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Israel has been a crossroads for humanity from prehistoric times. Today Israel is home to Christians and Muslims as well as Jews from many places, seeking to live peacefully among themselves and with their Arab neighbors.
Israel at a glance
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20,770 square kilometers, about the size of New Jersey
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5.5 million people, nearly 10 times the number in 1948; 82 percent Jewish, 18 percent non-Jewish (mostly Arab)
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2.5 million Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza Strip
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Annual expenditures, $53 billion, including $9.2 billion for defense
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U.S. foreign aid, $1.2 billion
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Ranks 21st worldwide in gross domestic product; 23rd in standard of living, based on per capita income, life expectancy and educational standard
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