Compare Italy (2007) - Israel (2005)

Compare Italy (2007) z Israel (2005)

	Italy (2007)	Israel (2005)

Administrative divisions	15 regions (regioni, singular - regione) and 5 autonomous regions* (regioni autonome, singular - regione autonoma); Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio (Latium), Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte (Piedmont), Puglia (Apulia), Sardegna (Sardinia), Sicilia, Toscana (Tuscany), Trentino-Alto Adige (Trentino-South Tyrol), Umbria, Valle d'Aosta* (Aosta Valley), Veneto	6 districts (mehozot, singular - mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
Age structure	0-14 years: 13.8% (male 4,121,246/female 3,874,971) 15-64 years: 66.4% (male 19,527,203/female 19,059,897) 65 years and over: 19.9% (male 4,823,244/female 6,741,172) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 26.5% (male 851,415/female 812,095) 15-64 years: 63.7% (male 2,010,888/female 1,986,256) 65 years and over: 9.8% (male 264,708/female 351,521) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain, olives; beef, dairy products; fish	citrus, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products
Airports	132 (2007)	51 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 101 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 32 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 13 (2007)	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: 31 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 19 (2007)	total: 23 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 301,230 sq km land: 294,020 sq km water: 7,210 sq km note: includes Sardinia and Sicily	total: 20,770 sq km land: 20,330 sq km water: 440 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Arizona	slightly smaller than New Jersey
Background	Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the regional states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy was a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include illegal immigration, organized crime, corruption, high unemployment, sluggish economic growth, and the low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared with the prosperous north.	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	8.54 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	18.21 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $845.2 billion expenditures: $928.2 billion (2006 est.)	revenues: $48.09 billion expenditures: $52.11 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	name: Rome geographic coordinates: 41 54 N, 12 29 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October	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	predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south	temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas
Coastline	7,600 km	273 km
Constitution	passed 11 December 1947, effective 1 January 1948; 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: Italian Republic conventional short form: Italy local long form: Repubblica Italiana local short form: Italia former: Kingdom of Italy	conventional long form: State of Israel conventional short form: Israel local long form: Medinat Yisra'el local short form: Yisra'el
Death rate	10.5 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	6.18 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$1.957 trillion (30 June 2006 est.)	$74.46 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Ronald P. SPOGLI embassy: Via Vittorio Veneto 121, 00187-Rome mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, APO AE 09624 telephone: [39] (06) 46741 FAX: [39] (06) 488-2672, 4674-2356 consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples	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 Giovanni CASTELLANETA chancery: 3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 518-2151 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco consulate(s): Detroit	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	Italy's long coastline and developed economy entices tens of thousands of illegal immigrants from southeastern Europe and northern Africa	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 announced its intention to pull out Israeli settlers and withdraw from the Gaza Strip and four settlements in the northern West Bank in 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
Economic aid - donor	ODA, $1 billion (2002 est.)	-
Economic aid - recipient	-	$662 million from US (2003 est.)
Economy - overview	Italy has a diversified industrial economy with roughly the same total and per capita output as France and the UK. This capitalistic economy remains divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less-developed, welfare-dependent, agricultural south, with 20% unemployment. Most raw materials needed by industry and more than 75% of energy requirements are imported. Over the past decade, Italy has pursued a tight fiscal policy in order to meet the requirements of the Economic and Monetary Unions and has benefited from lower interest and inflation rates. The current government has enacted numerous short-term reforms aimed at improving competitiveness and long-term growth. Italy has moved slowly, however, on implementing needed structural reforms, such as lightening the high tax burden and overhauling Italy's rigid labor market and over-generous pension system, because of the current economic slowdown and opposition from labor unions. But the leadership faces a severe economic constraint: the budget deficit has breached the 3% EU ceiling. The economy experienced low growth in 2006, and unemployment remained at a high level.	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 3.9%.
Electricity - consumption	307.1 billion kWh (2005)	38.3 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	1.109 billion kWh (2005)	1.387 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	50.26 billion kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	278.5 billion kWh (2005)	42.67 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) de Courmayeur 4,748 m (a secondary peak of Mont Blanc)	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m
Environment - current issues	air pollution from industrial emissions such as sulfur dioxide; coastal and inland rivers polluted from industrial and agricultural effluents; acid rain damaging lakes; inadequate industrial waste treatment and disposal facilities	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: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups	Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south)	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	euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)	new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Giorgio NAPOLITANO (since 15 May 2006) head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the president of the Council of Ministers) Romano PRODI (since 17 May 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and approved by the president elections: president elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of parliament and 58 regional representatives for a seven-year term (no term limits); election last held 10 May 2006 (next to be held in May 2013); prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed by parliament election results: Giorgio NAPOLITANO elected president on the fourth round of voting; electoral college vote - 543	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 scheduled 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	521,400 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Exports - commodities	engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals, and nonferrous metals	machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel
Exports - partners	Germany 13.2%, France 11.7%, US 7.6%, Spain 7.3%, UK 6.1% (2006)	US 36.8%, Belgium 7.5%, Hong Kong 4.9% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; similar to the flag of Ireland, which is longer and is green (hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Cote d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green; inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797	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 - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.9% industry: 28.9% services: 69.2% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 2.8% industry: 37.7% services: 59.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $20,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	1.9% (2006 est.)	3.9% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	42 50 N, 12 50 E	31 30 N, 34 45 E
Geography - note	strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe	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	5 (2007)	3 (2004 est.)
