Coastline: 273 km
Maritime claims: continental shelf: to depth of exploitation territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: separated from Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank by the 1949 Armistice Line; the Gaza Strip and Jericho area, formerly occupied by Israel, are now administered largely by the Palestinian Authority; other areas of the West Bank outside Jericho are administered jointly by Israel and the Palestinian Authority; Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; Israeli troops in southern Lebanon since June 1982
Climate: temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas
Terrain: Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central
mountains; Jordan Rift Valley
Natural resources: copper, phosphates, bromide, potash, clay, sand,
sulfur, asphalt, manganese, small amounts of natural gas and crude oil
Land use: arable land: 17% permanent crops: 5% meadows and pastures: 40% forest and woodland: 6% other: 32%
Irrigated land: 2,140 sq km (1989)
Environment:
current issues: limited arable land and natural fresh water resources
pose serious constraints; desertification; air pollution from
industrial and vehicle emissions; groundwater pollution from
industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides
natural hazards: sandstorms may occur during spring and summer
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Endangered Species,
Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Climate Change, Desertification,
Marine Life Conservation
Note: there are 199 Jewish settlements and civilian land use sites in
the West Bank, 42 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 24 in the
Gaza Strip, and 25 in East Jerusalem (August 1994 est.)