Portal:Israel

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מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל

Location of Israel

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Map of Israel

The emblem of Israel

Israel (/ˈɪzri.əl, -reɪ-/; Hebrew: יִשְׂרָאֵל Yīsrāʾēl [jisʁaˈʔel]; Arabic: إِسْرَائِيل ʾIsrāʾīl), officially the State of Israel (מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl [mediˈnat jisʁaˈʔel]; دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل Dawlat Isrāʾīl), is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Lebanon to the north, by Syria to the northeast, by Jordan to the east, by the Red Sea to the south, by Egypt to the southwest, by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, and by the Palestinian territories – the West Bank along the east and the Gaza Strip along the southwest. Tel Aviv is the economic and technological center of the country, while its seat of government is in its proclaimed capital of Jerusalem, although Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem is unrecognized internationally.

Israel is located in the Southern Levant, a region known historically as Canaan, the Land of Israel, Palestine and the Holy Land. In the early first millennium BCE, the Israelite kingdoms of Israel and Judah emerged, before falling to the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires, respectively. During the classical era, the region was ruled by the Achaemenid, Macedonian, Ptolemaic and Seleucid empires. In the 2nd century BCE, an independent Hasmonean kingdom emerged, before Rome conquered the area a century later. In the 7th century, the Muslim conquest of the Levant established caliphal rule. The First Crusade of the 11th century brought the founding of Crusader states, the last ending in the 13th century at the hands of the Mamluks, who lost the area to the Ottoman Empire at the onset of the 16th century. In the late 19th century, Jews began immigrating to the area as part of the Zionist movement. After World War I, the allied powers assigned the Mandate for Palestine to Britain, which during the war made a declaration of support for the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Following World War II and the Holocaust, the newly formed United Nations adopted the Partition Plan for Palestine, recommending the creation of independent Arab and Jewish states, and placing Jerusalem under international control. In the final months of the British Mandate, a civil war broke out between the Palestinian Arabs and the Yishuv, beginning the first stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The British terminated the Mandate on 14 May 1948, and Israel declared independence that day. (Full article...)

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Maccabi Tel Aviv (2011 team pictured) have won the Israel State Cup on a record 24 occasions.

Since the Eretz Israel Football Association was founded in 1928, it has organised a nationwide knockout cup competition almost every football season. This cup was originally held in Mandatory Palestine and named the People's Cup, but when Israel became independent in 1948, the tournament was renamed the Israel State Cup. "Eretz" was dropped from the association's name at the same time. The present cup holders are Hapoel Beer Sheva who beat Maccabi Haifa in Teddy Stadium at the 2022 final game.

Scheduling was initially inconsistent, but the State Cup has been a regular fixture in the Israeli football calendar since the start of the 1961–62 football season. It involves professional and amateur clubs of all standards playing against each other, creating the possibility for "minnows" to become "giant-killers" by eliminating top clubs from the tournament. Five teams have reached the final while playing in a lower division, but all have been defeated apart from Hapoel Ramat Gan, who won the cup final while a second-tier club in 2003. British police and military teams took part in large numbers during the Mandate Period, and one, British Police, won the competition in 1932. Bnei Sakhnin, the 2004 final victors, are the only side from a mostly Arab-Israeli town to have lifted the cup. (Full article...)

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This is a Featured picture that the Wikimedia Commons community has chosen as one of the highest quality on the site.

