Israel has approximately 8.68 million residents, more than ten times the population at its founding in 1948, and is on track to reach more than 15.2 million residents by 2048, the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics reported. Most of its Jews are religious or traditional, with a minority describing themselves as completely secular.

Currently, there are 6.48 million Jewish residents in Israel, accounting for 74.7 percent of the population, and 1.81 million Arab residents, comprising 20.8 percent. Only 44% of Israel’s Jews described themselves as non-religious. The rest identified themselves as religious (32%) or traditional (24%). 9% of the religious populace are chareidi, 11% religious and 12% religious-traditional.

A joint survey of the Israeli Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University taken among six hundred respondents with a 4.1% error margin found that 71% of Israelis (73% of Jews and 61% of Arabs) were “very” or “quite” optimistic about Israel’s future. 44% of the Jews questioned described Israel’s situation as “good” or “very good,” as did 56% of Arabs. 86% of Jews and 51% of Arabs said they were “quite proud” or “very proud” to be Israeli.

Permanent residents who according to the Interior Ministry’s Population Registry are neither Jewish nor Arab, including most non-Jewish immigrants, many of whom are non-Arab Christians or have no religious affiliation, make up 4.5 percent of the Israeli population. The figures do not take into account foreign workers and others not considered permanent residents.

Israel’s population has grown by 159,000 residents since Independence Day 2016, an increase of about 2 percent. The past year saw the birth of 174,000 babies and the arrival of some 30,000 new immigrants, while about 44,000 Israeli residents died.

Almost 35 percent of Israel’s residents are under age 18, while about 54 percent are ages 19-64. Slightly more than 11 percent of Israelis are 65 and older.

{Matzav.com Israel News Bureau}