Israel, State of
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ISRAEL, STATE OF. The third Jewish Commonwealth came into being on May 14, 1948, almost six months after the UN decision to partition Palestine into one Jewish and one Arab state. The proclamation of the State of Israel marked the climax of a half century of political Zionism that sought to reunite the scattered Jewish people with its ancient “Promised Land.”
[edit] Boundaries
In the Bible, the boundaries of the land of Canaan, promised by God to Abraham and his seed, extended from the Euphrates River to the Red Sea, from the Mediterranean to the great desert in the east, a geographical and economic unit corresponding roughly to the southern horn of the Fertile Crescent. These ideal boundaries were achieved only by David.
[edit] Geography
The present area of Israel is only part of the original land and is made up of three longitudinal strips: the coastal plain along the Mediterranean, the range of hills forming the backbone of the Country, and the Jordan depression with its prolongation, the Plain of Araba. These strips are divided by the fertile Valley of Jezreel, which separates the mountains of Galilee in the north from the stern hills of Judea in the south, and by the Plain of Beersheba, which forms the northern boundary of the Negev. The Jordan depression follows the Jordan River from its freshwater lakes in the north (Kinneret) to the Dead Sea in the south, and along the barren Araba to the Red Sea port of Elat.
[edit] Climate
The climate of Israel varies with the altitude and with the proximity of various regions to the Mediterranean or the desert; generally, it is a Mediterranean climate, characterized by a long, hot, dry summer from April through October, and a cool rainy winter that lasts from November to April. The heaviest rainfall is in the north, the lightest precipitation at Elat in the south. The coldest month of the year is January, and the hottest month is May or June when the temperature is capable of rising to 98 degrees in the hill city of Jerusalem, and as high as 120 degrees in the depth of the Jordan valley. Like the landscape of the country, the climate of Israel is extraordinarily diverse.
[edit] Natural Resources
The natural resources of Israel were enriched in 1955 by the discovery of oil in the Negev. This southern area provides the country with a large variety of minerals, ranging from copper and manganese to mica and glass-sand. The Dead Sea yields many minerals, particularly large quantities of magnesium, potash, and bromide. The variegated structure of the country affords a rich and diversified agriculture with crops of grain, vegetables, and fruits. Citrus fruits provide a large part of Israel’s exports; also a wide range of products are manufactured, processed, or finished in Israel. Not the least of the country’s resources is its population, increased by constant immigration. When the State of Israel was established in May 1948, its Jewish population numbered about 650,000. In 1998, the population of Israel was more than 5.8 million, of whom 4.8 million were Jews. The Ingathering of the Exiles has brought to Israel Jews from about 90 countries.
[edit] History
From the beginning, Israel’s history was determined by its strategic situation at the crossroads of empires and established routes of trade. It connected the Plain of the Nile in the south with Mesopotamia, the land of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, in the northeast. Canaan’s harbors looked westward to Crete and Greece; Elat faced toward the rich lands of the south and Far East, the ancient sources of civilization. About 2300 B.C.E. Sargon I marched down from Mesopotamia and reached the Mediterranean. Later, Egypt subdued Canaan, and its governors exacted tribute from the people. The earliest Hebraic association with the Promised Land occurred in the time of the patriarch Abraham around the 20th century B.C.E. In the biblical story of the Covenant, God gave the land of Canaan to Abraham and his children as an “everlasting possession.” The invasion of the Israelites came in the 13th century B.C.E. In the biblical story of the Exodus, Moses began the conquest of Canaan by overcoming the kings of the Amorites in East Jordan, where the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Manasseh settled. Joshua completed the conquest, particularly of the northern hill country, dividing the land among the other tribes of Israel. But the plains and coastal regions remained settled by the Canaanites and the seafaring Philistines. These peoples were thorns in the flesh of the Israelite tribes, whom they harassed constantly so long as they remained loosely organized under the rule of Judges.
[edit] First Commonwealth
During the 11th century B.C.E. under Saul, the unification of the tribes into a nation began. But it was David who unified the Jewish state by his decisive victories over the Philistines, and by the conquest of the Jebusite stronghold, Jerusalem, which he made the nation’s capital. David’s son, Solomon, consolidated his father’s gains; his reign marked the climax of the independent history of Israel. Solomon’s empire stretched from Mount Hermon in the north to Elat on the Red Sea and from the plain in the east to the Mediterranean. He trained his people, mere farmers and shepherds, in the arts of building, crafts, and trade.
Solomon built a navy and sent his ships as far as Ophir and Tarshish to bring back precious cargoes. But although he enriched his kingdom, the extravagance of Solomon’s court and his passion for building imposed a heavy tax burden upon the people. Revolt broke out during the reign of Solomon’s son Rehoboam, and the country divided into two small kingdoms, Judah and Israel. The vassal states which David had subjugated now began to break free. The giant empires to the north and south awaited their opportunity to pounce. The Kingdom of Israel, though three times greater in territory and with twice the population of Judah, was the first to fall. It surrendered to the Assyrians in 722 B.C., and most of its residents were captured. The rest fled to Judah. As a hill country separated from Egypt by the desert and sheltered by Israel on the north, Judah was easier to defend, but it fell at last in 586 B.C. to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia, who deported a great part of the population.
