Israel
- Government
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Country name:
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conventional long form:
State of Israel
conventional short form: Israel
local long form: Medinat Yisra'el
local short form: Yisra'el |
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy
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Capital:
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Jerusalem; note - Israel proclaimed
Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the US, like nearly all
other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv |
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Administrative divisions:
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6 districts (mehozot, singular -
mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
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Independence:
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14 May 1948 (from League of Nations
mandate under British administration) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 14 May (1948);
note - Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the
Jewish calendar is lunar and the holiday may occur in April or
May |
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Constitution:
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no formal constitution; some of the
functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of
Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws of the parliament
(Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law |
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Legal system:
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mixture of English common law,
British Mandate regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish,
Christian, and Muslim legal systems; in December 1985, Israel
informed the UN Secretariat that it would no longer accept
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President
Moshe KATZAV (since 31 July 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Ariel SHARON (since 7
March 2001)
cabinet: Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved
by the Knesset
elections: president is largely a ceremonial role and is
elected by the Knesset for a seven-year term; election last held
31 July 2000 (next to be held mid-2007); following legislative
elections, the president assigns a Knesset member -
traditionally the leader of the largest party - the task of
forming a governing coalition; election last held 28 January
2003 (next scheduled to be held fall of 2006)
election results: Moshe KATZAV elected president by the
120-member Knesset with a total of 60 votes, other candidate,
Shimon PERES, received 57 votes (there were three abstentions);
Ariel SHARON continues as prime minister after Likud Party
victory in January 2003 Knesset elections; Likud won 38 seats
and then formed coalition government with Shinui, the National
Religious Party, and the National Union |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Knesset (120 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 28 January 2003 (next scheduled to
be held fall of 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party - Likud Party
29.4%, Labor 14.5%, Shinui 12.3%, Shas 8.2%, National Union
5.5%, Meretz 5.2%, United Torah Judaism 4.3%, National Religious
Party 4.2%, Democratic Front for Peace and Equality 3.0%, One
Nation 2.8%, National Democratic Assembly 2.3%, Yisra'el
Ba'Aliya (YBA) 2.2%, United Arab List 2.1%, Green Leaf Party
1.2%, Herut 1.2%, other 1.6%; seats by party - Likud 38, Labor
19, Shinui 15, Shas 11, National Union 7, Meretz 6, National
Religious Party 6, United Torah Judaism 5, Democratic Front for
Peace and Equality 3, One Nation 3, National Democratic Assembly
3, YBA 2, United Arab List 2 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court (justices appointed
for life by the president) |
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Political parties and
leaders:
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Democratic Front for Peace and
Equality (Hadash) [Muhammad BARAKA]; Green Leaf Party (no longer
active) [Boaz WACHTEL and Shlomi SANDAK]; Herut (no longer
active) [Michael KLEINER]; Labor Party [Shimon PERES]; Likud
Party [Ariel SHARON]; Meretz (merged with YAHAD) [Zahava GALON];
National Democratic Assembly (Balad) [Azmi BISHARA]; National
Religious Party [Ephraim "Efie" EITAM]; National Union (Haichud
Haleumi) [Avigdor LIBERMAN] (includes Tekuma Moledet and
Yisra'el Beiteinu); One Nation [David TAL]; Shas [Eliyahu YISHAI];
Shinui [Yosef "Tommy" LAPID]; United Arab List [Abd al-Malik
DAHAMSHAH]; United Torah Judaism [Yaakov LITZMAN]; YAHAD [Yossi
BEILIN]; Yisra'el Ba'Aliya or YBA (merged with Likud) [Natan
SHARANSKY] |
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Political pressure groups
and leaders:
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Israeli nationalists advocating
Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Peace Now
supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip; Yesha (settler) Council promotes settler interests and
opposes territorial compromise; B'Tselem monitors human rights
abuses |
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International organization
participation:
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BIS, BSEC (observer), CE
(observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer),
ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, OAS
(observer), OPCW (signatory), OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation in
the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador
Daniel AYALON
chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 364-5578
FAX: [1] (202) 364-5560
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston,
Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco
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Diplomatic representation
from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador
Daniel C. KURTZER
embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv 63903
mailing address: PSC 98, Box 29, APO AE 09830
telephone: [972] (3)
519-7369/7453/7454/7457/7458/7551/7575
FAX: [972] (3) 516-4390
consulate(s) general: Jerusalem; note - an independent US
mission, established in 1928, whose members are not accredited
to a foreign government |
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Flag description:
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white with a blue hexagram
(six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Shield of
David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the
top and bottom edges of the flag |
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