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![Geography](Israel_files/image006.gif)
Israel, slightly larger than Massachusetts, lies at the eastern end of
the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered by Egypt on the
west, Syria
and Jordan
on the east, and Lebanon
on the north. Its maritime plain is extremely fertile. The southern Negev region, which comprises almost half the total area,
is largely a desert. The Jordan, the only important river, flows from the north
through Lake Hule (Waters of Merom)
and Lake Kinneret (also called Sea of Galilee or Sea
of Tiberias), finally entering the Dead Sea, 1,349 ft
(411 m) below sea level—the world's lowest land elevation.
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The people of Israel (also called the
"Jewish People") trace their origin to Abraham, who established the
belief that there is only one God, the creator of the universe, his son Yitshak (Isaac), and grandson Jacob (Israel), are
referred to as the patriarchs of the Israelites. All three patriarchs lived in
the Land of Canaan, that later came to be known as
the Land of Israel. They and their wives are buried
in the Ma'arat HaMachpela,
the Tomb of the Patriarchs, in Hebron.
The name Israel
derives from the name given to Jacob (see Old Testament). His 12 sons were the
kernels of 12 tribes that later developed into the Jewish nation. The name Jew
derives from Yehuda (Judah) one of the 12 sons of
Jacob (Reuben, Shimon, Levi, Yehuda, Dan, Naphtali,
Gad, Asher, Yisachar, Zevulun,
Yosef, Binyamin). So, the names Israel, Israeli
or Jewish refer to people of the same origin.
The descendants of Abraham crystallized into a nation at
about 1300 BCE after their Exodus from Egypt under the leadership of Moses
(Moshe in Hebrew). Soon after the Exodus, Moses transmitted to the people of
this new emerging nation, the Torah, and the Ten Commandments. After 40 years
in the Sinai desert, Moses led them to the Land of Israel, that is cited in The Bible as the land promised by G-d to
the descendants of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
The people of modern day Israel share the same language and
culture shaped by the Jewish heritage and religion passed through generations
starting with the founding father Abraham (ca. 1800 BCE). Thus, Jews have had
continuous presence in the land
of Israel for the past
3,300 years.
The rule of Israelites in the land of Israel
starts with the conquests of Joshua (ca. 1250 BCE). The period from 1000-587
BCE is known as the "Period of the Kings". The most noteworthy kings
were King David (1010-970 BCE), who made Jerusalem
the Capital of Israel, and his son Solomon (Shlomo,
970-931 BCE), who built the first Temple
in Jerusalem as
prescribed in the Tanach (Old Testament).
In 587 BCE, Babylonian Nebuchadnezzar's army captured Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple, and exiled the
Jews to Babylon
(modern day Iraq).
The year 587 BCE marks a turning point in the history of
the region. From this year onwards, the region was ruled or controlled by a
succession of superpower empires of the time in the following order:
Babylonian, Persian, Greek Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine Empires, Islamic
and Christian crusaders, Ottoman Empire, and
the British Empire.
After the exile by the Romans, the Jewish people migrated
to Europe and North
Africa. In the Diaspora (scattered outside of the Land of Israel), they established rich cultural
and economic lives, and contributed greatly to the societies where they lived.
Yet, they continued their national attachments and prayed to return to Israel through
centuries. In the first half of the 20th century there were major waves of
immigration of Jews back to Israel
from Arab countries and from Europe. During
the British rule in Palestine,
the Jewish people were subject to great violence and massacres directed by Arab
civilians or forces of the neighboring Arab states. During World War II, the
Nazi regime in Germany
decimated about 6 million Jews creating the great tragedy of The Holocaust.
In 1948, Jewish Community in Israel under the leadership of
David Ben-Gurion reestablished sovereignty over their ancient homeland.
Declaration of independence of the modern State of Israel was announced on the
day that the last British forces left Israel (May 14, 1948).
Arab-Israeli wars
A day after the declaration of independence of the State
of Israel, armies of five Arab countries, Egypt, Syria, Transjordan, Lebanon
and Iraq,
invaded Israel.
This marked the beginning of the War of Independence. Arab states have jointly
waged four full scale wars against Israel:
·
1948
War of Independence
·
1956
Sinai War
·
1967
Six Day War
·
1973
Yom Kippur War
Despite the numerical superiority of the Arab armies, Israel defended
itself each time and won. After each war Israeli army withdrew from most of the
areas it captured. This is unprecedented in World history and shows Israel's
willingness to reach peace even at the risk of fighting for its very existence
each time anew.
Note that with Judea and Samaria Israel is only
40 miles wide. Thus, Israel
can be crossed from the Mediterranean coast to the Eastern border at Jordan river within one hour of
driving
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