The conquered people of Judah did not merge with the mighty Babylonian nation, like others who had been held captive, because in exile they learned to value and understand the teachings of their great prophets, such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. The exiles became convinced that just as the prophecies of destruction had been fulfilled, so would be the prophecies of a return to their land. And they accepted the prophetic vision of an age of ultimate peace and justice, not only for themselves but for the entire world. It was in the Babylonian exile that the people absorbed the idea of a Messiah as described in the Book of Isaiah.
[edit] The First Return
Thus, when Cyrus of Persia liberated the subject people from the Babylonian yoke in 538 B.C., a movement to return to Zion developed under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah. In the desolated land occupied by hostile strangers, the Judeans, as they were now called, labored with a tool in one hand and a sword in the other to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem and construct a wall around the city. During the period that followed, high priests instead of kings ruled the people, scribes took the place of prophets as the teachers of the people, and the synagogue developed into a permanent institution. The Persian rule ended with the conquest of the Persian empire by Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.E.). After Alexander’s death, his empire was divided. Judea then fell first to the Ptolemies of Egypt, then to the Seleucids of Syria. But Jews, too weak to resist, remained almost indifferent to the changes of rulers. Concentrating upon their inner life, they developed religious institutions and great religious books, and collected and edited the books of the Bible. It was only when Antiochus, King of Syria, tampered with their religion that the docile people were stirred to rebellion. Led by the Hasmoneans, they hurled the defilers from the land in 165 B.C.E. Twenty-six years later Simon the Hasmonean declared Judea a free commonwealth.
[edit] The Second Commonwealth
The Hasmonean dynasty not only restored the land of Israel to its ancient boundaries, but also increased the population by converting the mixed population of Galileans and the Edomites to Judaism. A powerful kingdom might have developed, but in 63 B.C.E. the Romans invaded Judea. The unequal struggle ended in the complete destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Commonwealth in 70 C.E. The fires of rebellion were rekindled by Bar Kokhba in 132-35 C.E. They were quenched once more, this time for nearly 2,000 years.
[edit] The Long Night
The Romans now called the land Palestine to erase all Jewish associations, while Jerusalem was rebuilt as a soldiers’ colony and renamed Aelia Capitolina. Yet the invisible chains that bound the Jews to Israel were never broken. With Jerusalem gone, a new center of Jewish study was built in Yavneh, and the Sanhedrin, a scholarly governing body, was created. As the Romans persecuted the tiny community, the center was moved north to Tiberias where the Mishnah, a systematic code of law, was completed in 200 C.E. The situation worsened when Rome adopted Christianity in 320 C.E., for now the land was holy to Christians. Persecutions continued with unabated cruelty under the Byzantines of the Eastern Empire, until the Arab invasion of 636 opened the era of Islam. The Muslims found only a few Jews in Palestine. The first centuries of Muslim rule were marked by prosperity and a measure of tolerance. Lacking experience in civil life, the Muslims at first engaged Jews as administrators. In time, however, a decline set in as Arab power weakened. In the 11th century the land came under the control of the Seljuk Turks, who annoyed the Christians and provoked the Crusades. The 100 years of Crusaders in Palestine, beginning in 1099, were a long nightmare to the Jewish community; nearly all Palestinian Jews were slaughtered during the period of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. This period ended when Saladin vanquished the Christians in 1187 and called on the Muslims and Jews to resettle in the land. Palestine was never completely without a Jewish population.
In 1211, the Palestine Jewish community was strengthened by the arrival of a group headed by 300 rabbis from France and England. Their piety was equaled only by their poverty, and their need gave rise to the system of Halukkah, funds gathered throughout the world for the support of the Jewish community in Palestine. Still, the land had no peace. In 1260, Mongol hordes poured in from the north, pillaging and murdering as they advanced, until they were halted at Gilboa. Once again the land was laid waste, and in Jerusalem there remained only two Jews. Then Rabbi Moses ben Nahman (Nahmanides) of Gerona settled in Jerusalem. He became the father of Jerusalem’s modern Jewish community; since Nahmanides’ day the Holy City has never been without Jews.