Highways	-	total: 16,903 km paved: 16,903 km (including 56 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.3% highest 10%: 26.8% (2000)	lowest 10%: 2.4% highest 10%: 28.3% (1997)
Illicit drugs	important gateway for and consumer of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market; money laundering by organized crime and from smuggling	increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin abuse; drugs arrive in country from Lebanon and, increasingly, from Jordan; money-laundering center
Imports	2.182 million bbl/day (2004)	NA
Imports - commodities	engineering products, chemicals, transport equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles and clothing; food, beverages, and tobacco	raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, grain, consumer goods
Imports - partners	Germany 16.7%, France 9.2%, Netherlands 5.6%, China 5.2%, Belgium 4.2%, Spain 4.1% (2006)	US 15%, Belgium 10.1%, Germany 7.5%, Switzerland 6.5%, UK 6.1% (2004)
Independence	17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)	14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
Industrial production growth rate	1.5% (2006 est.)	4.5% (2004 est.)
Industries	tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics	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 and footwear
Infant mortality rate	total: 5.72 deaths/1,000 live births male: 6.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 7.03 deaths/1,000 live births male: 7.77 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.1% (2006 est.)	0% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer), CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC	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	27,500 sq km (2003)	1,990 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale (composed of 15 judges: one-third appointed by the president, one-third elected by parliament, one-third elected by the ordinary and administrative Supreme Courts)	Supreme Court (justices appointed for life by the president)
Labor force	24.64 million (2006 est.)	2.68 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 5% industry: 32% services: 63% (2001)	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: 1,932.2 km border countries: Austria 430 km, France 488 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3.2 km, San Marino 39 km, Slovenia 232 km, Switzerland 740 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: 26.41% permanent crops: 9.09% other: 64.5% (2005)	arable land: 16.39% permanent crops: 4.17% other: 79.44% (2001)
Languages	Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)	Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language
Legal system	based on civil law system; appeals treated as new trials; judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	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	bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of the Senate or Senato della Repubblica (315 seats; members elected by proportional vote with the winning coalition in each region receiving 55% of seats from that region; to serve five-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; members elected by popular vote with the winning national coalition receiving 54% of chamber seats; to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 10 April 2006 (next to be held in 2011); Chamber of Deputies - last held 10 April 2006 (next to be held in May 2011) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Union 158 (DS 62, DL 39, RC 27, Together with the Union 11, other 19), House of Freedoms 154 (FI 79, AN 41, UDC 21, LEGA 13), other 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - The Union 348 (DS 220, RC 41, Rose in the Fist 18, Italy of Values 17, PdCI 16, Greens Federation 15, UDEUR 10, other 11), House of Freedoms 276 (FI 140, AN 71, Union of Christian and Center Democrats 39, LEGA 26), other 6	unicameral Knesset (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: 79.94 years male: 77.01 years female: 83.07 years (2007 est.)	total population: 79.32 years male: 77.21 years female: 81.55 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.4% male: 98.8% female: 98% (2001 census)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.4% male: 97.3% female: 93.6% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon
Map references	Europe	Middle East
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation	territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: to depth of exploitation
Merchant marine	total: 604 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,529,192 GRT/13,150,989 DWT by type: bulk carrier 53, cargo 46, carrier 1, chemical tanker 141, combination ore/oil 1, container 32, liquefied gas 33, livestock carrier 3, passenger 17, passenger/cargo 156, petroleum tanker 40, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 35, specialized tanker 14, vehicle carrier 28 foreign-owned: 62 (Denmark 2, France 5, Germany 1, Greece 13, Sweden 1, Switzerland 5, Taiwan 11, Turkey 1, UK 7, US 16) registered in other countries: 169 (Bahamas 1, Belize 4, Bolivia 1, Cayman Islands 10, Cyprus 5, France 2, Gibraltar 1, Greece 1, Isle of Man 1, Liberia 31, Malta 45, Marshall Islands 3, Norway 4, Panama 10, Portugal 11, Singapore 4, Slovakia 1, Spain 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 19, Sweden 7, Turkey 3, UK 4) (2007)	total: 17 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 752,873 GRT/881,711 DWT by type: cargo 1, container 16 registered in other countries: 48 (2005)
