parative area: slightly larger than New Jersey

Land boundaries: 1,006 km total; Egypt 255 km, Jordan 238 km,
Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307, Gaza Strip 51 km

Coastline: 273 km

Maritime claims:

Continental shelf: to depth of exploitation;

Territorial sea: 6 nm

Disputes: separated from Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank by the
1949 Armistice Line; differences with Jordan over the location
of the 1949 Armistice Line which separates the two countries;
West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli occupied with status
to be determined; Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; Israeli troops in southern
Lebanon since June 1982; water-sharing issues with Jordan

Climate: temperate; hot and dry in desert areas

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

Natural resources: copper, phosphates, bromide, potash, clay, sand,
sulfur, asphalt, manganese, small amounts of natural gas and crude oil

Land use: 17% arable land; 5% permanent crops; 40% meadows and pastures;
6% forest and woodland; 32% other; includes 11% irrigated

Environment: sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; limited
arable land and natural water resources pose serious constraints; deforestation;

Note: there are 173 Jewish settlements in the West Bank, 35 in the
Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 18 in the Gaza Strip, and 14 Israeli-built
Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem

- People
Population: 4,409,218 (July 1990), growth rate 1.5% (1989); includes
70,000 Jewish settlers in the West Bank, 10,500 in the Israeli-occupied
Golan Heights, 2,500 in the Gaza Strip, and 110,000 in East Jerusalem
(1989 est.)

Birth rate: 22 births/1,000 population (1990)

Death rate: 6 deaths/1,000 population (1990)

Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)

Infant mortality rate: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (July 1990)

Life expectancy at birth: 76 years male, 79 years female (July 1990)

Total fertility rate: 2.9 children born/woman (1990)

Nationality: noun--Israeli(s); adjective--Israeli

Ethnic divisions: 83% Jewish, 17% non-Jewish (mostly Arab)

Religion: 83% Judaism, 13.1% Islam (mostly Sunni Muslim), 2.3% Christian,
1.6% Druze

Language: Hebrew (official); Arabic used officially for Arab minority;
English most commonly used foreign language

Literacy: 88% Jews, 70% Arabs

Labor force: 1,400,000 (1984 est.); 29.5% public services; 22.8% industry,
mining, and manufacturing; 12.8