Compare Israel (2007) - Lebanon (2004)

Compare Israel (2007) z Lebanon (2004)

	Israel (2007)	Lebanon (2004)

Administrative divisions	6 districts (mehozot, singular - mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv	6 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beyrouth, Beqaa, Liban-Nord, Liban-Sud, Mont-Liban, Nabatiye
Age structure	0-14 years: 26.1% (male 858,246/female 818,690) 15-64 years: 64.2% (male 2,076,649/female 2,046,343) 65 years and over: 9.8% (male 269,483/female 357,268) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 26.9% (male 517,356; female 496,888) 15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,197,430; female 1,305,339) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 117,930; female 142,275) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	citrus, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products	citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats
Airports	53 (2007)	8 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 30 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 6 (2007)	total: 5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 23 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 20 (2007)	total: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 20,770 sq km land: 20,330 sq km water: 440 sq km	total: 10,400 sq km land: 10,230 sq km water: 170 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than New Jersey	about 0.7 times the size of Connecticut
Background	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 Israel occupied 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. In April 2003, US President BUSH, working in conjunction with the EU, UN, and Russia - the "Quartet" - took the lead in laying out a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005, based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. However, progress toward a permanent status agreement was undermined by Israeli-Palestinian violence between September 2003 and February 2005. An Israeli-Palestinian agreement reached at Sharm al-Sheikh in February 2005, along with an internally-brokered Palestinian ceasefire, significantly reduced the violence. In the summer of 2005, Israel unilaterally disengaged from the Gaza Strip, evacuating settlers and its military. The election of HAMAS in January 2006 to head the Palestinian Legislative Council froze relations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Ehud OLMERT became prime minister in March 2006; following an Israeli military operation in Gaza in June-July 2006, he shelved plans to unilaterally evacuate from most of the West Bank. The kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers by Lebanese Hizballah led to a 34-day conflict in Lebanon in June-August 2006.	Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions since 1991 and the end of the devastating 15-year civil war. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese have established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater say in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, the Lebanese have conducted several successful elections, most of the militias have been weakened or disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended central government authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, a radical Shia organization, retains its weapons. Syria maintains about 16,000 troops in Lebanon, based mainly east of Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley. Syria's troop deployment was legitimized by the Arab League during Lebanon's civil war and in the Ta'if Accord. Damascus justifies its continued military presence in Lebanon by citing Beirut's requests and the failure of the Lebanese Government to implement all of the constitutional reforms in the Ta'if Accord. Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000, however, encouraged some Lebanese groups to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. The passage of UNSCR 1559 in early October 2004 - a resolution calling for Syria to withdraw from Lebanon and end its interference in Lebanese affairs - further emboldened Lebanese groups opposed to Syria's presence in Lebanon.
Birth rate	17.71 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	19.31 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $48.38 billion expenditures: $49.62 billion (2006 est.)	revenues: $4.414 billion expenditures: $7.026 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)
Capital	name: Jerusalem geographic coordinates: 31 46 N, 35 14 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Friday in March; ends the Sunday between the holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur note: Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv	Beirut
Climate	temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas	Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows
Coastline	273 km	225 km
Constitution	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; note - since May 2003 the Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee of the Knesset has been working on a draft constitution	23 May 1926, amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989
Country name	conventional long form: State of Israel conventional short form: Israel local long form: Medinat Yisra'el local short form: Yisra'el	conventional long form: Lebanese Republic conventional short form: Lebanon local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah local short form: Lubnan
Currency	-	Lebanese pound (LBP)
Death rate	6.17 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	6.28 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$83.01 billion (2006 est.)	$20.79 billion (2003 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Richard H. JONES embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv 63903 mailing address: PSC 98, Box 29, APO AE 09830 telephone: [972] (3) 519-7575 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	chief of mission: Ambassador Jeffrey D. FELTMAN embassy: Awkar, Lebanon mailing address: P. O. Box 70-840, Antelias, Lebanon; PSC 815, Box 2, FPO AE 09836-0002 telephone: [961] (4) 542600, 543600 FAX: [961] (4) 544136
