Factbook dossier
Background
The landlocked West Bank -- the larger of the two Palestinian territories -- is home to some three million Palestinians. Inhabited since at least the 15th century B.C., the area currently known as the West Bank has been dominated by a suc cession of different powers . In the early 16th century , it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire. The West Bank fell to British forces during World War I, becoming part of the British Mandate of Palestine. After the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Transjordan (later renamed Jordan) captured the West Bank and annexed it in 1950; Israel then captured it in the Six-Day War in 1967. Under the Oslo Accords -- a series of agreements that were signed between 1993 and 1999 -- Israel transferred to the newly created Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for the many Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank, as well as the Gaza Strip. In addition to establishing the PA as an interim government, the Oslo Accords divided the West Bank into three areas, with one fully managed by the PA (Area A) , another fully managed by Israel (Area C) , and a third with shared control (Area B) until a permanent agreement could be reached between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel. In 2000, a violent intifada , or uprising, began across the Palestinian territories, and in 2001, negotiations for a permanent agreement between the PLO and Israel on final status issues stalled. Subsequent attempts to re-start direct negotiations have not resulted in progress toward determining final status of the area. The PA last held nationa…
Location
Middle East, west of Jordan, east of Israel
Area
total : 5,860 sq km land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967
Natural resources
arable land
Population
total: 3,310,554 (2025 est.) male: 1,682,493 female: 1,628,061 note: approximately 468,300 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank (2022); approximately 236,600 Israeli settlers live in East Jerusalem (2021)
Ethnic groups
Palestinian Arab, Jewish, other
Languages
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) major-language sample(s): كتاب حقائق العالم، المصدر الذي لا يمكن الاستغناء عنه للمعلومات الأساسية (Arabic) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Muslim 80-85% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 12-14%, Christian 1-2.5% (mainly Greek Orthodox), other, unaffiliated, unspecified 1% (2012 est.)
Environmental issues
adequacy of freshwater supply; sewage treatment
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$20.339 billion (2024 est.) $27.694 billion (2023 est.) $29.016 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars; entry includes West Bank and Gaza Strip
Real GDP per capita
$3,800 (2024 est.) $5,400 (2023 est.) $5,800 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars; entry includes West Bank and Gaza Strip
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
53.7% (2024 est.) 5.9% (2023 est.) 3.7% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices; entry includes West Bank and Gaza Strip
Exports - partners
Jordan 51%, Turkey 12%, UAE 8%, Saudi Arabia 5%, UK 4% (2023) note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports; entry includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
Imports - partners
Egypt 25%, Jordan 17%, China 8%, Germany 7%, UAE 7% (2023) note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports; entry includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
Military and security forces
per the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is not permitted a conventional military but maintains security and police forces; PA security personnel have operated exclusively in the West Bank since HAMAS seized power in the Gaza Strip in 2007; PA forces include the Palestinian National Security Forces, Presidential Guard, Civil Police, Civil Defense, Preventive Security Organization, the General Intelligence Organization, and the Military Intelligence Organization (2024) note: the National Security Forces conduct gendarmerie-style security operations in circumstances that exceed the capabilities of the Civil Police; it is the largest branch of the PA security services and acts as the internal Palestinian security force; the Presidential Guard protects facilities and provides dignitary protection; the Preventive Security Organization is responsible for internal intelligence gathering and investigations related to internal security cases, including political dissent
Military expenditures
not available