In 1516, Palestine was conquered by the Ottoman Turks. Around 1492, many Jews expelled from Spain found refuge in Palestine. Spanish Jews brought with them knowledge and skill, and in 1563, one of them, Don Joseph Nasi, attempted to create a colony of Spanish refugees in Tiberias as a starting point for the resettlement of the entire country. Some of the exiles settled in Safed where they created a center of Kabbalah. Until that time most of the Jewish population of Israel had been Sephardic, or Mediterranean, in origin. But with the development of the Hasidic movement in Eastern Europe, Ashkenazic (see Ashkenazim) Jews began to trickle into the country. A forerunner of this movement was Rabbi Judah the Pious, from Poland, who came to Jerusalem in 1700 at the head of a group of disciples. Their synagogue was destroyed by the Arabs. Later rebuilt, it became known as the Hurva, or Ruins, Synagogue, a famous landmark until its destruction in the War of Independence in 1948. As the Ottoman Empire decayed, the local pashas oppressed and impoverished Palestinian Jews; but the community was again strengthened when a group of Hasidim from Europe settled in Safed in 1777 and later in Tiberias. These newcomers formed the nucleus of the present Ashkenazic community of Israel. They were followed at the beginning of the 18th century by groups of Mitnagdim, opponents of Hasidism who flocked to Jerusalem; later, more Hasidim settled in Hebron. Between 1827 and 1875, the philanthropist Sir Moses Montefiore to help the Jewish community through constructive projects. The French Alliance Israélite Universelle set up an agricultural school at Mikveh Israel and trade school in the cities in 1870. These efforts were the beginning of the modern resettlements of the country.
[edit] The Lovers of Zion and the First Aliyah
The pogroms in Russia and growing antisemitism in Western Europe, in an age when liberalism was being paid lip service, finally brought Jews to the conviction that as a nation, the only road open to them was the road back to Zion. Out of this conviction developed modern Zionism. In 1882, a year after the murderous attacks upon Russian Jews, the movement of Hoveve Zion, or Lovers of Zion, developed. The object of this movement was the acquisition of land in Palestine and the promotion of Jewish settlement there. The newcomers founded Rishon-Le-Zion in 1882 and later Zikhron Yaacov. Among the first settlers of these colonies were the Bilu, a group of young Jewish students from Russia who founded Gedera in 1884. The settlers of the First Aliyah endured ordeals resulting from their ignorance of agriculture, as well as from malaria, excessive poverty, and the hostility of their neighbors. They were eventually taken under the wing of Baron Edmond de Rothschild of Paris, a philanthropist who did more than any other individual for the practical resettlement of Palestine.
[edit] Political Zionism and the Second Aliyah
It was not until 1897 that political Zionism was formulated by Theodor Herzl, the father of the idea of the Jewish State. He rekindled Jewish nationalism throughout the world and set in motion a chain of events that culminated fifty years later in the establishment of the State of Israel. Between 1904 and 1914, the Second Aliyah, mainly young people, came streaming into Palestine from Russia and Poland. Though comparatively few in number, it was the settlers of the First and Second Aliyot who laid the agricultural, economic, and political foundations of modern Israel. Each new village was in fact a cell of the future state. The settlers waged a struggle against primitive conditions, hostile neighbors, and Turkish obstructionism.
[edit] The Balfour Declaration and the Rebuilding of the Land
World War I, in which Turkey was allied with Germany and Austria, seriously set back the movement of Jewish upbuilding and resettlement. Much of the Jewish population was deported, and starvation and epidemics harried the remainder. Then came the issuance of the Balfour Declaration in 1917, promising a national home for Jews in Palestine. With new hope, the Third Aliyah established new agricultural cooperatives. The Fourth Aliyah was composed mainly of tradespeople, manufacturers, and business people with some capital for investments. Tel Aviv and Haifa grew in population, and new industries were established. School systems and hospitals were developed, and the Jewish community of Palestine organized itself for democratic self-government. The Keren Kayemet, or Jewish National Fund, provided the land for the Halutzim, and the Keren Hayesod, or Palestine Foundation Fund, provided the credit and other forms of assistance for the new immigrants.
A reversal in British policy, due partly to the recurrence of Arab outbreaks, was reflected in the shearing away of Transjordan from the area of the Jewish national home in 1922. The mid-1920’s saw economic and political setbacks. Arab hostility to Jewish settlement of Palestine was inflamed by Arab leaders. The British administration either did not see or chose not to see to the threatening danger. In 1929, Arab riots broke out in Jerusalem, Hebron, Safed, and other parts of the country; Jewish lives and property were destroyed. In this new political situation, the British further whittled down the original meaning of the Balfour Declaration. The major provisions of the Passfield White Paper cut down Jewish immigration drastically, and stopped altogether the purchase of agricultural land by Jews. A storm of protest and indignation from Jews and non-Jews alike broke out. As a result, the worst features of the Passfield White Paper were modified.
The situation in Palestine quieted down, and there were no further serious Arab disturbances until 1936. The country escaped the worldwide economic depression and progressed. Fleeing from the lengthening shadow of the Nazi terror in Germany, thousands of Jews came into Palestine. During the Fifth Aliyah of 1933-1939, 300,000 newcomers were absorbed by the Jewish community.
In addition, 55,000 adolescents of the Youth Aliyah came into the country. These immigrants had to adjust quickly to a new climate, the new Hebrew language, new jobs, and a peo¬ple for whom hard menial work was part of their “Religion of Labor.” In the meantime, Arab riots broke out anew. From 1936 to 1939, Arab terrorists attacked Jewish settlements, burned fields and forests, and murdered and intimidated Arabs friendly to Jews. British counteraction against the terror was neither consistent nor effective. The British did not permit the Haganah, the Jewish militia, to protect the settlements. A period of self-defense and “illegal” immigration followed; this activity was intensified during World War II, when Jews of Palestine strove to save as many Jews as possible from the Holocaust. At the same time, the Jewish settlement contributed actively to the Allied war effort, serving not only as a source of industrial supplies but also as a fighting force in North Africa and in the European campaigns.