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Salai MERIDOR chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 364-5607 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco	chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Farid ABBOUD chancery: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6300 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6324 consulate(s) general: Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles
Disputes - international	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; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel withdrew its settlers and military from the Gaza Strip and from four settlements in the West Bank in August 2005; Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights); since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) headquartered in Jerusalem monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region	Syrian troops in central and eastern Lebanon since October 1976; Lebanese Government claims Shab'a Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights
Economic aid - recipient	$240 million from US (FY06)	$3.5 billion (pledges 1997-2001); $4.2 billion in soft loan pledges November 2002 Paris II Aid Conference (2002)
Economy - overview	Israel has a technologically advanced market economy with substantial, though diminishing, 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 trade 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 rebounded in 2003-05, growing at a 4% to 5.2% rate each year, as the government tightened fiscal policy and implemented structural reforms to boost competition and efficiency in the markets. The conflict with Lebanon in summer 2006 slightly dampened GDP growth, but continuing strong foreign investment, tax revenue, and private consumption levels helped the economy recover quickly.	The 1975-91 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. Peace enabled the central government to restore control in Beirut, begin collecting taxes, and regain access to key port and government facilities. Economic recovery was helped by a financially sound banking system and resilient small- and medium-scale manufacturers. Family remittances, banking services, manufactured and farm exports, and international aid provided the main sources of foreign exchange. Lebanon's economy made impressive gains since the launch in 1993 of "Horizon 2000," the government's $20 billion reconstruction program. Real GDP grew 8% in 1994, 7% in 1995, 4% in 1996 and in 1997, but slowed to 1.2% in 1998, -1.6% in 1999, -0.6% in 2000, 0.8% in 2001, 1.5% in 2002, and 3% in 2003. During the 1990s, annual inflation fell to almost 0% from more than 100%. Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure. The government nonetheless faces serious challenges in the economic arena. It has funded reconstruction by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. In order to reduce the ballooning national debt, the re-installed HARIRI government began an economic austerity program to rein in government expenditures, increase revenue collection, and privatize state enterprises. The HARIRI government met with international donors at the Paris II conference in November 2002 to seek bilateral assistance restructuring its domestic debt at lower rates of interest. While privatization of state-owned enterprises had not occurred by the end of 2003, massive receipts from donor nations stabilized government finances in 2002-04.
Electricity - consumption	43.28 billion kWh (2005)	7.44 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	1.663 billion kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	1.183 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	46.85 billion kWh (2005)	6.728 billion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m	lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Qurnat as Sawda' 3,088 m
Environment - current issues	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	deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Jewish 76.4% (of which Israel-born 67.1%, Europe/America-born 22.6%, Africa-born 5.9%, Asia-born 4.2%), non-Jewish 23.6% (mostly Arab) (2004)	Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%
Exchange rates	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002)	Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (2003), 1,507.5 (2002), 1,507.5 (2001), 1,507.5 (2000), 1,507.84 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Shimon PERES (since 15 July 2007) head of government: Prime Minister Ehud OLMERT (since May 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Tzipora "Tzipi" LIVNI (since May 2006); Ehud OLMERT won the right to lead the government when his Kadima Party won 29 seats in elections held on 28 March 2006 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 (no term limits); election last held 13 June 2007 (next to be held in 2014 but can be called earlier); following legislative elections, the president assigns a Knesset member - traditionally the leader of the largest party - the task of forming a governing coalition note: government coalition - Kadima, Labor Party, GIL (Pensioners), Shas,and Yisrael Beiteinu election results: Shimon PERES elected president; number of votes in first round - Shimon PERES 58, Reuven RIVLIN 37, Colette AVITAL 21; PERES elected president in second round with 86 votes (unopposed)	chief of state: President Emile LAHUD (since 24 November 1998) head of government: Prime Minister Omar KARAMI (since 21 October 2004); Deputy Prime Minister Issam FARES (since 23 October 2000) cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term; election last held 15 October 1998 (next election date NA); note - on 3 September 2004 the National Assembly voted 96 to 29 to extend Emile LAHUD's six-year term by three years; the prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly; by agreement, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature is a Shia Muslim election results: For 15 October 1998 election: Emile LAHUD elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 votes in favor, 0 against, 10 abstentions
