While Israel celebrates 75 years of independence, the Jewish majority continues to shrink. The Central Bureau of Statistics' new publication reveals that Jews are now only 73.5% of the population, whereas Arabs are 21%. Compared to last year's data, there was a significant decrease in both communities. In 2022 Jews were 73.9% of the population, and Arabs were 21.1% of the general population. The "others", non-affiliated religiously, marked an increase and now are 5.5% of the population.
On Independence Day last year, there were 478 thousand people who were classified as "Others," whereas this year, they count for 534 thousand, an increase of 56 thousand during the past year.
Dr. Yona Cherki from the Israeli Immigration Policy Center, which analyzed the CBS publication, stated: "The dramatic trends of the reduction of the Jewish majority in Israel in favor of increasing the population of the "others" who are not Arabs and are not Jewish is very worrying. The bulk of non-Jewish immigration to Israel is Aliyah, according to the Law of Return, which receives encouragement from the official Aliyah bodies, including the Nativ organization and the Jewish Agency. As long as elected officials do not act actively and determinedly to amend the Law of Return, the trend of shrinking the Jewish majority will only increase".
Dr. Cherki added that there is an intensification of the phenomenon of non-Jewish immigration to Israel. "The public in Israel is sensitive to the issue of infiltrators and the issue of illegal residents, but it should be understood that the main cause of non-Jewish immigration to Israel is precisely the constitutional framework created by the Law of Return, which is why it is so urgent to amend the law."
"The Independence Day of the State of Israel serves as a reminder of the basis of the existence of the State of Israel and its purpose - the state of the Jewish people, a state that is essentially both Jewish and democratic. The accelerated demographic trends that we have witnessed in recent decades, and especially in recent years, put the vision of the identity of the State of Israel in tangible danger."