Compare Bangladesh (2005) - Israel (2004)

Compare Bangladesh (2005) z Israel (2004)

	Bangladesh (2005)	Israel (2004)

Administrative divisions	6 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, and Sylhet	6 districts (mehozot, singular - mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
Age structure	0-14 years: 33.1% (male 24,590,207/female 23,162,420) 15-64 years: 63.5% (male 46,764,824/female 44,868,733) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 2,650,683/female 2,282,761) (2005 est.)	0-14 years: 26.7% (male 847,591; female 808,399) 15-64 years: 63.4% (male 1,976,539; female 1,954,782) 65 years and over: 9.9% (male 262,781; female 348,916) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry	citrus, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products
Airports	16 (2004 est.)	51 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 15 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.)	total: 28 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)	total: 23 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 144,000 sq km land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km	total: 20,770 sq km land: 20,330 sq km water: 440 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Iowa	slightly smaller than New Jersey
Background	Bangladesh came into existence in 1971 when Bengali East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development.	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 Israel country profile, unless otherwise noted. On 25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. Israel and Palestinian officials signed on 13 September 1993 a Declaration of Principles (also known as the "Oslo accords") guiding an interim period of Palestinian self-rule. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace. In addition, on 25 May 2000, Israel withdrew unilaterally from southern Lebanon, which it had occupied since 1982. In keeping with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral negotiations were conducted between Israel and Palestinian representatives and Syria to achieve a permanent settlement. On 24 June 2002, US President BUSH laid out a "road map" for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which envisions a two-state solution. However, progress toward a permanent status agreement has been undermined by Palestinian-Israeli violence ongoing since September 2000. The conflict may have reached a turning point with the election in January 2005 of Mahmud ABBAS as the new Palestinian leader following the November 2004 death of Yasir ARAFAT.
Birth rate	30.01 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	18.45 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $5.921 billion expenditures: $8.262 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $44.98 billion expenditures: $51.07 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Capital	Dhaka	Jerusalem; note - Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv
Climate	tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October)	temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas
Coastline	580 km	273 km
Constitution	4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972; suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986; amended many times	no formal constitution; some of the functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law
Country name	conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh conventional short form: Bangladesh former: East Pakistan	conventional long form: State of Israel conventional short form: Israel local long form: Medinat Yisra'el local short form: Yisra'el
Currency	-	new Israeli shekel (ILS); note - NIS is the currency abbreviation; ILS is the International Organization for Standarization (ISO) code for the NIS
Death rate	8.4 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	6.19 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$19.97 billion (2004 est.)	$70.97 billion (2003 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Harry K. THOMAS, Jr. embassy: Madani Avenue, Baridhara, Dhaka 1212 mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 885-5500 FAX: [880] (2) 882-3744	chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel C. KURTZER embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv 63903 mailing address: PSC 98, Box 29, APO AE 09830 telephone: [972] (3) 519-7369/7453/7454/7457/7458/7551/7575 FAX: [972] (3) 516-4390 consulate(s) general: Jerusalem; note - an independent US mission, established in 1928, whose members are not accredited to a foreign government
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Shamsher Mobin CHOWDHURY chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 FAX: [1] (202) 244-5366 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel AYALON chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-5578 FAX: [1] (202) 364-5560 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco
Disputes - international	discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, violence, and transit of terrorists through the porous border; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; a joint Bangladesh-India boundary inspection in 2005 revealed 92 pillars are missing; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; Burmese Muslim refugees strain Bangladesh's meager resources	West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights)
Economic aid - recipient	$1.575 billion (2000 est.)	$662 million from US (2003 est.)
