 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 Isreal
country profile, unless otherwise noted. In keeping with the framework
established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral
negotiations are being conducted between Israel and Palestinian
representatives (from the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip) and
Israel and Syria, to achieve a permanent settlement. On 25 April 1982,
Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace
Treaty. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were
resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace.
The State of Israel, an independent nation
in southwest Asia, is located between the eastern shores of the
Mediterranean Sea and the head of the Gulf of AQABA, an arm of the Red
Sea. Israel was established on May 14, 1948, as a Jewish state. Israel
is considered the Holy Land for Christians, Jews, and Muslims.
 The official language of Israel is
Hebrew. English is widely used as a
second language, and recently Russian has become commonplace.
Freedom of religion and the inviolability of the holy places and centers
of worship for all religions are guaranteed by law. For the Jewish
population, supreme religious authority is vested in the Chief
Rabbinate, made up of a chief rabbi . from the Ashkenazim and one from
the Sephardim, along with the Supreme Rabbinical Council.
From the Rosh Hanikra grottoes in the North; (and moving southwards):
the resort city of Nahariya; the walled Crusader city of Acre; Haifa;
Caesarea, a Roman and (later) Crusader city, site of a reconstructed
Roman amphitheatre and home of lsrael's only 18-hole golf course;
Netanya, one of lsrael's major seaside resorts; Herzliya; with its new
marina and deluxe hotels; Tel Aviv-Jaffa; Bat Yam and Ashkelon, two
seaside resort cities.
Israel's climate is Mediterranean in the north and arid in the south. In
summer the entire area is dominated by a subtropical high that brings
cloudless skies and no precipitation. In winter, the southern half of
the country remains under the subtropical high, but weather in the
northern half is influenced by cyclonic depressions that pass over the
Mediterranean, bringing moderate rainfall. Precipitation in the north
averages 700 mm (28 in), falling primarily from October to March.
Rainfall amounts diminish rapidly to the south. Beyond BEERSHEBA and
GAZA desert conditions predominate.
Average summer temperatures range from 18 degrees to 32 degrees C (65
degrees to 90 degrees F) over most of the country. Winters are mild,
with temperatures averaging 14 degrees C (57 degrees F) along the coast
and 9 degrees C (48 degrees F) in the mountains. The Rift Valley is
about 9 C degrees (15 F degrees) warmer than the rest of the nation in
winter. The Dead Sea area is the lowest place on the planet and the
climate is one of the hottest regions in the world.
 Jerusalem
is the modern capital of the State of Israel and the
country`s largest city. It is a city where the first century rubs
shoulders with the twenty-first century, each jostling for legitimacy
and space, and where picturesque "old" neighborhoods nestle against
glistening office towers and high-rise apartments. But Jerusalem is much
more than the sum of its landmarks, old and new. It is a city of people,
as diverse as the four corner of the globe from whence they came. To
Jews, Jerusalem has always been "The Holy City", and it has been revered
by Christians and Muslims for centuries. No wonder Jerusalem has such a
tremendous impact, both locally and internationally. Jerusalem Holly
Sites The Kotel (Western or Wailing Wall), Temple Mount , The Mount of
Olives, Dome of the Rock (Templum Domini), Temple Mount, Temple of
Solomon (al-Aqsa Mosque), Tomb of the Virgin, The Mount of Olives,
Church of the Ascension, Mount Zion, Church of St. Anne, The Via
Dolorosa, The Holy Sepulcher.
©
- Copyright hotels-world.com Travel Info - 2001
|
