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Following World War II, the
British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine,
and the UN partitioned the area into Arab and Jewish states, an
arrangement rejected by the Arabs. Subsequently, the Israelis defeated the
Arabs in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two
sides. The territories occupied by Israel since the 1967 war are not
included in the Isreal country profile, unless otherwise noted. In keeping
with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991,
bilateral negotiations are being conducted between Israel and Palestinian
representatives (from the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip) and
Israel and Syria, to achieve a permanent settlement. On 25 April 1982,
Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace
Treaty. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were
resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace.
The State of Israel, an independent nation
in southwest Asia, is located between the eastern shores of the
Mediterranean Sea and the head of the Gulf of AQABA, an arm of the Red
Sea. Israel was established on May 14, 1948,
as a Jewish state. Israel is considered the Holy Land for Christians,
Jews, and Muslims.
 The
official language of Israel is Hebrew.
English is widely used as a second language, and recently Russian has
become commonplace. Freedom of religion and the inviolability of the holy
places and centers of worship for all religions are guaranteed by law. For
the Jewish population, supreme religious authority is vested in the Chief
Rabbinate, made up of a chief rabbi . from the Ashkenazim and one from the
Sephardim, along with the Supreme Rabbinical Council.
From the Rosh Hanikra grottoes in the North; (and moving southwards): the
resort city of Nahariya; the walled Crusader city of Acre; Haifa;
Caesarea, a Roman and (later) Crusader city, site of a reconstructed Roman
amphitheatre and home of lsrael's only 18-hole golf course; Netanya, one
of lsrael's major seaside resorts; Herzliya; with its new marina and
deluxe hotels; Tel Aviv-Jaffa; Bat Yam and Ashkelon, two seaside resort
cities.
Israel's climate is Mediterranean in
the north and arid in the south. In summer the entire area is dominated by
a subtropical high that brings cloudless skies and no precipitation. In
winter, the southern half of the country remains under the subtropical
high, but weather in the northern half is influenced by cyclonic
depressions that pass over the Mediterranean, bringing moderate rainfall.
Precipitation in the north averages 700 mm (28 in), falling primarily from
October to March. Rainfall amounts diminish rapidly to the south. Beyond
BEERSHEBA and GAZA desert conditions predominate.
Average summer temperatures range from 18 degrees to 32 degrees C (65
degrees to 90 degrees F) over most of the country. Winters are mild, with
temperatures averaging 14 degrees C (57 degrees F) along the coast and 9
degrees C (48 degrees F) in the mountains. The Rift Valley is about 9 C
degrees (15 F degrees) warmer than the rest of the nation in winter. The
Dead Sea area is the lowest place on the planet and the climate is one of
the hottest regions in the world.
Jerusalem is the modern capital of the
State of Israel and the country`s largest city. It is a city where the
first century rubs shoulders with the twenty-first century, each jostling
for legitimacy and space, and where picturesque "old" neighborhoods nestle
against glistening office towers and high-rise apartments. But Jerusalem
is much more than the sum of its landmarks, old and new. It is a city of
people, as diverse as the four corner of the globe from whence they came.
To Jews, Jerusalem has always been "The Holy City", and it has been
revered by Christians and Muslims for centuries. No wonder Jerusalem has
such a tremendous impact, both locally and internationally. Jerusalem
Holly Sites The Kotel (Western or Wailing Wall), Temple Mount , The Mount
of Olives, Dome of the Rock (Templum Domini), Temple Mount, Temple of
Solomon (al-Aqsa Mosque), Tomb of the Virgin, The Mount of Olives, Church
of the Ascension, Mount Zion, Church of St. Anne, The Via Dolorosa, The
Holy Sepulcher.
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