Military branches	Army (Esercito Italiano, EI), Navy (Marina Militare Italiana, MMI), Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI), Carabinieri Corps (Corpo dei Carabinieri, CC) (2005)	Israel Defense Forces (IDF): Ground Corps, Navy, Air and Space Force (includes Air Defense Forces); historically there have been no separate Israeli military services
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$9.11 billion (FY03)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.8% (2005 est.)	8.7% (FY02)
National holiday	Republic Day, 2 June (1946)	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: Italian(s) adjective: Italian	noun: Israeli(s) adjective: Israeli
Natural hazards	regional risks include landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence in Venice	sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes
Natural resources	coal, mercury, zinc, potash, marble, barite, asbestos, pumice, fluorspar, feldspar, pyrite (sulfur), natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, arable land	timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand
Net migration rate	2.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 17,589 km; oil 1,136 km (2006)	gas 140 km; oil 1,509 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Center-Left Union Coalition [Romano PRODI]: Ulivo Alliance (including Democrats of the Left or DS [Piero FASSINO]; Daisy-Democracy is Freedom or DL [Francesco RUTELLI]); Rose in the Fist (including Italian Social Democrats or SDI [Enrico BOSELLI]; Italian Radical Party [Emma BONINO]); Together with the Union (including Italian Communist Party or PdCI [Oliviero DILIBERTO]; Green Federation [Alfonso PECORARO SCANIO]; United Consumers); Communist Renewal or RC [Fausto BERTINOTTI]; Italy of Values or IdV [Antonio DI PIETRO]; Union of Democrats for Europe or UDEUR [Clemente MASTELLA]; Republican European Movement or MRE [Luciana SBARBATI] Center-Right Freedom House Coalition [Silvio BERLUSCONI]: Forza Italia or FI [Silvio BERLUSCONI]; National Alliance or AN [Gianfranco FINI]; Union of Christian Democrats and Centrist Democrats or UDC [Pier Ferdinando CASINI]; Northern League or LEGA [Umberto BOSSI]; Christian Democracy (Per la Autonomie) [Gianfranco ROTONDI] other non-allied parties: New Italian Socialist Party or New PSI [Gianni DE MICHELIS]; Italian Republican Party or PRI [Giorgio LA MALFA]; Social Alternative [Alessandra MUSSOLINI]; Social Movement-Tricolor Flame or MSI-Fiamma [Luca ROMAGNOLI]; Social Idea Movement with Rauti or MIS [Pino RAUTI]; South Tyrol People's Party or SVP (German speakers) [Elmar Pichler ROLLE]; Union of Valley Aosta Region or UV [Guido CESAL]	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	Italian manufacturers and merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura); Roman Catholic Church; three major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro or CGIL [Guglielmo EPIFANI] which is left wing, Confederazione Italiana dei Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL [Savino PEZZOTTA], which is Roman Catholic centrist, and Unione Italiana del Lavoro or UIL [Luigi ANGELETTI] which is lay centrist)	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	58,147,733 (July 2007 est.)	6,276,883 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 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	18% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	0.01% (2007 est.)	1.2% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Ashdod, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa
Radio broadcast stations	AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9 (1998)	AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998)
Railways	total: 19,460 km standard gauge: 18,038 km 1.435-m gauge (11,354 km electrified) narrow gauge: 123 km 1.000-m gauge (123 km electrified); 1,299 km 0.950-m gauge (161 km electrified) (2006)	total: 640 km standard gauge: 640 km 1.435-m gauge (2004)
Religions	Roman Catholic 90% (approximately; about one-third regularly attend services), other 10% (includes mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community)	Jewish 76.5%, Muslim 15.9%, Arab Christians 1.7%, other Christian 0.4%, Druze 1.6%, unspecified 3.9% (2003)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.064 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.025 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.715 male(s)/female total population: 0.959 male(s)/female (2007 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 (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25)	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: modern, well developed, fast; fully automated telephone, telex, and data services domestic: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks international: country code - 39; a series of submarine cables provide links to Asia, Middle East, Europe, North Africa, and US; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (with a total of 5 antennas - 3 for Atlantic Ocean and 2 for Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and NA Eutelsat	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	25.049 million (2005)	3.006 million (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	71.5 million (2005)	6.334 million (2002)
Television broadcast stations	358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995)	17 (plus 36 low-power repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands	Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley
Total fertility rate	1.29 children born/woman (2007 est.)	2.44 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	7% (2006 est.)	10.7% (2004 est.)
Waterways	2,400 km note: used for commercial traffic; of limited overall value compared to road and rail (2006)	-

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.