Israel

Recognized Language:

* Arabic

--Minorities:

* Islam
* Christianity
* Druze

**Israel** *(Hebrew: יִשְׂרָאֵל Yīsrāʾēl)*, officially the **State of Israel**, is a country in West Asia. Israel borders Lebanon to the north, by Syria to the northeast, by Jordan to the east, by the Red Sea to the south, by Egypt to the southwest, by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, and by Palestine – the West Bank along the east and the Gaza Strip along the southwest. Tel Aviv is the economic and technological center of the country, while its seat of government is in its capital, Jerusalem.

The area of Israel is **22,072 km2** (including **East Jerusalem** and the **Golan Heights** on which the country has declared sovereignty, excluding the **West Bank** region and the **Gaza Strip**).

## History

**Israel**, also known as the **Land of Israel** *(Hebrew: ארץ ישראל)*, **Canaan** *(Hebrew: כנען)*, **Holy Land** *(Hebrew: ארץ הקודש)*, or **Palestine** *(Hebrew: פלשתינה)*, has a long and complex history that spans thousands of years. From the ancient era to the modern era, the region has been inhabited by various groups, each leaving their mark on the land and its people.

*Land of Cannan*

According to the Torah, the New Testiment, and the Quran, Abraham was called by God to leave his home in Mesopotamia (Iraq) and travel to Canaan, where God promised him land and a nation of descendants. Abraham's grandson, Jacob (also called *Yīsrāʾēl; Israel*), had twelve sons, who each became the head of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. Due to drought and lack of food and water in Cannan, the Israelites eventually migrated to Egypt, where they were enslaved for over 400 years.

*Ancient Israel*

After being enslaved by the Egyptians, Moses led the Israelites in their escape from Egypt in the Exodus, and they journeyed back to Canaan. After 40 years of wandering and fighting, the Israelites, led by Moses' succesor, Yehoshua Ben Non, arrived at the land of Cannan, and reclamied it.

Israel became a united kingdom under King David. Jerusalem was declared the Kingdom's capital. After David's death, his son, Solomon, became king. The First Temple was built under King Solomon's rule, on the Temple Mount. However, the good times did not last. The kingdoms split, and Israel and Judah went to war, leaving Israel conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BCE. In 586 BCE, the Babylonians defeated the Assyrians, occupied Judah, destroyed the First Jewish Temple, and the Jews were sent into exile.

*The Second Temple Period*

Following the destruction of the First Temple, many Jews were exiled to Babylon, but some managed to stay in Judah. In 539 BCE, Persia defeated the Babylonians and allowed Jews to return to their homeland. Over time, Jews again built a temple in Jerusalem named the Second Temple. Judaism evolved during this era, with the rise of the Pharisees, who encouraged synagogue worship and focused on study, becoming the dominant religious group. The Sadducees, another group, were the leading priests who followed the written Torah closely and did not believe in the Oral Torah, halakhic rulings that the Pharisees espoused. The Hellenistic era, starting with Alexander the Great, also influenced the historical and literary background of many Second Temple texts. During the Second Temple era, various Jewish sects were formed, including the Essenes, well-known for their non-Biblical texts such as the Dead Sea Scrolls. However, this prosperity was short-lived. In 66 CE, Jews again revolted against the Roman oppression. The rebellion endured for four years and ended when the Temple was once again destroyed in 70 CE. After the revolt, the Romans changed the name of the land from Judah to Palestine, and 95 precent of the Jews were exiled from the land.

*The Middle Ages*

In the Middle Ages, Jews lived across Europe and the Middle East. The Jewish community had to face different persecutions, expulsion from kingdoms, and massacres such as the ones during the First and Second Crusades. Jews were not allowed to hold certain jobs, such as in agriculture, making them mainly involved in finance and trade. During the Golden Age of Spain, Jews lived along with Christians and Muslims, and a flourishing culture of science, art and literature ensued. However, in the late Middle Ages, anti-Semitism rose across Europe, culminating in the ghettos of Italy and the Spanish Inquisition, where Jews were forced to convert to Christianity. The Spanish expulsion of Jews in 1492 led many of them to settle in Muslim lands, including the Ottoman Empire, where they could practice their religion with more freedom.

*Ottoman Empire*

In the Ottoman Empire, Jews were allowed to live in relative peace, although they still faced discrimination. Jews in the region of Palestine and across the empire were primarily involved in agricultural work. There was little activity related to modern political Zionism until the late 19th century. In 1896, Theodor Herzl wrote a book called the Jewish State, in which he argued for the establishment of a Jewish homeland. The following year, he convened the First Zionist Congress in Switzerland. Zionism soon gained momentum, with the first Kibbutzim founded in region of Palestine in 1909. During World War I, the balance of power shifted in the region of Palestine. In the Balfour Declaration of 1917, the British government expressed support for the establishment of a Jewish homeland in the region of Palestine. After the war ended, the region of Palestine was placed under British control.

*British Mandate*

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Jews continued to immigrate to the region of Palestine in large numbers, and the Jewish population grew quickly. However, Arabs living in the region of Palestine, who had lived alongside Jews for centuries, feared being made a minority in the land, and tensions grew between the two communities. In the neighbouring Arab countries, resentment was building with the idea of a Jewish-majority State being established. The British government took a neutral stand initially but became worn by the violence that ensued and the increasing opposition faced by Arab leaders.

*State of Israel*

After the horrors of the Holocaust were revealed, the world began to consider the need for a Jewish homeland. In 1947, the United Nations voted to partition the region of Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. The Jewish population accepted the plan, but the Arab population rejected it, and violence erupted. On May 14, 1948, David Ben Gurion declared the establishment of the State of Israel, triggering a full-scale war with Arab neighbours. Israel emerged victorious, however, many Palestinians fled or were forcibly evacuated from their homes. Since then, Israel has fought numerous wars with its Arab neighbours and with various Palestinian factions, including the 1948 War of Independence, the 1967 Six-Day War, and the most recent 2023 Iron Swords War. Despite these conflicts, Israel has become a leader in technology, medicine, and agriculture, and has remained a country of great importance.