Economy - overview	Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and ill-governed nation. Although half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single-most-important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Economic reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Progress also has been blocked by opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups. The BNP government, led by Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA, has the parliamentary strength to push through needed reforms, but the party's political will to do so has been lacking in key areas. One encouraging note: growth has been a steady 5% for the past several years.	Israel has a technologically advanced market economy with substantial government participation. It depends on imports of crude oil, grains, raw materials, and military equipment. Despite limited natural resources, Israel has intensively developed its agricultural and industrial sectors over the past 20 years. Israel imports substantial quantities of grain but is largely self-sufficient in other agricultural products. Cut diamonds, high-technology equipment, and agricultural products (fruits and vegetables) are the leading exports. Israel usually posts sizable current account deficits, which are covered by large transfer payments from abroad and by foreign loans. Roughly half of the government's external debt is owed to the US, which is its major source of economic and military aid. The bitter Israeli-Palestinian conflict; difficulties in the high-technology, construction, and tourist sectors; and fiscal austerity in the face of growing inflation led to small declines in GDP in 2001 and 2002. The economy grew at 1% in 2003, with improvements in tourism and foreign direct investment. In 2004, rising business and consumer confidence - as well as higher demand for Israeli exports - boosted GDP by 2.7%.
Electricity - consumption	15.3 billion kWh (2002)	37.82 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2002)	1.457 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	16.45 billion kWh (2002)	42.24 billion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m
Environment - current issues	many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation	limited arable land and natural fresh water resources pose serious constraints; desertification; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; groundwater pollution from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998)	Jewish 80.1% (Europe/America-born 32.1%, Israel-born 20.8%, Africa-born 14.6%, Asia-born 12.6%), non-Jewish 19.9% (mostly Arab) (1996 est.)
Exchange rates	taka per US dollar - 59.513 (2004), 58.15 (2003), 57.888 (2002), 55.807 (2001), 52.142 (2000)	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Iajuddin AHMED (since 6 September 2002); note - the president's duties are normally ceremonial, but with the 13th amendment to the constitution ("Caretaker Government Amendment"), the president's role becomes significant at times when Parliament is dissolved and a caretaker government is installed - at presidential direction - to supervise the elections head of government: Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA (since 10 October 2001) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election scheduled for 16 September 2002 was not held since Iajuddin AHMED was the only presidential candidate; he was sworn in on 6 September 2002 (next election to be held by NA 2007); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Iajuddin AHMED declared by the Election Commission elected unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA	chief of state: President Moshe KATZAV (since 31 July 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Ariel SHARON (since 7 March 2001) cabinet: Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved by the Knesset elections: president is largely a ceremonial role and is elected by the Knesset for a seven-year term; election last held 31 July 2000 (next to be held mid-2007); following legislative elections, the president assigns a Knesset member - traditionally the leader of the largest party - the task of forming a governing coalition; election last held 28 January 2003 (next schedulde to be held fall of 2006) election results: Moshe KATZAV elected president by the 120-member Knesset with a total of 60 votes, other candidate, Shimon PERES, received 57 votes (there were three abstentions); Ariel SHARON continues as prime minister after Likud Party victory in January 2003 Knesset elections; Likud won 38 seats and then formed coalition government with Shinui, the National Religious Party, and the National Union
Exports	NA	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood (2001)	machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel
Exports - partners	US 22.4%, Germany 14.5%, UK 11.2%, France 6.9%, Italy 4% (2004)	US 38.4%, Belgium 7.4%, Hong Kong 4.8% (2003)
Fiscal year	1 July - 30 June	calendar year
Flag description	green with a large red disk slightly to the hoist side of center; the red sun of freedom represents the blood shed to achieve independence; the green field symbolizes the lush countryside, and secondarily, the traditional color of Islam	white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $120.9 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 21.2% industry: 27.1% services: 51.7% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 2.8% industry: 37.7% services: 59.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2004 est.)	purchasing power parity - $19,800 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	4.9% (2004 est.)	1.3% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	24 00 N, 90 00 E	31 30 N, 34 45 E
Geography - note	most of the country is situated on deltas of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas: the Ganges unites with the Jamuna (main channel of the Brahmaputra) and later joins the Meghna to eventually empty into the Bay of Bengal	there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank, 42 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 25 in the Gaza Strip, and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.); Sea of Galilee is an important freshwater source
Heliports	-	3 (2003 est.)