By the end of the war the Jewish population of Palestine had risen to 500,000 while the Palestinian Arabs were one million . The resurgence of Jewish national aspirations after the war was opposed by the British, whose vacillation further encouraged Arab opposition. Numerous commissions were sent to investigate the Palestine situation and make recommendations. President Harry S. Truman recommended in a personal message to the newly elected British Labor Government that 100,000 Jewish survivors of Nazi concentration camps be admitted without delay into Palestine. The British suggested, in reply, an Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry, to which President Truman agreed. This committee subscribed to the recommendation to admit 100,000 immigrants, but the British again rejected it. Matters came to a head when the U.N. decided in November 1947 to partition Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. The Arabs reacted to this announcement by attempting to terrorize the Jewish community through attacks on settlements, ambushes on roads, and sabotage in cities. The British administration began to disintegrate, although it had undertaken to function until May 15, 1948. But despite the prevailing chaos and terror, the Jews of Palestine did not panic. They kept the situation under control through their self-defense organization, the Haganah, a forerunner of the Israel Defense Forces.
[edit] The Third Commonwealth
On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was proclaimed in Tel Aviv. Ten minutes after the proclamation, President Truman extended de facto recognition to the new State. The five surrounding Arab states immediately attacked Israel from the land, sea, and air. Urged on by their leaders, who told them that they could all return after the Jews had been driven out, most of the Arab population fled the country. Eventually, however, Israel’s enemies were driven off, and an armistice was signed in 1949. After that time, an uneasy peace prevailed in the area. Notwithstanding political tensions, a fierce Arab boycott, and sporadic border incidents, the new republic made remarkable progress.
Schools and universities helped to weld together a multilingual mass of immigrants into a Hebrew speaking community. Agricultural settlements increased to more than 700. New industrial crops were introduced. Agricultural development was paralleled by industrial expansion. New sources of water and oil were tapped, the Huleh swamps were drained, and water was piped from the Yarkon River to the thirsty Negev. Though still beset by menacing enemies and struggling in a morass of problems and difficulties, Israel is again a nation and a land, the Third Commonwealth of the Jewish people.
This basic unity was first demonstrated effectively in a few autumn days in 1956. Israel’s long borders had been subjected for years to sabotage, pillage, and murdering raids, particularly by fedayeen, or commandos, from Egyptian bases and from the Gaza strip. Harassed beyond endurance, Israel undertook a four-day campaign on October 29, 1956, which resulted in the conquest of the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza strip. Enormous quantities of arms and material, as well as documents captured by the Israeli Army, revealed that the area was being prepared as a springboard for an Egyptian assault on Israel. Following a request by the UN, Israel withdrew its army from the Sinai and Gaza.
When these attacks, or Israel’s retaliations, were brought before the UN’s Security Council, Israel did not receive justice primarily because of the constant hostility of the Soviet Union, which could veto the passage of any decision that would displease the Arab governments.
The situation steadily deteriorated until June 1967 when Israel struck back at the hostile Arab nations surrounding it (see Six-Day War). This war took less than a week to end in a brilliant victory for Israel. However, the Arabs refused to make peace with Israel or even recognize its existence. On Yom Kippur in 1973, Egypt and Syria launched an attack on the country (see Yom Kippur War). Following the cease-fire imposed by UN, the U.S. made initiatives toward permanent peace in the Middle East.
On May 29, 1974, Syria, the most implacable of Israel’s enemies, agreed to sign a disengagement pact with Israel under terms similar to those agreed upon by Israel and Egypt. On June 5, 1974, the agreement between Israel and Syria was signed in Geneva. None of these agreements, however, even remotely implied a full peace and Arab recognition of Israel’s existence.
In May 1977, an important political change took place in Israel. The Labor Alignment which had led Israel’s governing coalition without interruption since the establishment of the state suffered an electoral defeat and was replaced by Likud, a non-socialist parliamentary block led by Herut, successor of the right-wing Revisionist movement in Zionism. Menachem Begin became prime minister. Later in November, Begin became the first Israeli prime minister to meet officially with an Arab chief of state when Egypt’s President Anwar el-Sadat paid a surprise visit to Jerusalem to discuss the possibility of peace with Israel. In September 1978, at a meeting between Begin and Sadat at Camp David, Maryland., under the auspices of President Jimmy Carter, a framework for a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt was drawn up, and on March 26, 1979, the two countries signed a peace agreement in Washington, D.C. Under this treaty which promised the establishment of normal relations between Israel and Egypt, Israel returned to Egypt the entire Sinai peninsula which Israel had occupied in the Six-Day War. In mid-1979, none of the other Arab countries showed a willingness to make peace with Israel or even recognize its existence, but it was hoped that if subsequent negotiations between Israel and Egypt, the leader of the Arab world, went well, other countries might follow Egypt’s example bringing peace to Israel and the entire Middle East.
