NewsTracker Answers for week of July 09, 2012

Q: The Israel's government is struggling to replace a law that gives draft exemptions and subsidies to thousands of ultra-Orthodox religious scholars. The nation's top court ruled the old law illegal and set an Aug. 1 deadline to replace it. Many secular Jews are demanding an end to the exemptions. Where is Israel on this map?

Circle the area on this map

Q: Ultra-Orthodox Jews, or Haredim, comprise less than 10 percent of Israel's population but they have often controlled the balance of power between Israel's major political parties. What system of government does Israel have?

A. Democratic theocracy

B. Federal republic

C. Constitutional monarchy

D. Parliamentary democracy

D. Elected members of the Knesset, Israel's parliament, select a prime minister who is the head of the government. Israelis also elect a president as head of state, but he has limited and largely ceremonial duties. The coalition government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing collapse over the draft issue.

Q: Other than Haredim, all Jewish males must perform three years of compulsory service when they turn 18. Israel spends 7.3 percent of its gross domestic product on its military, but its eastern neighbor spends 8.6 percent. Which nation lies on Israel's eastern border?

A. Egypt

B. Jordan

C. Lebanon

D. Saudi Arabia

B. Israel is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan and the West Bank in the east, Egypt and the Gaza Strip on the southwest, and the Red Sea to the south. The Mideast Arab nations of Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Iraq also spend more of their wealth on military spending than sixth-ranked Israel.

Q: Since its founding as a Jewish homeland in 1948, Israel has had repeated wars and conflicts with its Arab neighbors. The 22 nations and territories in the region's Arab League have 340 million people. How many Jews live in Israel?

A. More than 20 million

B. 13.4 million

C. 7.8 million

D. Less than 6 million

D. Of Israel's estimated 7.8 million people, 5.9 million are Jews. Arab citizens of Israel comprise about 20 percent of the population. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, there were 13.4 million Jews worldwide in 2009, including more than 5.2 million in the United States. An estimated 6 million European Jews were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust.

Q: Israel is believed to have anywhere from 75 to 400 nuclear warheads with the ability to deliver them by missile, aircraft and submarine. While not admitting it has nuclear weapons, Israel has aggressively tried to prevent hostile nations in the region from gaining nuclear arms. Which nation did Israel bomb in 1981 to destroy a nuclear breeder reactor?

A. Iraq

B. Iran

C. Syria

D. Egypt

A. On June 7, 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed a reactor in Osirak, Iraq. In 2007, an Israeli air strike in Syria reportedly hit a nuclear facility being built with North Korea's help. Israel and the United States are believed to be involved in cyberwarfare against Iran's nuclear program. Israeli agents also have been blamed for sabotage and the assassinations of nuclear scientists.