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Extensible Markup Language | 1995-06-13 | 7KB | 19 lines

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?> <!DOCTYPE card PUBLIC "-//Apple, Inc.//DTD card V 2.0//EN" "" > <card> <id>24507</id> <filler1>0</filler1> <cantDelete> <false /> </cantDelete> <showPict> <true /> </showPict> <dontSearch> <false /> </dontSearch> <owner>5472</owner> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="stylesheet_3106.css" /> <content> <layer>background</layer> <id>31</id> <text>ISRAELOfficial name: Medinat Israel (The State of Israel)Member of: UNArea: 20770 km2 (8019 sq mi) including East Jerusalem, or 20700 km2 (7992 sq mi) excluding East JerusalemPopulation: 5451000 (1993 est) including East JerusalemCapital: Jerusalem (not recognized internationally as capital) 544000 (including East Jerusalem; 1992 est)Other major cities: Tel-Aviv 1132000 (city 353000, Holon 162000, Petach-Tikva 149000, Bat-Yam 146000, Rishon LeZiyyon 140000), Haifa 400000 (city 246000), Netanya 132000, Beersheba (BeΓÇÖer Sheva) 122000 (1992 est)Languages: Hebrew (official; 85%), Arabic (15%)Religions: Judaism (official; 85%), Sunni Islam (13%), various Christian denominationsSelf-governing Palestinian entity: (with area, population and ΓÇÿcapitalΓÇÖ) Gaza and Jericho ΓÇô 412 km2 (159 sq mi) comprising Gaza Strip 352 km2 (136 sq mi) and Jericho 60 km2 (23 sq mi), 780000 (1992 est) comprising Gaza Strip 755000 and Jericho 25000, Gaza City (provisional HQ)Israeli-occupied territories: (with areas and populations): Golan ΓÇô 1150 km2 (444 sq mi), 26000 (1990 est);West Bank (Judaea and Samaria, excluding Jericho and East Jerusalem) ΓÇô 5819 km2 (2247 sq mi), 930000 (1990 est)GOVERNMENTThe 120-member Assembly (Knesset) is elected by proportional representation for four years by universal adult suffrage. A Prime Minister and Cabinet take office after receiving a vote of confidence from the Knesset. The President is elected for a five-year term by the Knesset.GEOGRAPHYIsrael ΓÇô within the boundaries established by the 1949 cease-fire line ΓÇô consists of a fertile thin coastal plain beside the Mediterranean, parts of the arid mountains of Judaea in the center, the Negev Desert in the south and part of the Jordan Valley in the northeast. Climate: IsraelΓÇÖs climate is Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and mild, wetter winters. The greater part of Israel receives less than 200 mm (8 in) of rain a year.ECONOMYSevere economic problems stem, in part, from IsraelΓÇÖs large defense budget and political circumstances, which have until recently prevented trade with neighboring countries. Israel is a major producer and exporter of citrus fruit. Much land is irrigated and over 75% of IsraelΓÇÖs arable land is farmed by collectives (kibbutzim) and cooperatives. Mineral resources are few, but processing imported diamonds is a major source of foreign currency. Tourism ΓÇô to biblical sites ΓÇô is important. Currency: Shekel.HISTORYIsrael (Palestine) was occupied by the Hebrews around the 14th century bc. The kingdom of Israel was established about 1021 bc. King David made Jerusalem his capital, and under his successor, Solomon, the Temple was built and Israel prospered. In the 10th century, the kingdom was divided into Israel in the north and Judah in the south, both of which were eventually overrun by the Assyrians. In 587 bc Jerusalem was destroyed and many of its people taken into captivity by the Babylonians. The Persians allowed the Jews to return 50 years later. Palestine was then ruled, in turn, by Alexander the Great, the Ptolomies of Egypt and the Seleucid Empire. Judas Maccabeus revolted against the Seleucids in 141 bc and established a Jewish state that lasted until the Roman conquest in 65 bc. After a revolt against the Romans in ad 135, the Jewish population of Palestine was dispersed ΓÇô the Diaspora ΓÇô and the Jews were scattered in small communities across the Middle East, North Africa and Europe.Palestine was part of the Byzantine Empire, but in the 7th century an Arab invasion brought the area into the Islamic world. In the 12th and 13th centuries the Crusaders unsuccessfully attempted to retake the Holy Land. The Turkish Ottoman Empire ruled the area from the early 16th century until 1917ΓÇô18, when Palestine was captured by British forces. The Zionists had hoped to establish a Jewish state, and this hope was intensified following the Balfour Declaration in favor of a homeland (1917). However, Palestine came under British administration and it was not until 1948ΓÇô49 ΓÇô after the murder of some 6000000 Jews in concentration camps by the Nazis ΓÇô that an explicitly Jewish state emerged. The establishment of a Jewish state met with hostility from IsraelΓÇÖs neighbors, leading to a series of Arab-Israeli wars. Israeli politics in the 1980s and 1990s have been characterized by political instability owing to the system of proportional representation and the large number of very small parties. The large-scale influx of Soviet Jews into Israel after 1990 gave extra impetus to the intifada (Palestinian uprising) against continued Israeli rule in Gaza and the West Bank. Having come under increased international pressure to achieve a Middle East settlement, Israel reached an agreement with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), led by Yasser Arafat, in 1993 for limited Palestinian self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho and an Israeli military withdrawal from these territories. Further peace talks are scheduled but are threatened by Arab opposition to Arafat and the peace process, and by continued expansion of Israeli settlement in the West Bank in defiance of the 1993 agreement.</text> </content> <name>Israel</name> <script></script> </card>