Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. It occupies the Palestinian territories of the West Bank in the east and the Gaza Strip in the south-west, as well as the Syrian Golan Heights in the north-east. Israel also has a small coastline on the Red Sea at its southernmost point, and part of the Dead Sea lies along its eastern border. Its proclaimed capital is Jerusalem, while Tel Aviv is its largest urban area and economic centre.

Israel is located in a region known as the Land of Israel, synonymous with the Palestine region, the Holy Land, and Canaan. In antiquity it was home to the Canaanite civilisation, followed by the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Situated at a continental crossroad, the region experienced demographic changes under the rule of empires from the Romans to the Ottomans. European antisemitism in the late 19th century galvanised Zionism, which sought to colonise Palestine to establish a homeland for the Jewish people and gained British support with the Balfour Declaration. After World War I, Britain occupied the region and established Mandatory Palestine in 1920.