Highways	total: 207,486 km paved: 19,773 km unpaved: 187,713 km (1999)	total: 16,281 km paved: 16,281 km (including 56 km of expressways) unpaved: NA (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.9% highest 10%: 28.6% (1995-96 est.)	lowest 10%: 2.4% highest 10%: 28.3% (1997)
Illicit drugs	transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries	increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin abuse; drugs arrive in country from Lebanon and, increasingly, from Jordan; money-laundering center
Imports	NA	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement (2000)	raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, grain, consumer goods
Imports - partners	India 15.1%, China 12.5%, Singapore 7.5%, Kuwait 5.5%, Japan 5.3%, Hong Kong 4.5% (2004)	US 15.6%, Belgium 9.3%, Germany 8%, UK 6.7%, Switzerland 6.1%, Italy 4.1% (2003)
Independence	16 December 1971 (from West Pakistan); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is known as Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh	14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
Industrial production growth rate	6.5% (2004 est.)	-0.6% (2003 est.)
Industries	cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar	high-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, diamond cutting
Infant mortality rate	total: 62.6 deaths/1,000 live births male: 63.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 61.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)	total: 7.21 deaths/1,000 live births male: 7.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2004 est.)	0.7% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	BIS, BSEC (observer), CE (observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, OAS (observer), OPCW (signatory), OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	38,440 sq km (1998 est.)	1,990 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president)	Supreme Court (justices appointed for life by the president)
Labor force	65.49 million note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $1.71 billion in 1998-99 (2004 est.)	2.61 million (2003 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 63%, industry 11%, services 26% (FY95/96)	agriculture, forestry, and fishing 2.6%, manufacturing 20.2%, construction 7.5%, commerce 12.8%, transport, storage, and communications 6.2%, finance and business 13.1%, personal and other services 6.4%, public services 31.2% (1996)
Land boundaries	total: 4,246 km border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km	total: 1,017 km border countries: Egypt 266 km, Gaza Strip 51 km, Jordan 238 km, Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307 km
Land use	arable land: 62.11% permanent crops: 3.07% other: 34.82% (2001)	arable land: 16.39% permanent crops: 4.17% other: 79.44% (2001)
Languages	Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English	Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language
Legal system	based on English common law	mixture of English common law, British Mandate regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim legal systems; in December 1985, Israel informed the UN Secretariat that it would no longer accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies (the constitutional amendment reserving 30 seats for women over and above the 300 regular parliament seats expired in May 2001); members serve five-year terms elections: last held 1 October 2001 (next to be held before October 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - BNP and alliance partners 47%, AL 40%; seats by party - BNP 195, AL 58, JI 17, JP (Ershad faction) 14, IOJ 3, JP (Naziur) 4, other 9; note - the election of October 2001 brought a majority BNP government aligned with three other smaller parties - Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Oikya Jote, and Jatiya Party (Manzur)	unicameral Knesset or parliament (120 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 28 January 2003 (next scheduled to be held fall of 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Likud Party 29.4%, Labor 14.5%, Shinui 12.3%, Shas 8.2%, National Union 5.5%, Meretz 5.2%, United Torah Judaism 4.3%, National Religious Party 4.2%, Democratic Front for Peace and Equality 3.0%, One Nation 2.8%, National Democratic Assembly 2.3%, Yisra'el Ba'Aliya (YBA) 2.2%, United Arab List 2.1%, Green Leaf Party 1.2%, Herut 1.2%, other 1.6%; seats by party - Likud 38, Labor 19, Shinui 15, Shas 11, National Union 7, Meretz 6, National Religious Party 6, United Torah Judaism 5, Democratic Front for Peace and Equality 3, One Nation 3, National Democratic Assembly 3, YBA 2, United Arab List 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 62.08 years male: 62.13 years female: 62.02 years (2005 est.)	total population: 79.17 years male: 77.08 years female: 81.37 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 43.1% male: 53.9% female: 31.8% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.4% male: 97.3% female: 93.6% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon
Map references	Asia	Middle East
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 18 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin	territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: to depth of exploitation
