Israel’s population at 8.3 million at close of i2014

Marcy Oster

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel’s population on the eve of 2015 stands at 8.3 million.

Some 6.2 million of that population are Jewish and 1.7 million are Arabs as 2014 comes to a close, Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics reported Monday.

The population’s percentage breakdown is 74.9 percent Jewish, 20.7 percent Arab and 4.3 percent others including Christians and people who do not identify with any religion or nationality.

Israel’s population grew by 2 percent in 2014, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics. Some 176,600 babies were born during the year and some 23,000 new olim arrived in Israel.

At the end of December 2013, Israel’s population was estimated at some 8,132,000.