Data released by the Central Bureau of Statistics show that Israel’s population at its 65th Independence Day stands at 8,018,000 people, three-fourths of whom are Jewish.
The report, which comes out annually on the eve of Independence Day, also pointed out that at the time of the establishment of the state in 1948, Israel’s population amounted to only 806,000 resident.
The annual census revealed that the population grew by 137,000 citizens, or 1.8%, since the 2012 report. This year marks the first time the Jewish population tops the iconic 6 million mark, at 6.04 million.
The Jewish residents of Israel make up 75.3% of the population. There are approximately 1.6 million Israeli Arabs (20.7%). Members of other religions, including non-Arab Christians, make up 4% of the population, or 318,000.
According to the report, in the last year, 163,000 babies were born in Israel; 41,000 people died; and 19,500 people immigrated to the country from abroad. The CBS figures also showed that at the end of the year 2012, over 70% of the Jewish population in Israel were native Israelis, more than half of whom were at least second generation natives, compared to 35% back in 1948.
