Geography of Israel

Israel is located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea.

It is bounded on the north by Lebanon, on the northeast by Syria, on the east and southeast by Jordan, on the southwest by Egypt, and on the west by the Mediterranean Sea.

Before June 1967, the area composing Israel (resulting from the armistice lines of 1949 and 1950) was about 20,700 square kilometers (8,000 mi²), which included 445 square kilometers (172 mi²) of inland water. Thus Israel was roughly the size of the state of New Jersey, stretching 424 kilometers (263 mi) from north to south. Its width ranged from 114 kilometers (71 mi) to, at its narrowest point, 10 kilometers (6.2 mi).

After the June 1967 War, Israel occupied territories totaling an additional 7,099 square kilometers (2,743 mi²). These territories include the West Bank, 5,879 square kilometers (2,270 mi²); East Jerusalem (annexed, according Israeli law), 70 km² (27 mi²); and the Golan Heights (de facto annexation), 1,150 km² (444 mi²).

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