dAs Europe's largest economy and second most populous nation, Germany is a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed Germany in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring Eastern productivity and wages up to Western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 10 other EU countries introduced a common European exchange currency, the euro.

Geography
Strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea.
Location:	Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Geographic coordinates:	51 00 N, 9 00 E
Area:	total: 357,021 sq km land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km Size comparison: slightly smaller than Montana
Land Boundaries:	total: 3,621 km border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646 km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577 km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Coastline:	2,389 km
Maritime claims:	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:	temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind
Terrain:	lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south
Elevation extremes:	lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m
Natural resources:	coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, arable land
Land use:	arable land: 33.13% permanent crops: 0.6% other: 66.27% (2005)
Irrigated land:	4,850 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:	flooding
Current Environment Issues:	emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive
International Environment Agreements:	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
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People
Population:	82,369,552 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:	0-14 years: 13.8% (male 5,826,066/female 5,524,568) 15-64 years: 66.2% (male 27,763,917/female 26,739,934) 65 years and over: 20% (male 6,892,743/female 9,622,320) (2008 est.)
Median age:	total: 43.4 years male: 42.2 years female: 44.7 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:	-0.044% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:	8.18 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:	10.8 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:	2.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:	total: 4.03 deaths/1,000 live births male: 4.46 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:	total population: 79.1 years male: 76.11 years female: 82.26 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:	1.41 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:	0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:	43,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:	fewer than 1,000 (2003 est.)
Nationality:	noun: German(s) adjective: German
Ethnic groups:	German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Greek, Italian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish)
Religions:	Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3%
Languages:	German
Literacy:	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.)
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Government
Country name:	conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich
Government type:	federal republic
Capital:	name: Berlin geographic coordinates: 52 31 N, 13 24 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Administrative divisions:	16 states (Laender, singular - Land); Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern (Bavaria), Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania), Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony), Nordrhein-Westfalen (North Rhine-Westphalia), Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate), Saarland, Sachsen (Saxony), Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt), Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen (Thuringia); note - Bayern, Sachsen, and Thueringen refer to themselves as free states (Freistaaten, singular - Freistaat)
Independence:	18 January 1871 (German Empire unification); divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later, France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3 October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March 1991
National holiday:	Unity Day, 3 October (1990)
Constitution:	23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united Germany 3 October 1990
Legal system:	civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:	18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:	chief of state: President Horst KOEHLER (since 1 July 2004) head of government: Chancellor Angela MERKEL (since 22 November 2005) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor elections: president elected for a five-year term (eligible for a second term) by a Federal Convention, including all members of the Federal Assembly and an equal number of delegates elected by the state parliaments; election last held 23 May 2004 (next scheduled for 23 May 2009); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; Bundestag vote for Chancellor last held 22 November 2005 (next will follow the national elections to be held by 27 September 2009) election results: Horst KOEHLER elected president; received 604 votes of the Federal Convention against 589 for Gesine SCHWAN; Angela MERKEL elected chancellor; vote by Federal Assembly 397 to 202 with 12 abstentions
Legislative branch:	bicameral legislature consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (614 seats; elected by popular vote for a four-year term under a system of personalized proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain proportional representation and caucus recognition) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments sit in the Council; each has three to six votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block) elections: Bundestag - last held on 18 September 2005 (next to be held no later than autumn 2009); note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election election results: Bundestag - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU 35.2%, SPD 34.3%, FDP 9.8%, Left 8.7%, Greens 8.1%, other 3.9%; seats by party - CDU/CSU 225, SPD 222, FDP 61, Left 53, Greens 51, independents 2
Judicial branch:	Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat)
Political parties and leaders:	Alliance '90/Greens [Claudia ROTH and Cem OEZDEMIR]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Horst SEEHOFER]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE]; Left Party or Die Linke [Lothar BISKY and Oskar LAFONTAINE]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Franz MUENTEFERING]
Political pressure groups and leaders:	other: business associations and employers' organizations; religious, trade unions, immigrant, expellee, and veterans groups
International organization participation:	ADB (nonregional members), AfDB (nonregional members), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-20, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCO, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Klaus SCHARIOTH chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-4000 FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires John KOENIG embassy: Pariser Platz 2, 10117 Berlin; note - new embassy opened 4 July 2008 mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265, Clayallee 170, 14195 Berlin telephone: [49] (030) 2385174 FAX: [49] (030) 8305-1215 consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich
Economy
The German economy - the fifth largest economy in the world in PPP terms and Europe's largest - officially entered a recession in the third quarter of 2008 as the strong euro, high oil prices, tighter credit markets, and slowing growth abroad took their toll on the world's leading goods exporter. Growth - 1.7% in 2008 - is widely expected to contract further in 2009. Recent stimulus and lender relief efforts will cut into Germany's budget surplus and undercut its efforts to balance its budget as planned. Prior to the downturn, stronger growth in 2007 led unemployment in 2008 to fall below 8%, a new post-reunification low. This suggested the end of a long period of chronically high unemployment and stagnation when average growth beween 2001-05 was only 0.6%. Among the most important reasons for Germany's high unemployment during the past decade were macroeconomic stagnation, the declining level of investment in plant and equipment, company restructuring, flat domestic consumption, structural rigidities in the labor market, lack of competition in the service sector, and high interest rates. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy - where unemployment exceeds 30% in some municipalities - continues to be a costly long-term process, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $80 billion. The former government of Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER launched a comprehensive set of reforms of labor market and welfare-related institutions. The current government of Chancellor Angela MERKEL has initiated other reform measures, such as a gradual increase in the mandatory retirement age from 65 to 67 and measures to increase female participation in the labor market. Germany's aging population, combined with high chronic unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions, but higher government revenues from the cyclical upturn in 2006-07 and a 3% rise in the value-added tax pushed Germany's budget deficit well below the EU's 3% debt limit. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could help Germany meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, although some economists continue to argue the need for change in inflexible labor and services markets.
GDP (purchasing power parity):	$2.863 trillion (2008 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):	$3.818 trillion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:	1.7% (2008 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):	$34,800 (2008 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:	agriculture: 0.9% industry: 30.1% services: 69% (2008 est.)
Labor force:	43.62 million (2008 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:	agriculture: 2.4% industry: 29.7% services: 67.8% (2005)
Unemployment rate:	7.9% note: this is the International Labor Organization's estimated rate for international comparisons; Germany's Federal Employment Office estimated a seasonally adjusted rate of 10.8% (2008 est.)
Population below poverty line:	11% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:	lowest 10%: 3.2% highest 10%: 22.1% (2000)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:	27 (2006)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):	2.8% (2008 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):	18.9% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget:	revenues: $1.614 trillion expenditures: $1.579 trillion (2008 est.)
Public debt:	62.6% of GDP (2008 est.)
Agriculture - products:
Industries:	among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages, shipbuilding, textiles
Industrial production growth rate:
Electricity - production:	594.7 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption:	549.1 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:	62.31 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:	42.87 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Oil - production:	148,100 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:	2.456 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - exports:	563,400 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:	3.026 million bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:	367 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:	17.96 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:	97.44 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:	12.22 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:	88.35 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:	254.8 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Current account balance:	$267.1 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:	$1.53 trillion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:	machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles
Exports - partners:	France 9.7%, US 7.5%, UK 7.3%, Italy 6.7%, Netherlands 6.4%, Austria 5.4%, Belgium 5.3%, Spain 5% (2007)
Imports:	$1.202 trillion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:	machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals
Imports - partners:	Netherlands 12%, France 8.6%, Belgium 7.8%, China 6.2%, Italy 5.8%, UK 5.6%, US 4.5%, Austria 4.4% (2007)
Economic aid - donor:	ODA, $10.44 billion (2006)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:	$136.2 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:	$4.489 trillion (30 June 2007)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:	$924.7 billion (2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:	$1.36 trillion (2008 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:	$2.106 trillion (31 December 2007)
Currency (code):	euro (EUR)
Exchange rates:	euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6734 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Fiscal year:	calendar year
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Communications
Telephones in use:	53.75 million (2007)
Cellular Phones in use:	97.151 million (2007)
Telephone system:	general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries international: country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the Inmarsat, Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems (2001)
Radio broadcast stations:	AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:	373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995)
Internet country code:	.de
Internet hosts:	22.606 million (2008)
Internet users:	42.5 million (2007)
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Transportation
Airports:	550 (2007)
Airports (paved runways):	total: 331 over 3,047 m: 14 2,438 to 3,047 m: 52 1,524 to 2,437 m: 58 914 to 1,523 m: 72 under 914 m: 135 (2007)
Airports (unpaved runways):	total: 219 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 34 under 914 m: 181 (2007)
Heliports:	28 (2007)
Pipelines:	condensate 37 km; gas 25,094 km; oil 3,546 km; refined products 3,828 km (2007)
Railways:	total: 48,215 km standard gauge: 47,962 km 1.435-m gauge (20,278 km electrified) narrow gauge: 229 km 1.000-m gauge (16 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:	total: 644,480 km paved: 644,480 km (includes 12,400 km of expressways) note: includes local roads (2006)
Waterways:	7,467 km note: Rhine River carries most goods; Main-Danube Canal links North Sea and Black Sea (2008)
Merchant marine:	total: 393 by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 43, chemical tanker 13, container 284, liquefied gas 5, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 27, petroleum tanker 11, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 11 (China 2, Cyprus 2, Denmark 1, Finland 4, Netherlands 1, Sweden 1) registered in other countries: 2,998 (Antigua and Barbuda 941, Australia 2, Bahamas 44, Bermuda 22, Brazil 6, Bulgaria 63, Burma 1, Canada 3, Cayman Islands 15, Cyprus 189, Denmark 9, Denmark 1, Estonia 1, Finland 1, France 1, Georgia 2, Gibraltar 129, Hong Kong 6, India 2, Indonesia 1, Isle of Man 56, Jamaica 4, Liberia 849, Luxembourg 5, Malaysia 1, Malta 91, Marshall Islands 235, Mongolia 4, Morocco 2, Netherlands 75, Netherlands Antilles 43, Norway 1, NZ 1, Panama 44, Portugal 2, Portugal 18, Russia 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3, Singapore 24, Slovakia 3, Spain 1, Spain 4, Sri Lanka 5, Sweden 5, Turkey 1, UK 76, US 5) (2008)
Ports and terminals:	Bremen, Bremerhaven, Duisburg, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Lubeck, Rostock, Wilhemshaven
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Military
Military branches:	Federal Armed Forces (Bundeswehr): Army (Heer), Navy (Deutsche Marine, includes naval air arm), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Central Medical Service (Zentraler Sanitaetsdienst) (2008)
Military service age and obligation:	18 years of age (conscripts serve a 9-month tour of compulsory military service) (2004)
Manpower available for military service:	males age 16-49: 19,594,118 females age 16-49: 18,543,955 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:	males age 16-49: 15,906,930 females age 16-49: 15,051,183 (2008 est.)

Following World War II, the British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine, and the UN partitioned the area into Arab and Jewish states, an arrangement rejected by the Arabs. Subsequently, the Israelis defeated the Arabs in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two sides. The territories Israel occupied since the 1967 war are not included in the Israel country profile, unless otherwise noted. On 25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. In keeping with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral negotiations were conducted between Israel and Palestinian representatives and Syria to achieve a permanent settlement. Israel and Palestinian officials signed on 13 September 1993 a Declaration of Principles (also known as the "Oslo Accords") guiding an interim period of Palestinian self-rule. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace. In addition, on 25 May 2000, Israel withdrew unilaterally from southern Lebanon, which it had occupied since 1982. In April 2003, US President BUSH, working in conjunction with the EU, UN, and Russia - the "Quartet" - took the lead in laying out a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005, based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. However, progress toward a permanent status agreement was undermined by Israeli-Palestinian violence between September 2003 and February 2005. An Israeli-Palestinian agreement reached at Sharm al-Sheikh in February 2005, along with an internally-brokered Palestinian ceasefire, significantly reduced the violence. In the summer of 2005, Israel unilaterally disengaged from the Gaza Strip, evacuating settlers and its military while retaining control over most points of entry into the Gaza Strip. The election of HAMAS in January 2006 to head the Palestinian Legislative Council froze relations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA). Ehud OLMERT became prime minister in March 2006; he shelved plans to unilaterally evacuate from most of the West Bank following an Israeli military operation in Gaza in June-July 2006 and a 34-day conflict with Hizballah in Lebanon in June-August 2006. OLMERT in June 2007 resumed talks with the PA after HAMAS seized control of the Gaza Strip and PA President Mahmoud ABBAS formed a new government without HAMAS. OLMERT in September 2008 resigned in the wake of several corruption allegations, but remains prime minister until a new government is formed after the general election in February 2009.

Geography
There are about 340 Israeli civilian sites - including 100 small outpost communities in the West Bank - as well as 42 sites in the Golan Heights, 0 in the Gaza Strip, and 29 in East Jerusalem (July 2008 est.); Lake Tiberias (Sea of Galilee) is an important freshwater source.
Location:	Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon
Geographic coordinates:	31 30 N, 34 45 E
Area:	total: 20,770 sq km land: 20,330 sq km water: 440 sq km Size comparison: slightly smaller than New Jersey
Land Boundaries:	total: 1,017 km border countries: Egypt 266 km, Gaza Strip 51 km, Jordan 238 km, Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307 km
Coastline:	273 km
Maritime claims:	territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: to depth of exploitation
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
Elevation extremes:	lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m
Natural resources:	timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand
Land use:	arable land: 15.45% permanent crops: 3.88% other: 80.67% (2005)
Irrigated land:	1,940 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:	sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes
Current Environment 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
International Environment Agreements:	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
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People
Population:	7,112,359 note: includes about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, about 20,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:	0-14 years: 28% (male 1,018,229/female 971,083) 15-64 years: 62.2% (male 2,242,928/female 2,183,688) 65 years and over: 9.8% (male 303,289/female 393,142) (2008 est.)
Median age:	total: 28.9 years male: 28.2 years female: 29.7 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:	1.713% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:	20.02 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:	5.41 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:	2.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:	total: 4.28 deaths/1,000 live births male: 4.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:	total population: 80.61 years male: 78.54 years female: 82.79 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:	2.77 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:	0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:	3,000 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:	100 (2001 est.)
Nationality:	noun: Israeli(s) adjective: Israeli
Ethnic groups:	Jewish 76.4% (of which Israel-born 67.1%, Europe/America-born 22.6%, Africa-born 5.9%, Asia-born 4.2%), non-Jewish 23.6% (mostly Arab) (2004)
Religions:	Jewish 76.4%, Muslim 16%, Arab Christians 1.7%, other Christian 0.4%, Druze 1.6%, unspecified 3.9% (2004)
Languages:	Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language
Literacy:	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.1% male: 98.5% female: 95.9% (2004 est.)
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Government
Country name:	conventional long form: State of Israel conventional short form: Israel local long form: Medinat Yisra'el local short form: Yisra'el
Government type:	parliamentary democracy
Capital:	name: Jerusalem geographic coordinates: 31 46 N, 35 14 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Friday in March; ends the Sunday between the holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur 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; note - since May 2003 the Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee of the Knesset has been working on a draft constitution
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 Shimon PERES (since 15 July 2007) head of government: Prime Minister Ehud OLMERT (since May 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Tzipora "Tzipi" LIVNI; note - Prime Minister OLMERT resigned on 17 September 2008, but will serve as acting prime minister until a new government is formed cabinet: Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved by the Knesset elections: president is largely a ceremonial role and is elected by the Knesset for a seven-year term (one-term limit); election last held 13 June 2007 (next to be held in 2014 but can be called earlier); following legislative elections, the president assigns a Knesset member - traditionally the leader of the largest party - the task of forming a governing coalition note: government coalition - Kadima, Labor Party, GIL (Pensioners), and SHAS election results: Shimon PERES elected president; number of votes in first round - Shimon PERES 58, Reuven RIVLIN 37, Colette AVITAL 21; PERES elected president in second round with 86 votes (unopposed)
Legislative branch:	unicameral Knesset (120 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 28 March 2006 (next scheduled to be held in February 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Kadima 22%, Labor 15.1%, SHAS 9.5%, Likud 9%, Yisrael Beiteinu 9%, NU/NRP 7.1%, GIL 5.9%, Torah and Shabbat Judaism 4.7%, Meretz-YAHAD 3.8%, United Arab List 3%, Balad 2.3%, HADASH 2.7%, other 5.9%; seats by party - Kadima 29, Labor 19, Likud 12, SHAS 12, Yisrael Beiteinu 11, NU/NRP 9, GIL 7, Torah and Shabbat Judaism 6, Meretz-YAHAD 5, United Arab List 4, Balad 3, HADASH 3
Judicial branch:	Supreme Court (justices appointed by Judicial Selection Committee - made up of all three branches of the government; mandatory retirement age is 70)
Political parties and leaders:	Balad [Azmi BISHARA]; Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (HADASH) [Muhammad BARAKEH]; GIL (Pensioners) [Rafael "Rafi" EITAN]; Kadima [Tzipora "Tzipi" LIVNI]; Labor Party [Ehud BARAK]; Likud [Binyamin NETANYAHU]; Meretz-Yachad [Haim ORON]; National Democratic Assembly (Balad) [Jamal ZAHALKA]; National Union (NU)/National Religious Party (NRP) [Binyamin ELON] (disbanded); SHAS [Eliyahu YISHAI]; Torah and Shabbat Judaism or UTJ [Yaakov LITZMAN]; United Arab List [Ibrahim SARSUR]; Yisrael Beiteinu [Avigdor LIEBERMAN]
Political pressure groups and leaders:	B'Tselem [Jessica MONTELL, Executive Director] monitors human rights abuses; Peace Now [Yariv OPPENHEIMER, Secretary General] supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; YESHA Council of Settlements [Danny DAYAN, Chairman] promotes settler interests and opposes territorial compromise
International organization participation:	BIS, BSEC (observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, OAS (observer), OPCW (signatory), OSCE (partner), PCA, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador Salai MERIDOR chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 364-5500 FAX: [1] (202) 364-5607 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador James B. CUNNINGHAM embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv 63903 mailing address: PSC 98, Box 29, APO AE 09830 telephone: [972] (3) 519-7575 FAX: [972] (3) 516-4390 consulate(s) general: Jerusalem; note - an independent US mission, established in 1928, whose members are not accredited to a foreign government
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Economy
Israel has a technologically advanced market economy with substantial, though diminishing, government participation. It depends on imports of crude oil, grains, raw materials, and military equipment. Despite limited natural resources, Israel has intensively developed its agricultural and industrial sectors over the past 20 years. Israel imports substantial quantities of grain but is largely self-sufficient in other agricultural products. Cut diamonds, high-technology equipment, and agricultural products (fruits and vegetables) are the leading exports. Israel usually posts sizable trade deficits, which are covered by large transfer payments from abroad and by foreign loans. Roughly half of the government's external debt is owed to the US, its major source of economic and military aid. Israel's GDP, after contracting slightly in 2001 and 2002 due to the Palestinian conflict and troubles in the high-technology sector, has grown by about 5% per year since 2003. The economy grew an estimated 4.2% in 2008, slowed by the global financial crisis. The government's prudent fiscal policy and structural reforms over the past few years have helped to induce strong foreign investment, tax revenues, and private consumption, setting the economy on a solid growth path.
GDP (purchasing power parity):	$205.7 billion (2008 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):	$188.7 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:	4.2% (2008 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):	$28,900 (2008 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:	agriculture: 2.7% industry: 31.7% services: 65.6% (2008 est.)
Labor force:	2.95 million (2008 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:	agriculture: 2% industry: 16% services: 82% (30 September 2008)
Unemployment rate:	6.1% (2008 est.)
Population below poverty line:	21.6% note: Israel's poverty line is $7.30 per person per day (2005)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:	lowest 10%: 2.6% highest 10%: 24.2% (2007)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:	38.6 (2005)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):	4.7% (2008 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):	18% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget:	revenues: $68.44 billion expenditures: $70.06 billion (2008 est.)
Public debt:	75.7% of GDP (2008 est.)
Agriculture - products:
Industries:	high-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics, fiber optics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, construction, metals products, chemical products, plastics, diamond cutting, textiles, footwear
Industrial production growth rate:
Electricity - production:	48.7 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - consumption:	44.74 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:	1.844 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - imports:	0 kWh (2007 est.)
Oil - production:	5,966 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:	232,300 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:	82,910 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:	334,300 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:	1.94 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:	2.35 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:	2.27 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - exports:	0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:	0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:	30.44 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Current account balance:	$1.893 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:	$54.16 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:	machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel
Exports - partners:	US 35%, Belgium 7.5%, Hong Kong 5.8% (2007)
Imports:	$62.52 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:	raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, grain, consumer goods
Imports - partners:	US 13.9%, Belgium 7.9%, Germany 6.2%, China 6.1%, Switzerland 5.1%, UK 4.7%, Italy 4.1% (2007)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:	$38.66 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:	$91.25 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:	$68.06 billion (2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:	$51.94 billion (2008 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:	$236.4 billion (31 December 2007)
Currency (code):	new Israeli shekel (ILS); note - NIS is the currency abbreviation; ILS is the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) code for the NIS
Exchange rates:	new Israeli shekels (ILS) per US dollar - 3.56 (2008 est.), 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004)
Fiscal year:	calendar year
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Communications
Telephones in use:	3.005 million (2006)
Cellular Phones in use:	8.902 million (2007)
Telephone system:	general assessment: most highly developed system in the Middle East although not the largest domestic: good system of coaxial cable and microwave radio relay; all systems are digital; four privately-owned mobile-cellular service providers with countrywide coverage; mobile-cellular teledensity is 140 per 100 persons international: country code - 972; submarine cables provide links to Europe, Cyprus, and parts of the Middle East; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:	AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:	17 (plus 36 repeaters) (1995)
Internet country code:	.il
Internet hosts:	1.415 million (2008)
Internet users:	2 million (2007)
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Transportation
Airports:	53 (2007)
Airports (paved runways):	total: 30 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 6 (2007)
Airports (unpaved runways):	total: 23 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 20 (2007)
Heliports:	3 (2007)
Pipelines:	gas 160 km; oil 442 km; refined products 261 km (2007)
Railways:	total: 853 km standard gauge: 853 km 1.435-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:	total: 17,870 km paved: 17,870 km (includes 146 km of expressways) (2007)
Merchant marine:	total: 11 by type: cargo 2, container 9 registered in other countries: 60 (Bermuda 3, Cyprus 4, Georgia 2, Honduras 1, Liberia 23, Malta 18, Panama 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 2, Slovakia 4) (2008)
Ports and terminals:	Ashdod, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa
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Military
Military branches:	Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Israel Naval Forces (INF), Israel Air Force (IAF) (2007)
Military service age and obligation:	18 years of age for compulsory (Jews, Druzes) and voluntary (Christians, Muslims, Circassians) military service; both sexes are obligated to military service; conscript service obligation - 36 months for enlisted men, 21 months for enlisted women, 48 months for officers; reserve obligation to age 41-51 (men), 24 (women) (2008)
Manpower available for military service:	males age 16-49: 1,717,362 females age 16-49: 1,636,574 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:	males age 16-49: 1,452,926 females age 16-49: 1,383,796 (2008 est.)

Tecnología / Novedades en el uso de la red

La versión 8 del navegador de Microsoft incluye mejoras en la privacidad y preserva su asesor de contenidos

Ariel Torres
LA NACION

¿La octava será la vencida? Microsoft presentó el viernes último la versión 8 de su navegador web, el Internet Explorer, lo que se interpreta como una respuesta a la presión que ejercen, desde dos flancos diferentes, el Firefox, de la Fundación Mozilla, y el Chrome, de Google. Este trío de navegadores (o browsers ) están en una puja compleja y llena de matices en la que se juega el dominio de la rica e imparable economía de Internet.

La nueva versión (IE8, para abreviar) incluye mejoras importantes en el terreno de la privacidad y un par de funciones exclusivas. Además, y al revés que Chrome y Firefox, sigue incluyendo, como desde hace años, un asesor de contenido, para restringir las páginas que los más chicos pueden visitar. A propósito, Firefox posee varias extensiones que cumplen esta misma tarea ( https://addons.mozilla.org/es-ES/firefox 

El cuadro de situación que atraviesa Microsoft es de todo, menos simple. Mientras que su Windows Vista no pudo ganarse el favor del público y ya hay versiones preliminares de su sucesor, el Windows 7, la informática experimenta un cambio lento pero constante hacia aplicaciones que se utilizan como servicios de Internet, por medio del navegador.

El browser , alguna vez "patito feo" de la informática, hoy es dueño y señor. El premio es la publicidad en línea, y pocas cosas son tan peliagudas como ésta desde el punto de vista de Microsoft (o Google, para el caso). El público empieza a tomar conciencia de cómo sus hábitos de uso de la Web se cotejan para ubicar avisos personalizados y, por lo tanto, Microsoft debía responder a esta demanda sin afectar su propio negocio, que incluye y cada vez incluirá más publicidad online .

Google anunció hace una semana que usará los historiales de búsqueda de los usuarios que visitan el buscador, YouTube y los sitios de su red AdSense para colocar avisos. La medida ha sido muy criticada, pero lo cierto es que tras la adquisición de DoubleClick, inventor de estos procedimientos, hace exactamente un año, no hay mucho lugar para el asombro. El lector puede ver una explicación más detallada de cómo opera Google con sus avisos y ajustar sus preferencias en www.google.com/ads/preferences /.

Decisión personal

Todo esto explica por qué el IE8 incluye ahora un menú etiquetado Seguridad, con las nuevas funciones Exploración InPrivate y Filtrado InPrivate. La primera es equivalente al modo incógnito de Chrome o a la extensión Stealther de Firefox, mientras que el Filtro InPrivate bloquea la recolección de nuestros hábitos de navegación por parte de los brokers de publicidad online .

Este filtrado puede configurarse, para que el mismo usuario decida a qué sitios confiarle su perfil, y debe ser activado para que surta efecto. Puesto que la mayoría de los navegantes ni siquiera desactiva o selecciona las cookies , es poco probable que el filtrado InPrivate se use a menudo. Pero la idea es buena y muestra un Microsoft dispuesto a dar batalla en el terreno de la innovación web.

Microsoft asegura que el IE8 es más rápido que Firefox, pero ésta no fue nuestra experiencia. Arranca más rápido que Firefox (cualquier cosa arranca más rápido que Firefox), pero si hemos abierto varias simultáneamente, el IE8 se vuelve pesado hasta que todos los sitios terminen de cargar. La función de zoom , que ayuda mucho cuando hace falta leer textos en línea todo el día, todavía experimenta algunos saltos. Ha mejorado bastante desde la versión 7, pero Firefox todavía es mejor en esto.

El IE8 añade, como se dijo, un par de funciones novedosas: los aceleradores y Web Slices; los primeros, para acceder rápidamente a ciertas funciones (como la de replicar algo en un blog o traducir un fragmento de una página); la segunda, para saber cuándo un sitio ha actualizado su contenido. También trae una vista de compatibilidad, para ver los sitios diseñados para versiones anteriores del navegador.

En suma, se trata de una mejora consistente respecto de la versión 7, con buenas herramientas para salvaguardar la privacidad y protegerse de sitios fraudulentos, pero que difícilmente se convierta en la "bala mágica" que Microsoft necesita contra Firefox. Quizás, esta vez, el más comprometido sea Google.

Polémica en La Pampa

Obligaron a una familia sustituta a entregar a una niña de tres años