Merchant marine	total: 41 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 319,897 GRT/440,575 DWT by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 28, container 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4 foreign-owned: 10 (China 1, Singapore 9) registered in other countries: 14 (2005)	total: 18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 752,873 GRT/881,711 DWT by type: container 18 registered in other countries: 40 (2004 est.)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force	Israel Defense Forces (IDF): Ground Corps (including Pioneer Fighting Youth (Nahal)), Navy, Air Force(including Air Defense Forces); note - historically there have been no separate Israeli military services
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$995.3 million (2004)	$9.11 billion (FY03)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.8% (2004)	8.7% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 1,581,883 females age 15-49: 1,532,234 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 1,294,742 females age 15-49: 1,250,969 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	-	males: 51,054 females: 53,515 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh	Independence Day, 14 May (1948); note - Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar and the holiday may occur in April or May
Nationality	noun: Bangladeshi(s) adjective: Bangladeshi	noun: Israeli(s) adjective: Israeli
Natural hazards	droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season	sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes
Natural resources	natural gas, arable land, timber, coal	timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand
Net migration rate	-0.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	0.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,012 km (2004)	gas 140 km; oil 1,509 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIA, chairperson]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Mufti Fazlul Haq AMINI]; Jamaat-e-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Jatiya Party (Manzur faction) [Naziur Rahman MANZUR]	Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash) [Muhammad BARAKA]; Green Leaf Party (no longer active) [Boaz WACHTEL and Shlomi SANDAK]; Herut (no longer active) [Michael KLEINER]; Labor Party [Shimon PERES]; Likud Party [Ariel SHARON]; Meretz (merged with YAHAD) [Zahava GALON]; National Democratic Assembly (Balad) [Azmi BISHARA]; National Religious Party [Ephraim "Efie" EITAM]; National Union (Haichud Haleumi) [Avigdor LIBERMAN] (includes Tekuma Moledet and Yisra'el Beiteinu); One Nation [David TAL]; Shas [Eliyahu YISHAI]; Shinui [Yosef "Tommy" LAPID]; United Arab List [Abd al-Malik DAHAMSHAH]; United Torah Judaism [Yaakov LITZMAN]; YAHAD [Yossi BEILIN]; Yisra'el Ba'Aliya or YBA (merged with Likud) [Natan SHARANSKY]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Israeli nationalists advocating Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Peace Now supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Yesha (settler) Council promotes settler interests and opposes territorial compromise; B'Tselem monitors human rights abuses
Population	144,319,628 (July 2005 est.)	6,199,008 note: includes about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, about 20,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, more than 5,000 in the Gaza Strip, and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	45% (2004 est.)	18% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	2.09% (2005 est.)	1.29% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Chittagong, Mongla Port	Ashdod, Ashqelon, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa, Tel Aviv-Yafo
Radio broadcast stations	AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999)	AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998)
Railways	total: 2,706 km broad gauge: 884 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2004)	total: 640 km standard gauge: 640 km 1.435-m gauge (2003)
Religions	Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998)	Jewish 80.1%, Muslim 14.6% (mostly Sunni Muslim), Christian 2.1%, other 3.2% (1996 est.)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.16 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: totally inadequate for a modern country domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities international: country code - 880; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2000)	general assessment: most highly developed system in the Middle East although not the largest domestic: good system of coaxial cable and microwave radio relay; all systems are digital international: country code - 972; 3 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	740,000 (2003)	3.006 million (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1.365 million (2003)	6.334 million (2002)
Television broadcast stations	15 (1999)	17 (plus 36 low-power repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast	Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley
Total fertility rate	3.13 children born/woman (2005 est.)	2.47 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	40% (includes underemployment) (2004 est.)	10.7% (2003 est.)
Waterways	8,372 km note: includes 2,575 km main cargo routes (2004)	-

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