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel	authentic jewelry, inorganic chemicals, miscellaneous consumer goods, fruit, tobacco, construction minerals, electric power machinery and switchgear, textile fibers, paper
Exports - partners	US 38.4%, Belgium 6.5%, Hong Kong 5.9% (2006)	Switzerland 10.8%, UAE 10%, Saudi Arabia 7.5%, US 7.3%, Turkey 5.5%, Jordan 4.4% (2003)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	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	three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width), and red with a green cedar tree centered in the white band
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $17.82 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 2.5% industry: 30.3% services: 67.2% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 12% industry: 21% services: 67% (2000)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.1% (2006 est.)	3% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	31 30 N, 34 45 E	33 50 N, 35 50 E
Geography - note	there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank, 42 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 0 in the Gaza Strip, and 29 in East Jerusalem (August 2005 est.); Sea of Galilee is an important freshwater source	Nahr el Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity
Heliports	3 (2007)	-
Highways	-	total: 7,300 km paved: 6,198 km unpaved: 1,102 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.4% highest 10%: 28.3% (2005)	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	increasingly concerned about ecstasy, cocaine, and heroin abuse; drugs arrive in country from Lebanon and, increasingly, from Jordan; money-laundering center	cannabis cultivation dramatically reduced to 2,500 hectares in 2002; opium poppy cultivation minimal; small amounts of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin transit country on way to European markets and for Middle Eastern consumption
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, grain, consumer goods	petroleum products, cars, medicinal products, clothing, meat and live animals, consumer goods, paper, textile fabrics, tobacco
Imports - partners	US 12.4%, Belgium 8.2%, Germany 6.7%, Switzerland 5.9%, UK 5.1%, China 5.1% (2006)	France 13.4%, Germany 11.7%, Italy 10.7%, Syria 5.3%, China 5.2%, UK 4.9%, US 4.5% (2003)
Independence	14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)	22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Industrial production growth rate	8.6% (2006 est.)	NA
Industries	high-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics, fiber optics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, construction, metals products, chemical products, plastics, diamond cutting, textiles, footwear	banking; food processing; jewelry; cement; textiles; mineral and chemical products; wood and furniture products; oil refining; metal fabricating
Infant mortality rate	total: 6.75 deaths/1,000 live births male: 7.45 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 25.48 deaths/1,000 live births male: 28.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 22.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.1% (2006 est.)	2.5% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	BIS, BSEC (observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, OAS (observer), OPCW (signatory), OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Irrigated land	1,940 sq km (2003)	1,200 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (justices appointed by Judicial Selection Committee - made up of all three branches of the government; mandatory retirement age is 70)	four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed)
Labor force	2.81 million (2006 est.)	1.5 million note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture, forestry, and fishing 1.8%, manufacturing 15.7%, construction 5.3%, wholesale and retail trade 12.9%, transport, storage, and communications 6.3%, finance and business 16.9%, personal and other services 11.5%, public services 28.6% (1996)	agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA
Land boundaries	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	total: 454 km border countries: Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km
Land use	arable land: 15.45% permanent crops: 3.88% other: 80.67% (2005)	arable land: 16.62% permanent crops: 13.98% other: 69.4% (2001)
Languages	Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language	Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian
Legal system	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	mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral Knesset (120 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 28 March 2006 (next scheduled to be held in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - Kadima 22%, Labor 15.1%, SHAS 9.5%, Likud 9%, Yisrael Beiteinu 9%, NU/NRP 7.1%, GIL 5.9%, Torah and Shabbat Judaism 4.7%, Meretz-YAHAD 3.8%, United Arab List 3%, Balad 2.3%, HADASH 2.7%, other 5.9%; seats by party - Kadima 29, Labor 19, Likud 12, SHAS 12, Yisrael Beiteinu 11, NU/NRP 9, GIL 7, Torah and Shabbat Judaism 6, Meretz-YAHAD 5, United Arab List 4, Balad 3, HADASH 3	unicameral National Assembly or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 27 August and 3 September 2000 (next to be held spring 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by sect - Muslim 64 ( of which Sunnis 27, Shia 27, Druze 8, Alawite 2), Christian 64 (of which Maronite 34)
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 79.59 years male: 77.44 years female: 81.85 years (2007 est.)	total population: 72.35 years male: 69.91 years female: 74.91 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.1% male: 98.5% female: 95.9% (2004 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 87.4% male: 93.1% female: 82.2% (2003 est.)
