d Palestinian representatives, Syria, and
Jordan to determine the final status of the occupied territories. On
25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979
Israel-Egypt Peace treaty. Outstanding territorial and other disputes
with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty
of Peace.

@Israel:Geography

Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt
and Lebanon

Map references: Middle East

Area:
total area: 20,770 sq km
land area: 20,330 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than New Jersey

Land boundaries: total 1,006 km, Egypt 255 km, Gaza Strip 51 km,
Jordan 238 km, Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307 km

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,