Image 1Young Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) on a stone wall by the edge of Makhtesh Ramon in Mitzpe Ramon.
Image 2Southern aerial view of the Temple Mount, a hill located in the Old City of Jerusalem that for thousands of years has been venerated as a holy site, in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Image 3Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur, an 1878 painting by Maurycy Gottlieb
Image 4David Ben-Gurion's room at Ben-Gurion's Hut, the retirement home of Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion and his wife Paula (Pola) from the years 1953 until Ben-Gurion's death in 1973.
Image 5Diving tourism site on the southern coast of Eilat, around a horseshoe-shaped reef. Many animal species are found in the area, including dolphins.
Image 6A view of Jerusalem from southeast, showing the Walls of Jerusalem, the Dome of the Rock, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. This image was taken sometime between 1900 and 1940.
Image 7A more recent section of the Israel-Egypt barrier fence, north of Eilat, June 2012. It is a border barrier built by Israel along its border with Egypt. It was originally an attempt to curb illegal migrants from African countries.^[1] Construction was approved on 12 January 2010^[2] and began on 22 November 2010.^[3]
Image 8Paratroopers at the Western Wall, an iconic photograph taken on June 7, 1967 by David Rubinger.
Image 9A view of Jaffa, from the beachfront of Tel Aviv
Image 10"The Nile and the Sinai, to Israel and beyond. One sweeping glance of human history." Caption by astronaut Chris Hadfield on board the International Space Station.
Image 11Northeast exposure of Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount, in the Old City of Jerusalem. Considered to be the third holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina.
Image 12Dead Tree in Sea of Life is an installation artwork from 2017 by Amiram Dora, a travel guide from the nearby city Arad. The work consists of a tree planted on a salt pile in the Dead Sea. The purpose of the work is to show that as opposed to its common name, the Dead Sea is actually a place of rich tourist activity, healing and relaxation.
Image 13An aerial view of Makhtesh Ramon, a geological feature of Israel's Negev desert. Located some 85 km south of the city of Beersheba, the landform is not an impact crater from a meteor nor a volcanic crater formed by a volcanic eruption, but rather is the world's largest "erosion cirque" (steephead valley or box canyon).
Image 14Ceramic tile on the Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem
Image 15Reading Power Station, built in Tel Aviv in 1938, was named for Rufus Isaacs, the 1st Marquess of Reading. Reading Light is pictured on the left.
Image 16The Jerusalem Railway Station c. 1900. The locomotive on the turntable is "Ramleh" (J&J No. 3), a Baldwin 2-6-0. The station was the terminus of the Jaffa–Jerusalem railway until its closure in 1998. Today, the station is abandoned and suffering from neglect and vandalism, although it is one of 110 buildings selected for preservation in Jerusalem.
Image 17An aerial view of Masada in the Judaean Desert, with the Dead Sea and Jordan in the distance

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...that according to the Gospel of Mark, Jesus was buried in one of the rock-cut tombs in ancient Israel (pictured)?
...that the Pactum Warmundi established autonomous Venetian communes within the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem?
...that the Israeli documentary Paper Dolls followed the lives of five health care providers from the Philippines who perform as drag queens?

More did you know...

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Related portals

Religions in Israel

Arab states

Neighboring countries in South, Central & Western Asia

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WikiProjects

WikiProject Israel – WikiProject Jewish history – WikiProject Judaism – WikiProject Jewish culture – WikiProject Hebrew

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This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

The AIL Storm (Hebrew: סופה, Sufa) is an Israeli manufactured off-road vehicle and the workhorse of the Israeli Security Forces. The series of Jeep Wrangler based vehicles have been produced by Automotive Industries Ltd. in Upper Nazareth under license from Chrysler since 1990. The vehicles fill a number of military roles, including that of armoured Infantry Mobility Vehicle, and certain models are available for export as well as for the civilian market.

Production of an updated four-door second generation model commenced in 2006 despite some mixed messages from the Storm's primary customer, the Israel Defense Forces. Development of a third generation vehicle based on the new Jeep Wrangler JK has been completed and significant production for both Israeli and foreign customers is under way. (Full article...)

List of Good articles
Israeli cuisine Joseph's Tomb Kashrut Clal Center Zion Square Black Hebrew Israelites Robinson's Arch Abergil crime family Chaim Topol Birket Israel Joshua Prawer Mamilla Schwester Selma Ir Ovot Downtown Triangle (Jerusalem) Haifa Western Wall Eilat Airport Al-Aqsa Mosque Angel Bakeries Operation Pleshet Arrow (Israeli missile)

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Jerusalem mixed grill (Hebrew: מעורב ירושלמי) (me'orav Yerushalmi) is a grilled meat dish considered a specialty of Jerusalem. It consists of chicken hearts, spleens and liver mixed with bits of lamb cooked on a flat grill, seasoned with onion, garlic, black pepper, cumin, turmeric, olive oil and coriander.