In the late 1980’s Palestinian unrest in Israel grew, resulting in a long struggle against the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank. This struggle, known as the Intifada (Arabic for “liberation”), continues; the Palestinian problem remains unsolved, while all parties look for a solution.
In 1990, immigration of Soviet Jews to Israel increased dramatically, and the flow continues unabated. The total number of Soviet Jews who settled in Israel since 1970 approached one million during the 1990’s. (See Ingathering of the Exiles.)
In February 1991, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein launched a missile attack against Israel. Some 40 Scud missiles were fired, landing mostly in the Tel Aviv area, where more than 2,000 homes were damaged. Miraculously, the loss of life was minimal. At the request of the U.S., Israel did not join the Gulf War against Iraq. After the Iraqi defeat on Purim in 1991, Israelis were able for the first time in weeks to take off their gas masks and resume normal life. In the aftermath of the Gulf War, the U.S. and its allies renewed their efforts to bring about a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace and settle the Palestinian problem. (See Lebanon.)
In 1992, another important political change took place. The Labor Alignment took over the government. A new coalition replaced the Likud and made Yitzhak Rabin its prime minister. In 1993, Israel and the PLO signed the Oslo Agreement, which led to turning over the Gaza Strip and Jericho to Palestinian rule under Yasser Arafat. This transfer effected in 1994 a full peace treaty with Jordan, while Israel and Syria continued their peace talks. New economic growth and prosperity resulted from this new political stability.
In late 1995, Prime Minister Rabin was assassinated at a peace rally in Tel Aviv. The new prime minister, Shimon Peres, announced early elections when a wave of bus bombings by Hamas terrorists shook the country. In the first-ever direct elections for the post of Prime Minister, the Likud party candidate, Benjamin Netanyahu, won, promising the electorate “peace with security.” His government fell in 1999. Ehud Barak of One Israel (an alliance of Labor, Meimad and Gesher) beat Netanyahu by a wide margin and succeeded him as prime minister.
Barak initiated unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000. This process was intended to frustrate Hezbollah attacks on Israel by forcing them to cross Israel’s border. Barak and Yassir Arafat once again conducted negotiations with President Clinton at the July 2000 Camp David summit. After the talks faileld, the Palestinians began a second uprising, known as the Al-Aqsa Intifadah, just after the leader of the opposition Ariel Sharon visited the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The failure of the talks and the outbreak of a new war caused many Israelis on both the right and the left to turn away from Barak, and also discredited the peace movement.
Ariel Sharon became the new prime minister in March 2001 in a special election for Prime Minister, and was subsequently reelected, along with his Likud party in the 2003 elections. Sharon initiated a plan to unilaterally withdraw from the Gaza Strip. This disengagement was executed between August and September 2005. Israel also built the Israeli West Bank Barrier with the stated purpose of defending the country from attacks by armed Palestinian groups. After Sharon suffered a severe hemorrhagic stroke, the powers of the office were passed to Ehud Olmert, who was elected Prime Minister after his party, Kadima, Hebrew for “Forward”, won the most seats in the 2006 elections.
In the summer of 2006 Hezbollah men cross the Lebanese border, kidnapped two and killed eight Israeli soldiers. Israel held the Lebanese government responsible, and initiated an air and naval blockade, inflicting airstrikes across much of the country, with ground incursions into southern Lebanon. Hezbollah continuously launched rocket attacks into northern Israel and engaged the Israeli Army on the ground with hit-and-run guerrilla attacks. The conflict killed over one thousand Lebanese civilians, including 440 Hezbollah militants, and 119 Israeli soldiers, as well as forty-four Israeli civilians, and caused massive damage to the civilian infrastructure and cities of Lebanon and damaged thousands of buildings across northern Israel, many of which were completely destroyed. The conflict became known as the Second Lebanon War, and greatly weakened the Kadimah government.
In 2007, Israel celebrated the 60th anniversary of its birth. During the six decades of its existence, the state changed from a small community of barely over half a million Jews, to a strong nation of over 5 million (in a total population of 6,750,000). It was also transformed from a basically agricultural economy with some industry, to one of the world’s leading high-tech economies with more companies on the New York Stock Exchange than most countries. Hebrew, an ancient language, was revived and modernized, meeting the cultural as well as the technological needs of the new society. The democratic character of the society has been preserved, the press and other media are free and highly articulate, and the justice system is among the finest in the world. The arts have flourished, with writers, singers, and filmmakers winning international prizes. On the other hand, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not yet resolved, and the new society is still in the process of defining itself as many social, political, and religious problems remain.
