How is Israel different than the rest of the middle east?

Answer 1

-- Israel has very little oil.

-- Israel has a viable market economy.

-- Israel has a thriving high tech industry.

-- Israel has a parliamentary government with members selected by popular election.

-- In Israel, both male and female citizens own businesses, drive cars, and vote.

-- Israel's laws prohibit gender discrimination.

-- Israel's laws prohibit religious discrimination.

-- Hebrew and Arabic are both official state languages in Israel.

-- In Israel, English is taught in all public schools.

-- Maps in Israeli elementary school textbooks show all the other countries in the region.

-- In Israel, the Christian church is growing.

-- There has been no coup d'etat, military takeover, or civil war in Israel in the past 65 years.

-- Virtually zero Israelis have ever launched rockets into civilian neighborhoods of other countries in the region.

-- In Israel, it's legal to sell land or a house to a Jew.

-- Israel has never called for the elimination of another country in the region.

Answer 2

• While Jews are not permitted to live (or are severely restricted) in many Arab countries, Arabs in Israel are granted full citizenship.
• Israel is one of the most open societies in the world.
• More than 200,000 Arab children attend Israeli schools. At the time of Israel's founding, there was just one Arab high school in the country. Today, there are hundreds of Arab schools.
• Israel is the only country in the region that permits citizens of all faiths to worship freely and openly. Over two million Israeli citizens are non-Jewish. Each religious community in Israel has the right to found its own religious schools, councils, and courts; and is given jurisdiction to preside over matters of personal status such as marriage and divorce. The religious sites are controlled by officials of their respective faiths, not by the Israeli government.
• Israel is a parliamentary democracy, with an active multiparty system. While the United States has only two major parties, Israeli voters typically have more than a dozen parties to choose from, representing a wide variety of political views. Arabs are granted full citizenship and have the right to vote in Israel. Arabs are also free to become members of the Israeli parliament (the Knesset). In fact, several Arabs have been democratically elected to the Knesset and have been serving there for years.
• Government-owned land can be leased by anyone, regardless of race, religion or gender.
• Israeli law prohibits discrimination by both government and non-government entities on the basis of race, religion, lifestyle, political beliefs, or age.
• Israel is the only country in the Middle East that provides full equality for women. Women are free to drive cars (unlike Saudi Arabia), and to dress without veils or other compulsory styles. Women in Israel are protected by law from discrimination and abuse; and they participate in all walks of life, from homemaker to Prime Minister and Supreme Court President. Women comprise nearly 51% of all magistrate and district court judges; and more than 44% of all lawyers registered in Israel are women.
• All the freedoms and liberties that Americans have from their Bill of Rights and constitution, are equally protected in Israel. Israelis enjoy freedom of religion, freedom of speech and press, freedom of assembly, and the right to protest and to petition the government. Many major news outlets from around the world (including the BBC, CNN and Fox News) station their Middle East bureaus and correspondents in Israel. One reason is because Israel is so well-known for its freedom of speech and the press.
• Israel is smaller than the state of New Hampshire and has several neighboring countries who are hostile to her existence.

Answer 3

• While Jews are not permitted to live (or are severely restricted) in many Arab countries, Arabs in Israel are granted full citizenship.
• Israel is one of the most open societies in the world.

• More than 200,000 Arab children attend Israeli schools. At the time of Israel's founding, there was just one Arab high school in the country. Today, there are hundreds of Arab schools.
  
• Israel is the only country in the region that permits citizens of all faiths to worship freely and openly. Each religious community in Israel has the right to found its own religious schools, councils, and courts.
  
• Israel is a parliamentary democracy, with an active multiparty system. Arabs have full citizenship and the right to vote and to become members of the Israeli parliament (the Knesset).
• Israel is the only country in the Middle East that provides equality for women. Women are free to drive cars (unlike Saudi Arabia), and to dress without veils or other compulsory styles. Women in Israel are protected by law from discrimination and abuse; and they participate in all walks of life, from homemaker to Prime Minister and Supreme Court President.
  
• All the freedoms and liberties that Americans have from their bill of rights and constitution, are equally protected in Israel. Israelis enjoy freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and the right to protest and petition the government. Many news outlets, including the BBC, CNN and Fox News, station their Middle East bureaus in Israel. One reason is because Israel is so well-known for its freedom of speech and the press.
  
• Government-owned land can be leased by anyone, regardless of race, religion or gender.

See also the Related Links.
Link: Hostile countries

Link: More about Israel

Answer 4

The fundamental difference between Lebanon and Israel on the one hand and the rest of the Middle East is that Lebanon and Israel have substantial Non-Muslim communities. Israel is 75% Jewish and Lebanon is 44% Christian. Most other Middle Eastern countries are over 80% Muslim.

Answer 5

Israel is a regional power in the Middle East. It has a strong economy, powered by innovation and inventiveness. It also maintains a powerful military to defend itself against the rest of the region, which is generally antagonistic to it. Israel has strong relations with NATO and the West in general, especially the United States. Finally, the country is majority non-Arab and generally secular with some religious parties. It serves as a counterweight in the Middle East to Arab States and more Islamist States.

Israel is also a mostly secular democracy with human rights for all of its citizens. While it is still an imperfect system, like every country, it does much more in accordance with human rights than other countries in the region.

Answer 6

All of the surrounding countries in the middle east are prominently muslim.

Answer 7

It is a neo-colonial state created by the United Nations in the 50's. The surrounding native states have existed for aeons longer.

Answer 8

Israel is different than the us because Israel is small and the US is big. Israel people wear different clothes and have different customs.

Answer 9

Israel is small, the US is big ,Israel has different customs and religion.