Independence Day begins in Israel on Wednesday night, the eve of 4 Iyar 5772, with a sharp transition from Memorial Day to a day of jubilation marking the creation of the modern State of Israel in 1948. Following are some statistics released to mark the day which is observed as a national holiday in Israel. There are no newspapers, government offices are closed, as are most stores. It is the one day off annually that is not a yomtov or chol hamoed.
There are 7,881,000 Israelis today. This represents over 7 million more people than were living in the state when independence was declared in 1948 when there were 806,000 residents. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, 5.9 million (75.3%) residents are Jews and 1.6 million (20.6%) are Arab residents. 327,000 residents are classified as “other”, including immigrants and their families not registered as Jews by the Ministry of the Interior, which comprise 4.1% of the nation.
Since Independence Day 2011, the nation grew by 137.500 people (1.8%). 161,000 babies were born, 39,000 citizens died, 19,000 new immigrants arrived, and 4,500 people joined the population registry under the ‘family unity’ clause. This alongside 8,000 residents removed from the population as a result of immigration.
70% of the population was born here and over half of them are second generation Israelis as compared to 35% in 1948.
There are 14 cities with over 100,000 residents as compared to 1948 when there was only one such city. There are six cities with over 200,000 residents, which include Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Rishon L’Tzion, Petach Tikvah and Ashdod.
Over 90% of the population resides in 75 cities. Over one-third of the population lives in the Gush Dan region (33%). 788,000 of the population (10%) lives in Yerushalayim. The smallest city on the list is Ohr Akiva, with 75,000 residents.
A middle class family spends 14,252 NIS monthly as compared to a family in the top two percent of wage earners, spending 22,501 NIS monthly, about 2.6 times the monthly outlay of families in the lowest 2% income, 8,726 NIS.
The average monthly salary stands at 8,883 NIS. Unemployment stands at 6.5%. The number of wage earners (those who are not self employed) stands at 2.28 million people, an all time record.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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10 Responses
How about some meaningful figures:
Number of Jewish babies aborted who could have survive if carried to term
Number of Jews who stopped keeping Shabbos
and these would be easy to calculate numbers
and how tens of thousands of those jews have been converted not according to halacha by ‘superfast and easy conversion center’???
That you do not post??
Akuperma, stop being melamed kategoria on klal Yisroel with your blind Brisker hatred.
#3- I’m all for Klal Yisroel – I don’t even object to Jews who go off the Derekh and assimilate (and in all fairness, almost all goyim you meet have Jewish ancestors). I object to the zionists who not only went off the derekh, but are dilligently working on dragging the rest of the Jewish people with them.
This is not a holiday. Why play it up?
The Jews in Egypt were redeeemed because they kept their identity as Jews, even though they had fallen into idolatry. If it were not for Zionism it would have been Chas VeShalom, the Baptismal font.
You forgot the most important percentages (compare USA – or anywhere outside of Israel with Israeli numbers on these items).
1. The large percentage of shabbos observers.
2. The large percentage of shul participants.
3. The amount of Kashrut observers.
4. The amount of people in shul and fasting on Yom Kippur.
5. The amount of matzohs eaten and seders held on Pesach.
6. Mezuzahs on doorposts.
7. Weddings performed between Jews.
8. Jewish children who attend dati schools.
9. People who know the hebrew date and when shabbos begins.
10. Torah learning in every city in Israel.
Will stop at 10 yet can go on & on. Jews in America are dying & dropping out, assimilating, and just plain disinterested.
#4 Old Old news.
No one cares what the ZIONISTS – if there are any left in Israel say or encourage. The left wing, liberal society is anything but Zionistic.
Akuperma, Zionists, per say, never tried to take people off the derech — leftists did. Socialsits, Communists, left -wing Zionists. Stop with the shvere Brisker accusations!
You should compare the percentage to what they were 100 years in the Muslim (largely Ottoman) countries, and 250 years in Europe – compare BEFORE the hilonim with AFTER – and you see the damage the zionists and other hilonim have brought. From a nation of Torah scholars, we’ve become a nation of soldiers.
BTW there is a mistake. Ohr Akiva does not have 75,000 residents. Wikipedia has them at 15,800 in 2005 which made them the smallest official city in Israel.