SYNAGOGUES
Acre
Chabad of Acre 41 Derech Haarba Street Akko, 24124 Israel
Afula
Chabad of Afula 25 Hakneset Street Afula, 18100 Israel
Arad
Bet Ha'Shem
Chabad of Arad Chein 38/26 Arad, 80700 Israel
Shira Hadasha Nativ Miriam 13 POB 480 Arad 89104 Conservative 08 995 2138
Ashdod
Chabad of Ashdod Hamelech Shlomo 43 Ashdod, 77120 Israel
Etz Haim 12 Sinai Street POB 238 Ashdod 77101 Conservative 08 864 2482
Ashkelon
Chabad of Ashkelon Ha-Ari 9 Ashkelon, 78000 Israel
Netzach Yisrael 8 Harel Street POB 5041 Ashkelon 78510 Conservative http://www.netzach-israel.org.il/
Hinenu Kan Conservative 052 385 1907
Bat Yam
Chabad of Bat Yam Shderot Ha'azmaut 67 Bat Yam, 59130 Israel
Be'er Sheva
Chabad of Be'er Sheva Sokolov 3 Be'er Sheva, 84280 Israel
Eshel Avraham 72 Yerushalayim Boulevard Be'er Sheva 84811 Conservative http://www.eshelavraham.org/
Beit Shemesh
Ohel Yonah Menachem Rechov Rashi Beit Shemesh, Israel Orthodox http://www.ohelyonah.com/
Chabad of Beit Shemesh Hanasi 3 Beit Shemesh, 99000 Israel
Bet Knesset Feigenson Corner of Rehov HaShoshan/Rehov HaNarkis Beit Shemesh, Israel Orthodox http://www.nofeiaviv.org
Beit Medrash Torani Leumi 37 Rechov Reuven Beit Shemesh, Israel Orthodox http://www.shemesh.co.il/bmtl/
Caesarea
Eilat
Chabad of Eilat 6 Roded Street Eilat, 88100 Israel
Shirat Hayam WIZO House Yerushalim Street Eilat 88000 Conservative 08 633 7721
Tagel Arava Arava School POB 178 Eilat 88101 Conservative 077 700 5420
Even Yehuda
Chabad of Even Yehuda 32 Beer Ganim Even Yehuda, 40500 Israel
Havurat Nitzavim Behar School Even Yehuda 40500 Conservative 09 899 9181
Givat Shmuel
Ramat-Ilan Synagogue Ramat-Ilan Rahavat Ilan Modern Orthodox http://www.geocities.com/ramat_ilan_bk/
Tfila Lemoshe Bialik St. Givat Shmuel Orthodox
Chabad of Givat Shmuel 5 Sderot Hagiborim Giv'at Shmuel, 54032 Israel
Haifa
Chabad of Haifa 30 Nordau Street Haifa, 33124 Israel
Kehillat Moriah 7 Horev Street POB 7041 Haifa 34070 Conservative 04 825 1495
Or Hadash Hantke 55 Haifa Progressive http://www.or-hadash.org.il/
Maor Yehuda 13A Blitental street Haifa, 34601 Israel Orthodox http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/6555/maor/
Har Nof
Givat Pinchas of the Bostoner Rebbe Har Nof, Israel http://www.ou.org/network/shuls/bostener.html
Daf Yomi Kollel Har Nof, Israel http://www.dafyomi.co.il/
Hashmonaim
Ramat Modiim - Glenwood Jewish center Hashmonaim 73127 Orthodox Tel: 972 8 976 2466 Fax: 972 8 976 1635
Herzlia
Torat Chaim Bet Haezrach 7 Ben Gurion Street POB 54 Herzliya 46100 Conservative http://www.torat-hayyim.org.il/
Chabad of Herzlia Hatzmaut 37 Herzliya, 46381 Israel
Hod Hasharon
Kehilat Yonatan Reform http://www.kehilat-yonatan.org/
Chabad of Hod Hasharon Derech Ramatayim 72 Hod Hasharon, 45000 Israel
Jerusalem
Achdut Israel - Oley Ha'Gardom Jaffa St Modern Orthodox http://www.achdut-israel.com/
Aish HaTorah - Jerusalem One Western Wall Plaza - POB 14149 Old City Jerusalem 91141 http://www.aish.com/
Beit Haknesset Hatzvi Yisrael 14 Hovevei Zion Street Jerusalem 91043 Orthodox
Bet Yosef 17 Shimoni Street Jerusalem Modern Orthodox http://www.bet-yosef.org/
Chabad of Jerusalem 5 Uriel Street Jerusalem, 91410 Israel
Chazon Ish Rehov Chazon Ish cr Jolti Ramat Shlomo Jerusalem Orthodox
Chazon Yechezkel 90 Ga'gei Street 3 Hamekubalim Jerusalem Orthodox Tel: 02 628 7065 Fax: 02 627 7832
Eyaht Women's College of Jewish Studies 22 Imrei Bina Kiryat Sanz Jerusalem Aish Hatorah http://www.eyaht.org/
Ezrat Dalim Boaz Street 5 Jerusalem Sephardi Tel: 052-2870121 Fax: 02-5662734
Givat Pinchas D'Boston HaAdmor MiRozin 15 Har Nof Jerusalem Orthodox Tel: 02-6514881
