[img]96|left|||no_popup[/img]Dateline Jerusalem — The statistics are in for 2008. Israel leads every other country in its growth rate at 1.5 percent, compared to 1.188 percent for the rest of the world for the same time period. Yet the population of the entire country is less than 7.5 million people, all squeezed into an area approximately the size of the state of New Jersey (only smaller). In fact, the U.S. is approximately 444 times the size of Israel. California is more than 20 times larger.
The land mass of the 22 Arab countries in the Middle East and Africa that surround Israel is 640 times larger than Israel.
And Israel is surrounded by 270 million Muslims, including those who make up 20 percent of Israel's 7.5 million total population. Yet while Israel has absorbed Jewish refugees exiled from their homes in Arab countries, and even absorbs non-Jewish refugees, such as those from war-torn Darfur, the surrounding Muslim nations refuse to accept their fellow Arab and Muslim Palestinian brethren into their countries.
Where will Israel's population live if Israel gives up any more land?
How will Israel be able to protect its citizens from Palestinian and Hezbollah rocket fire if it is forced to shrink its borders even further?
Talk About Diversity
The majority of the population in the city where I live, one of the 14 largest cities in Israel with over 100,000 people, is made up of mostly native- born Israelis. However, we are known for our large contingency of people from Ethiopia, Yemen, Morocco, Russia, Ukraine, Poland, England, South Africa, Canada and the USA. Of course, there are people in my town who come from many other countries, but they do not make up the majority of residents. Although there are people from over 100 countries that populate Israel, not all congregate in every city. There are many Filipinos who live here, but they are not citizens, just people who temporarily come to Israel to work as caretakers and nurses.
My city is also known for its religious and cultural tolerance. It is made up of secular, traditional, Modern Orthodox, Orthodox and Ultra-Orthodox Jews. Their religious persuasion can often be determined by their dress and the type of head covering they wear, just as you can identify others, from secular Arabs dressed in jeans to ultra-religious Muslims dressed in burkas which cover everything but their eyes. And, they all walk among each other down the main street of my town. It is a sight to see.
I understand why the population of Israel leads the world in its growth rate. In this minuscule country's short 61-year existence, it has become a haven for those who yearn for religious and political freedom. Since 1967, when the State of Israel regained control of the West Bank and Jerusalem, all the major religions (Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu) have been able to worship here as they please.
L'hitraot. Shachar
Shachar is the Hebrew name of a California-based attorney and former Los Angeles County deputy sheriff who moved to Israel two years ago.