The dish is said to have been invented at the Mahane Yehuda Market, with various restaurants claiming to be the originators. (Full article...)

List of fare/cuisine articles
Challah Ancient Israelite cuisine Israeli wine Cholent Israeli salad Kreplach Israeli breakfast Jachnun Kugel Shkedei marak Charoset Bamba (snack) Ktzitzot Khubeza Gefilte fish Hamantash Seven Species Matzah ball

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The following are images from various Israel-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Kingdoms of Israel and Judah (from History of Israel)
Image 2The Israeli West Bank barrier route built (red), under construction (pink) and proposed (white), (from History of Israel)
Image 3Jewish Brigade headquarters under both Union Flag and Jewish flag (from History of Israel)
Image 4The route of the exiles to Babylon (from History of Israel)
Image 5"Hezekiah ... king of Judah" - Royal seal written in the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet, unearthed in Jerusalem (from History of Israel)
Image 6Tel Aviv Cinematheque (from Culture of Israel)
Image 7Hiking near Lake Kinneret (from Culture of Israel)
Image 8Gen. Uzi Narkiss, Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, Chief of staff Yitzhak Rabin and Gen. Rehavam Ze'evi in the Old City of Jerusalem, 7 June 1967 (from History of Israel)
Image 916th-century Safed rabbi Joseph Karo, author of the Jewish law book (from History of Israel)
Image 10Tiles in the Bezalel style, 1920s (from Culture of Israel)
Image 11Habimah Theater in Tel Aviv (from Culture of Israel)
Image 12Tzofim Israeli scout movement fire ceremony in Tel Aviv (from Culture of Israel)
Image 13David dictating the Psalms. The practice of psalms is referred to as a philosophical and theological problem (from Culture of Israel)
Image 14143rd Division crossing the Suez Canal in the direction of Cairo during the Yom Kippur War, 15 October 1973 (from History of Israel)
Image 15Supply convoy on its way to besieged Jerusalem, April 1948 (from History of Israel)
Image 16Ofek-7 satellite launch through Shavit vehicle (from Culture of Israel)
Image 17Breads in Mahane Yehuda market (from Culture of Israel)
Image 18Nahal Brigade soldiers returning after the 2006 Lebanon War (from History of Israel)
Image 19Menachem Begin, Jimmy Carter and Anwar Sadat celebrating the signing of the Camp David Accords (from History of Israel)
Image 20Avraham Adan raising the Ink Flag marking the end of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War (from History of Israel)
Image 21A Bookplate done for Martin Buber; The plate is adorned with the walls of Jerusalem in the shape of a Shield of David, viewed from above (from Culture of Israel)
Image 22Jewish symbols in Israeli artworks (from Culture of Israel)
Image 231949 Green Line (from History of Israel)
Image 24Occupied Enemy Territory Administration, 1918 (from History of Israel)
Image 25Cultural map of the world according to the World Values Survey, describing Israel as a whole at parity in "Rational-Secular Values" and also at parity in "Self-expression values". (from Culture of Israel)
Image 26Simulated view of a black hole. Jacob Bekenstein predicted and co-discovered black hole entropy (from Culture of Israel)
Image 27Israeli breakfast (from Culture of Israel)
Image 28Protest in Tel Aviv on 6 August 2011 (from History of Israel)
Image 29Painting of the siege of Jerusalem during the First Crusade (1099) (from History of Israel)
Image 30Jewish Settlement Police members watching the settlement Nesher during 1936–1939 Arab revolt (from History of Israel)
Image 31Aerial view of the Temple Mount showing the Dome of the Rock in the center and the al-Aqsa mosque to the south (from History of Israel)
Image 32Shrine of the Book, Israel Museum, Jerusalem (from Culture of Israel)
Image 33Hebrew ulpan in Dimona, 1955 (from Culture of Israel)
Image 34A portion of the Isaiah scroll. One of the earliest known manuscripts of biblical literature (from Culture of Israel)
Image 35David Ben-Gurion proclaiming the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948 (from History of Israel)
Image 36Detail of the Siloam inscription (from History of Israel)
Image 37Jewish Yemenite bride in traditional bridal vestment, adorned with a henna wreath, 1958 (from Culture of Israel)
Image 38Es Skhul cave (from History of Israel)