Hayovel 1 Abraham Sharon Street Kiriat Hayovel POB 26205 Jerusalem 91261 Conservative 02 641 5435
Jerusalem Great Synagogue 56 King George St. Jerusalem Orthodox Tel: 02-623-0628
Kehilat Har-El Congregation 16 Shmuel HaNagid St. Jerusalem 94592 Reform http://kbyonline.org/har-el/
Kehilat Kol HaNeshama 1 Asher St. Baka Jerusalem Reform http://www.kolhaneshama.org.il/english/index.asp
Kehillat Maayanot Geulim School 4 Kibbutz Galuyot Bak'a, Jerusalem Conservative 054 644 8244
Masortit Mishpachtit Ziv Community Center 137b Herzl Blvd. POB 3076 Jerusalem 91030 Conservative 052 387 3861
Moreshet Avraham 22 Adam Street East Talpiyot POB 29072 Jerusalem 91290 Conservative 02 671 0964
Ohr Hachaim HaKadosh Synagogue 6 Ohr Hachaim Street Jerusalem 97500 Tel: 02 627 2787
Ohr Somayach - Jerusalem 22 Shimon Hatzadik St. POB 18103 Jerusalem 91180 Orthodox http://ohr.edu/yhiy.php/ohr_somayach/worldwide_branches/jerusalem/
Ramot Zion 68 Bar Kochba Street French Hill POB 40912 Jerusalem 91491 Conservative 02 581 6303
Ramban Synagogue HaYehudim Street Jerusalem 97500 Orthodox Tel: 02 627 1584
Shaare Zedek Shaare Zedek Medcal Center Jerusalem 3235 Orthodox Tel: 972-2-6666483 Fax: 972-2-6555721
Shevet Achim TALI School Vardinon Street, Gilo POB 11088 Jerusalem 91110 Conservative 02 676 7578
Shimon Ha Tzadik 4 Ben Baba Jerusalem Modern Orthodox
Shir Hadash Emek Refaim 64 Jerusalem Modern Orthodox http://www.shirhadash.net/
Ya'ar Ramot 16a Even Shmuel Street Ramot POB 23250 Jerusalem 91231 Conservative 02 586 6187
Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah 4 Ohr HaChaim Old City Jerusalem 97500 Orthodox http://www.bircas.org/
Yisrael Hatzair Old City 3 Hamekubalim Street Old City Jerusalem 97500 http://www.youngisrael.org/
Yotzer Or Beit Lazaros Center 124 Derech Hevron Jerusalem Conservative http://yotzeror.org.il/
Zichron Gerson Ohole Yosef St.Corner Bar Ilan St. P.O.Box 41005 Jerusalem 91400 Orthodox http://www.judaica02.com/
Karmiel
Beth Knesset Letzeirim Moriah Maale Hakramim Karmiel 20100 Orthdox
Chabad of Karmiel Nesi'ei Yisrael 7 Karmiel, 20100 Israel
Hakerem Spitzer Center 4 Shizaf Street POB 568 Karmiel 21614 Conservative http://www.hakerem.org/
Kfar Saba
Beit Binyamin Kfar Saba, Israel Orthodox http://www.moreshet.com/synagogue.html
Chabad of Kfar Saba Weitzman 105 Kfar Saba, 44102 Israel
Hod V'Hadar 4 Hahish Street POB 516 Kfar Saba 44386 Conservative http://www.hodvehadar.org/
Kfar Veradim
HaMinyan HaMishpachti HaMasorti Escher Street POB 1455 Kfar Veradim 25147 Conservative http://www.kfarvradim.org/
Kiriat Bialik
Chabad of Kiriat Bialik Yakinton 8 Kiryat Bialik, 27250 Israel
Hakrayot 41 Weizmann POB 5808 Kiriat Bialik 27157 Conservative http://www.masorti-hakrayot.org/
Kiriat Gat
Chabad of Kiriat Gat Ahud Ben Gera 3 Kiryat Gat, 82102 Israel
Havurat Ahavat Yisrael Conservative 077 664 5197
Kiryat-Tivon
Chabad of Kiryat-Tivon Hachoresh 9 Kiryat Tivon, 36111 Israel
Malot Tivom 1 Haemek Str. Kiryat-Tivon 36000 Reform Tel: 04-9930459 Fax: 04-9930453
Kochav Yair
Kochav Yair POB 221 Kochav Yair 44864 Conservative 09 749 3373
Ma'ale Adumim
Chabad of Ma'ale Adumim Ha-Nekhalim 770 Ma'ale Adumim, 90610 Israel
Havurat Maale Adumim Rechov Hakeren 21/1 Maale Adumim 98351 Conservative 02 535 5836
Metar
Kehila Masortit Metar 10 Zohar St. POB 1106 Metar 85025 Conservative 08 651 8522
Mevasseret Tzion
Chabad of Mevasseret Tzion Habrosh 53 Mevaseret Ziyon, 90805 Israel
Kehilat Mevasseret Zion P.O.B. 401408 Rehov Hajasmin Mevasseret Tzion 80805 Reform http://www.kamatz.org/
Mitzpeh Rimon
Chabad of Mitzpeh Ramon Nachal Tziya 5 Mizpeh Ramon, 80600 Israel
