The population of Israel is edging toward 10 million, making it a dozen times larger than it was on the day the Jewish state was established, according to figures released by the Central Bureau of Statistics on Monday ahead of the country’s 75th Independence Day celebrations.

There are 9,727,000 people living in Israel, the CBS said. Of those, 7,145,000 are Jewish, or 73.5 percent, along with 2,048,000 Arabs (21%) and 534,000 members of other minorities (5.5%).

Since last year, the population grew by 216,000 people, an increase of 2.3%. There were 183,000 babies born and 79,000 new immigrants arrived, while 51,000 people died.

Over a quarter of Israelis, 28%, are children aged 14 or under, while 12% are over the age of 65.

When the state was founded on May 14, 1948, there were 806,000 people living in the country, meaning it has grown twelve-fold over the decades.

The years in between have seen 3.3 million new immigrants arrive in the country. Nearly half of them — 43%, or 1.5 million — arrived since 1990.

Read the full story here

This year, we want to do more to bless Israel and the Jewish people.

We know that as we bless Israel this year, God will bless us, just as He promised in Genesis 12:3, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Now is the time to bless Israel and the Jewish people.

Related Articles:

We cannot honour Holocaust victims without defending living Jews

We want to highlight a speech made by Conservative peer Lord Wolfson on Holocaust commemoration. He made three key points, but we believe there are four important takeaways. 1. The Holocaust was no...

‘Peace through strength’ when it comes to supporting Israel and confronting Iran

This article was written by Sandra Hagee Parker, the Chairwoman of the Christians United for Israel Action Fund (CUFI Action Fund), based in Washington DC, and was originally...

“What authority would allow you to do that?” – A response to one journalist’s challenge to Trump’s Gaza plan

During Tuesday’s White House press conference with President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, NBC News’ Kelly O’Donnell said to Trump: “You are talking tonight about the United States...

The barbaric nature of Hamas on full display

This week, as more Israeli hostages were released from Hamas captivity, the world had a glimpse into the barbaric nature of Hamas and its supporters. Chaotic scenes were broadcast around...

Auschwitz80: The speech that world leaders needed to hear

 https://youtu.be/ibbLbn5m0XQRonald Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, and heir of cosmetics brand Estee Lauder, gave an impassioned speech at the Aushwitz80 commemoration....