Israel

Official name:  State of Israel

Capital city: Jerusalem. Other cities – Tel Aviv, Haifa, Beersheba

Area: pre-1967 borders : 21,000 square kilometers  (8,250 square miles)

Population: 7.5 million

People: Jews (76%), Muslims (16.1%), Christians (3.4%), and Druze

Languages: Hebrew, Arabic. English and Russian widely spoken

Religions: Judaism, Islam, and Christianity

Currency: New Israeli shekel (NIS)

Government type: Parliamentary democracy

U.S. – Israel relations:

Since the funding of the state of Israel in 1948, the United States’ commitment to Israel’s security and development has been a crucial element. Both the United States and Israel encourage democratic systems of governance and protection of human and women rights in the region. The United States and Israel have bilateral economic, strategic, diplomatic, political, and scientific relationships, implemented through organizations such as the Binational Science Foundation, the Binational Agricultural Research Joint Economic Development Group, and Joint Counterterrorism Group.

Reference: U.S. State Department