Modi'in
Chabad of Modi'in Dam Ha'maccabeem Modi'in, 71700 Israel
Yedid Nefesh Hamercaz Lataf Velamishpacha 6 Tiltan Street Modi'in 71700 Conservative 050 646 9987
Shalhevet Hamaccabim HaRechasim Street, opposite Har Yodfat Steet Modi’in Conservative 08 971 6840 or 052 292 1540
Yozma PO Box 128 Modiin 71700 Reform http://www.yozma.org.il/eng/index.htm
Moreshet
Beit Knesset Moreshet 75 Rechov Hacarmel Moreshet, Israel Orthodox http://www.geocities.com/beitbinyamin/
Nahariya
Chabad of Nahariya Sedrat Hagaton 16 Nahariya, 22402 Israel
Congregation Emet veShalom Reform http://evsnewsletter.googlepages.com/home
Nazareth
Hanaton Kibbutz Hanaton D.N. Hamovil Nazareth 17960 Conservative 04 905 9633
Netanya
Chabad of Netanya Samilenski 13 Netanya, 42120 Israel
Kehilat Netanya 4, Tel Chai Street, Natanya Reform http://www.natan-ya.org/
Young Israel 10 Haar Habit Street Netanya 42480 Orthodox Tel: 972 9 8629013 Fax: 972 98321457
Young Israel, North Netanya 39 Rechov Shlomo Hamelech Netanya 42440 Orthodox http://www.yinn.org/
Hazani Synagogue
Bet Yisrael 19 Yehuda Hanassi Street POB 437 Netanya 42103 Conservative 09 862 4345
Omer
Magen Avraham 20 Marganit St. (corner Adad) POB 63 Omer 84965 Conservative http://www.shiluv.org/en/omer.htm
Pardessia
Chabad of Pardessia Rambam 23 Pardesiya, 42815 Israel
Pardes Afarsek Club POB 895 Pardessia 42815 Conservative 09 898 8144
Ra'anana
Hamasorti Raanana 8 Borochov Street POB 54 Ra'anana 43100 Conservative 09 741 9049
Amitai Ra'anana 2 Opsterland Street Ra'anana 43350 Conservative 09 774 2301
Chabad of Ra'anana Ha-Negev 16 Ra'anana, 43467 Israel http://www.chabadraanana.com/hp11.htm
Ramat Ha'Sharon
Congregation Darchei Noam Reform http://www.d-noam.org/english/
Chabad of Ramat Ha'Sharon Bialik 45 Ramat Hasharon, 47000 Israel
Ramat Yishai
Succat Shalom 12 Ha'alon Street POB 45 Ramat Yishai 30095 Conservative 04 651 4077
Chabad of Ramat Yishai Simtat Halilach 10, Merkaz Mischari Chadash Ramat Yishai, 30095 Israel
Rehavia
Moreshet Yisrael 4 Agron Street POB 7456 Rehavia 94265 Conservative 02 625 3539
Rehovot
Birkat Yossef Rehov HaNurit No 2 Kiryat Hahaganah Rehovot 76568 Sephardi Tel: 08-9411407 Fax: 08-9416994
Chabad of Rechovot Hertzel 155 Rechovot, 76110 Israel
Ohaley Torah Ehad Ha'am 24 Rehovot
Beit Chatam 1-A Shkolnik St. Rehovot Orthodox http://www.chatam.org/
Yitzhak Rabin Memorial Synagogue 43 Lehi Street Rechovot, 76217 Israel Orthodox http://www.rabinshul.org.il
Adat Shalom-Emanuel 6 Miller Street POB 1301 Rehovot 76112 Conservative 08 946 9180
Rishon LeZion
Ohel Avraham 16 Mohilver Street Conservative 03-950-7414
Chabad of Rishon Lezion Rothshlid 23 Rishon Lezion, 75265 Israel
Safed
Kehillat Shalva 42 Hadassah Street POB 1195 Safed 13111 Conservative http://www.kehillatshalva.org/
Tel Aviv
The Great Synagogue 110 Allenby Street Tel Aviv Orthodox Tel: 03 560 4905
Tiferet Shalom Beit Ha'shachmat (Chess House) 26 Tagor St. POB 17386 Tel Aviv 61172 Conservative 03 643 6748
Sinai 88 Bograshov Street Tel Aviv 63429 Conservative 03 525 3907
Havurat Tel Aviv Gymnasia Herzliya School Tel Aviv Conservative 03 604 2399
Chabad of Tel Aviv Merkaz Ba'alei Melacha 16A Tel Aviv, 63823 Israel http://www.chabadtlv.org/
Tiberias
Chabad of Tiberias Rashi 7 Tiberias, 14225 Israel
Zichron Yaakov
Chabad of Zichron Yaakov Hameyasdim 61 Zichron Yaakov, 30953 Israel
Kehilat Sulam Yaakov Reform http://www.sulam-yaacov.org.il/
Ve-ahavta Hamischari B'shmura 2nd floor, room 318 POB 10060 Zichron Yaakov 30900 Conservative http://www.ve-ahavta.com/
Zufim
Beit Knesset Zufim Orthodox http://www.zufim.org/