Image 39Illustration for the Song of Songs. Along with the Book of Esther, the ancient poem is an example of an ancient Israeli literature with no mention of God, and is traditionally read as an allegory of the relationship between God and Israel (from Culture of Israel)
Image 40Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, 2006 (from Culture of Israel)
Image 41Intel core i7-940. Intel developed its dual-core Core Duo processor at its Israel Development Center in Haifa. (from Culture of Israel)
Image 42Silver coin (gerah) minted in the Persian province of Yehud, dated c. 375-332 BCE. Obv: Bearded head wearing crown, possibly representing the Persian Great King. Rev: Falcon facing, head right, with wings spread; Paleo-Hebrew YHD to right. (from History of Israel)
Image 43Ecclesiastes is known for its incipit vanity of vanities; all is vanity and concepts of Vanitas (from Culture of Israel)
Image 44Gal Fridman, winner of Israel's first Olympic gold medal (from Culture of Israel)
Image 45Menahem Zion synagoge, Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem (from Culture of Israel)
Image 46Shrine of the Báb, built between 1949 and 1953, is an example of the architecture in Israel (from Culture of Israel)
Image 47Buchenwald survivors arrive in Haifa to be arrested by the British, 15 July 1945 (from History of Israel)
Image 48Obverse of Yehud silver coin (from History of Israel)
Image 49Israeli paratroopers dig in near the Mitla Pass, 31 October 1956 (from History of Israel)
Image 50Visual History of Israel by Arthur Szyk, 1948. (from History of Israel)
Image 51Heraclius returning the True Cross to Jerusalem, 15th-century painting by Miguel Ximénez (from History of Israel)
Image 52Remains of the Roman theater in Caesarea Maritima (from Culture of Israel)
Image 53The Merneptah Stele. According to mainstream archeology, it represents the first instance of the name "Israel" in the historical record. (from History of Israel)
Image 54United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, 1947 (from History of Israel)
Image 55Patriot missiles launched to intercept an Iraqi Scud over Tel Aviv during the Gulf War (from History of Israel)
Image 56Portion of the Temple Scroll, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls written by the Essenes (from History of Israel)
Image 57The opening ceremony of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem visited by Arthur Balfour, 1 April 1925 (from History of Israel)
Image 58Menachem Begin addressing a mass demonstration in Tel Aviv against negotiations with Germany in 1952 (from History of Israel)
Image 59The Bahri Mamluk dynasty 1250–1382 (from History of Israel)
Image 60Sermon on the Mount. The New Testament was authored by Christian Jews during Roman-ruled Judea (from Culture of Israel)
Image 61The Arch of Titus in Rome depicts the Roman triumph celebrating the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE (from History of Israel)
Image 62Jewish workers in Kerem Avraham neighbourhood of Jerusalem (c. 1850s) (from History of Israel)
Image 63Yitzhak Rabin, Bill Clinton, and Yasser Arafat during the Oslo Accords signing ceremony at the White House on 13 September 1993 (from History of Israel)
Image 64Jewish youth dancing the Horah in the kibboutz Ein Harod in 1936 (from Culture of Israel)
Image 65MV Netanya, one of the ships assigned to support boats in the Cherbourg Project (from History of Israel)

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News

3 June 2023 – Egypt–Israel relations: 2023 shooting incident on the Egypt–Israel border; Three Israeli soldiers and an Egyptian policeman are killed in an exchange of fire near the Egyptian-Israeli border. It is the first fatal incident between the two countries in more than a decade. (The Washington Post)
31 May 2023 – Israeli–Palestinian conflict: Five members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command are killed and ten others are injured in an explosion at a base in Qusaya, Beqaa Governorate, Lebanon. The PFLP accuses the Israel Defense Forces of responsibility. (Al Jazeera)
30 May 2023 – Israeli–Palestinian conflict: An Israeli settler is shot and killed near Hermesh, West Bank by Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade gunmen. (AP)

Israel category at Wikinews

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This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Israel}}) or categorized correctly. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.