Israel

Israel (Hebrew: יִשְׂרָאֵל, Yisra'el), officially the State of Israel (Hebrew: מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל , Medinat Yisra'el; Arabic: دَوْلَةْ إِسْرَائِيل, Dawlat Isrā'īl), is a country in the Middle East located on the southeastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea. It has borders with Lebanon in the north, Syria and Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area.

Israel declared its independence in 1948 after the United Nations approved the partition of the British Mandate of Palestine into two states, Jewish and Arab, in November 1947. The Arab countries rejected the plan, and attacked the State of Israel the moment it was created. Israel's victory in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War expanded the borders of the Jewish state beyond those envisaged by the UN partition plan. In 1967, the military preparations of the neighboring Arab states preciptated a preemptive strike by Israel. The Six-Day War ended with the capture of the Golan Heights, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and the Sinai Peninsula. In 1973, Israel repelled a surprise attack by a coalition of Arab states in the Yom Kippur War. In 1979, Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel. Israel withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula in return. Jordan and Israel signed a peace agreement in 1994. In the wake of the Oslo Accords in 1993, Palestinian National Authority was formed to administer the territories in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Israel withdrew completely from the Gaza Strip in 2005.

The population of Israel today is over seven million, with a large Jewish majority. While Israel is home to both Jews and Arabs, as well as a large number of Christian and other minority groups, it is the world's only Jewish state. Jerusalem is the capital city and seat of government. Due to its broad array of political rights and civil liberties, Israel is considered the only liberal democracy in the Middle East. Despite Israel's political problems and the vast sums it spends on military defense, Israel is an active competitor in the global market and is considered the most progressive in the region in terms of freedom of the press, business regulations, economic competition, and overall human development.