Location	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria
Map references	Middle East	Middle East
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: to depth of exploitation	territorial sea: 12 nm
Merchant marine	total: 18 ships (1000 GRT or over) 716,382 GRT/845,053 DWT by type: cargo 2, container 16 registered in other countries: 51 (Bermuda 3, Cyprus 4, Honduras 1, North Korea 1, Liberia 9, Malta 21, Panama 2, Slovakia 6, St Vincent and The Grenadines 4) (2007)	total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 198,602 GRT/248,313 DWT by type: bulk 5, cargo 23, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, container 2, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 8, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 4, vehicle carrier 3 foreign-owned: Greece 7, India 1, Netherlands 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Spain 1, Syria 2 registered in other countries: 52 (2004 est.)
Military branches	Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Israel Naval Forces (INF), Israel Air Force (IAF) (2007)	Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF; includes Army, Navy, and Air Force)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$541 million (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	7.3% (2006)	4.8% (FY99)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 1,049,097 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 643,050 (2004 est.)
National holiday	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	Independence Day, 22 November (1943)
Nationality	noun: Israeli(s) adjective: Israeli	noun: Lebanese (singular and plural) adjective: Lebanese
Natural hazards	sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes	dust storms, sandstorms
Natural resources	timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand	limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	gas 193 km; oil 442 km; refined products 261 km (2006)	oil 209 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (HADASH) [Muhammad BARAKA]; GIL (Pensioners) [Rafael EITAN]; Kadima [Ehud OLMERT]; Labor Party [Ehud BARAK]; The Likud [Binyamin NETANYAHU]; Meretz-YAHAD [Yossi BEILIN]; National Democratic Assembly (Balad) [Azmi BISHARA]; National Union (NU)/National Religious Party (NRP) [Binyamin ELON]; SHAS [Eliyahu YISHAI]; Torah and Shabbat Judaism [Yaakov LITZMAN]; United Arab List [Ibrahim SARSOUR]; Yisrael Beiteinu [Avigdor LIEBERMAN]	political activity is organized along largely sectarian lines; numerous political groupings exist, consisting of individual political figures and followers motivated by religious, ethnic, clan, and economic considerations
Political pressure groups and leaders	Israeli nationalists advocating Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Peace Now [Yariv OPPENHEIMER, Secretary General] supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Yesha Council of Settlements [Bentzi LIEBERMAN, Chairman] promotes settler interests and opposes territorial compromise; B'Tselem monitors human rights abuses	NA
Population	6,426,679 note: includes about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, about 20,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2007 est.)	3,777,218 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	21.6% (2005)	28% (1999 est.)
Population growth rate	1.154% (2007 est.)	1.3% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Antilyas, Batroun, Beirut, Chekka, El Mina, Ez Zahrani, Jbail, Jounie, Naqoura, Sidon, Tripoli, Tyre
Radio broadcast stations	AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998)	AM 20, FM 22, shortwave 4 (1998)
Railways	total: 853 km standard gauge: 853 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)	total: 401 km standard gauge: 319 km 1.435-m narrow gauge: 82 km 1.050-m note: rail system was unusable because of damage during the civil war in the 1980s; short sections are operable (2003)
Religions	Jewish 76.4%, Muslim 16%, Arab Christians 1.7%, other Christian 0.4%, Druze 1.6%, unspecified 3.9% (2004)	Muslim 59.7% (Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 39% (Maronite Catholic, Melkite Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Roman Catholic, Protestant), other 1.3% note: seventeen religious sects recognized
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.015 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.754 male(s)/female total population: 0.994 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education
Telephone system	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; four privately-owned mobile-cellular service providers with countrywide coverage; mobile-cellular teledensity is more than 130 per 100 persons international: country code - 972; submarine cables provide links to Europe, Cyprus, and parts of the Middle East; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)	general assessment: telecommunications system severely damaged by civil war; rebuilding well underway domestic: primarily microwave radio relay and cable international: country code - 961; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) (erratic operations); coaxial cable to Syria; microwave radio relay to Syria but inoperable beyond Syria to Jordan; 3 submarine coaxial cables
Telephones - main lines in use	3.005 million (2006)	678,800 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	8.404 million (2006)	775,100 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	17 (plus 36 repeaters) (1995)	15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley	narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains
Total fertility rate	2.38 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.95 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	8.3% (2006 est.)	18% (1997 est.)

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