Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter Three
From Mount Hermon's snow-capped peak in the north to the rocky Negev desert wilder-
ness in the south, from the relatively green Mediterranean coast in the west to the Dead
Sea's lunar landscape in the east, Israel has enormous geographical variety despite its
small area. At 7,992 square miles (20,700 square kilometers), Israel within its pre-1967 borders
ranks 152nd in size among the approximately 200 countries in the world. It is around the same
size as Djibouti, Belize, El Salvador, and Slovenia and slightly smaller than the U.S. state of
New Jersey. With just fewer than 7.5 million people, Israel ranks ninety-seventh in terms of
population, placing it among Serbia, Tajikistan, Bulgaria, and El Salvador. Neighboring Egypt
has around twelve times the population.
Not only is Israel a tiny country with a population smaller than that of many large cities —
including Tehran and Bangkok, for example —but it has been surrounded by hostile neigh-
bors, a problem diminished only by fragile peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan. The borders
with Lebanon and Syria, both formally at war with Israel, are, respectively, 49 and 47 miles (79
and 76 kilometers) in length. The border with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip is 32 miles (51 kilo-
meters) long. The frontier with the West Bank, 191 miles (307 kilometers) long, has also been
vulnerable to attack by guerrilla and terrorist forces. Two of Israel's borders —with Egypt,
165 miles (266 kilometers), and Jordan, 148 miles (238 kilometers)—have been largely peaceful
in recent years but were crossed by terrorists and Arab armies in the past.
More than 80 percent of Israel's land is not usable for agriculture, at least given present
technology. The country lacks a large supply of fresh water, and except for phosphates, it has
not had much in the way of valuable natural resources, although it might produce signifi cant
amounts of natural gas from offshore wells in the future. There are no major rivers — though
one overgrown stream, the Jordan River, is among the world's most famous — and there are
only two lakes of any size, the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea.
By these standards, Israel should be an obscure country of little interest beyond its own
frontiers. Why, then, is Israel so prominent in the news and in the minds of people around
the world? There are three key reasons: location, historical signifi cance, and contemporary
confl ict. Israel is at the crossroads of three continents —Europe, Asia, and Africa — as well as
two strategic seas: the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. Historically, ideas and cultures came
together at this crossroads between civilizations and great powers, there to be developed into
