Israel’s population topped 7 million

Israel's population topped 7 million for the first time on the eve of its 58th Independence Day, according to the government's statistics bureau
 
Of the 7,026,000 citizens, 80% are Jewish and 20% are Arabs. The population increased by 118,000 over the past year, including 21,000 immigrants, a relatively low annual number for a nation built on Jewish immigration.
Since the founding of the state in 1948, Israel’s population has grown 8.7 times from 806,000.
In a detailed report the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) noted also that 80% of Israelis - 5,639,000 - are Jewish and 20% - 1,387,000 - are Arab. Over the past year Israel's population grew by 118,000, pushing it past the 7-million mark. Most of the increase - 104,000 individuals - was from natural growth.
Over the past year some 138,000 babies were born and 21,000 new immigrants arrived, 9,000 from Russian and other CIS states, 3,700 from Ethiopia, 2,500 from France and 2,000 from the US.
The CBS also noted that the five most populous cities in Israel are: Jerusalem (with 718,900 people),  Tel Aviv – Jaffa  (with 378,800),  Haifa (with 267,700), Rishon Leziyon (with 219,800) and Ashdod with 200,800 people.