Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in the Southern Levant that declared independence on May 14, 1948, following the British Mandate and the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan. This declaration immediately led to conflict with neighboring Arab states and the displacement of many Palestinian Arabs in what is known as the "Nakba," stemming from the 19th-century Zionist movement and the 1917 Balfour Declaration.
After the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and the Syrian Golan Heights; its continued occupation and settlement expansion are widely considered violations of international law. While Israel has signed peace treaties with Egypt (1979) and Jordan (1994), and the 1993 Oslo Accords with the Palestinians established limited self-rule, the Israeli–Palestinian conflict remains unresolved. Recent events, including its occupation of Palestinian territories, have drawn sustained international criticism, with experts and UN officials describing actions as war crimes and crimes against humanity, and recent events in Gaza as genocide.
Despite this, Israel boasts one of the Middle East's largest economies, high living standards, and is a technologically advanced state, believed to possess nuclear weapons. Jerusalem is its proclaimed capital, while Tel Aviv serves as its largest urban and economic center.