End of decade: Israel population 7.5 million

At the close of the first decade of the third millennium, Israel has 7.5 million residents, including 5.7 million Jews (75.4 percent of the population) and 1.5 million Arabs (20.3 percent of the population). The remaining 319,000 residents are made up of followers of other religions and those who have no religion.

According to the data, released Wednesday by the Central Bureau of Statistics, Israel's population grew by 1.8 percent in 2009. This past year, the population grew by 135,000 (1.8%), of which 121,000 was the result of natural growth. Among those contributing to the population increase are 14,500 immigrants who moved to Israel in 2009.