Capital: Jerusalem
note: Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the
US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel
Aviv
Administrative divisions: 6 districts (mehozot, singular—mehoz);
Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
Independence: 14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under
British administration)
National holiday: Independence Day, 14 May 1948; note—Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar and the holiday may occur in April or May
Constitution: no formal constitution; some of the functions of a
constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948),
the basic laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli
citizenship law
Legal system: mixture of English common law, British Mandate
regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim
legal systems; in December 1985, Israel informed the UN Secretariat
that it would no longer accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Ezer WEIZMAN (since 13 May 1993)
head of government: Prime Minister Binyamin NETANYAHU (since 18 June
1996)
cabinet: Cabinet selected from and approved by the Knesset
elections: president elected by the Knesset for a five-year term;
election last held 4 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003);
prime minister elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
election last held 29 May 1996 (early elections are scheduled for 17
May 1999); note—in March 1992, the Knesset approved legislation,
effective in 1996, which allowed for the direct election of the
prime minister; under the new law, each voter casts two ballots—one
for the direct election of the prime minister and one for the party
in the Knesset; the candidate that receives the largest percentage
of the popular vote then works to form a coalition with other
parties to achieve a parliamentary majority of 61 seats; finally,
the candidate must submit his or her cabinet to the Knesset for
approval and this must be done within 45 days of the election; in
contrast to the old system, under the new law, the prime minister's
party need not be the single-largest party in the Knesset
election results: Ezer WEIZMAN reelected president by the Knesset
with a total of 63 votes, other candidate, Shaul AMOR, received 49
votes (there were seven abstentions and one absence); Binyamin
NETANYAHU elected prime minister; percent of vote—Binyamin NETANYAHU
50.4%, Shimon PERES 49.5%
Legislative branch: unicameral Knesset or parliament (120 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 29 May 1996 (early elections are scheduled for
17 May 1999)
election results: percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—Labor
Party 34, Likud Party 32, SHAS 10, MERETZ 9, National Religious
Party 9, Yisra'el Ba'Aliya 7, Hadash-Balad 5, Third Way 4, United
Arab List 4, United Jewish Torah 4, Moledet 2; note—Likud, Tzomet,
and Gesher candidates ran on a joint list
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, appointed for life by the
president