:
1,110 km

Maritime claims: