Israel's population hits 9.39 million; likely to rise upto 20 million by 2065: Report

Israel’s population has risen to 9.39 million from 9.24 million over the past year, up by 1.57 per cent, the state’s Central Bureau of Statistics said in its annual report. Ahead of Rosh Hashanah - the Jewish New Year - the federal agency also disclosed that the country’s population could rise considerably during the next four decades. It explained that the Israeli population is expected to reach 10 million in the next three years, while it is likely to rise by 15 by the end of 2048 and 20 million by the end of 2065. 

The report stated that Jews make up the majority of the country, accounting for 74 per cent of the total or 6.943 million residents. Arabs represent the second-highest population accounting for 21 per cent or 1.982 million residents. The rest 466,000, who are non-Arab Christians, other religious and non-religious citizens, making up five per cent of Israel’s total population. 

Women live longer than men in Israel 

Notably, the State of Israel was formed on May 14, 1948, primarily as the Jewish nation. Since then, the country has witnessed an influx of people, mostly being jews. The report revealed that 22,000 people immigrated to Israel during the past Jewish year, of whom 20,000 were Jewish. Additionally, it stated that Israeli women tend to live longer than men, with a life expectancy of 84.8 years and 80.7 years, respectively. 

This comes as Israel said it could be moving towards herd immunity against the lethal coronavirus, directly implying a longer life span for citizens. On Sunday, the country’s Health Ministry stated that if the country continues alongside high levels of COVID inoculations, there is a “good chance” that Israel will reach a situation “similar to herd immunity” in the next month or two. 

COVID situation 

In December, the Jewish country, which commenced its mass vaccinations against COVID-19, announced itself infection free in April. However, as Delta variant entered Israel, the caseload began to surge. However, last month, the country introduced a third booster shot, which reduced the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 considerably. The claim was substantiated by a recent Channel 13 report which stated that people with a booster shot are 96 per cent immune against the deadly pathogen, starting a week after receiving the shot. 

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