At midnight on May 14, 1948, the Provisional Government of Israel proclaimed a new State of Israel, a proclamation that both established Israel and declared its independence. The State of Israel was established by the Israeli Declaration of Independence.
On the same day as its creation, the United States became the first country to recognize Israel. President Harry Truman recognized the provisional Jewish government as the de facto authority of the Jewish state. Israel has the highest Jewish population worldwide.
On May 15, 1948, the day following Israel’s declaration, the first Arab-Israeli war broke out.
Almost a year after its creation, on May 11, 1949, the United Nations General Assembly approved Israel’s application to join the United Nations by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 273. Israel became the 59th member of the United Nations. The vote was 37 to 12 (and nine abstentions), with many countries voting in favor, having already recognized Israel before the UN vote. Of those who voted in favor, Cuba and Venezuela have since withdrawn their recognition of Israel. Of those who voted against Israel’s admittance to the UN, six were members of the Arab League.
Israel’s sovereignty, however, is disputed by some countries. As of December 2019, 162 of the 193 UN member countries recognize Israel, while 31 UN members do not recognize Israel.
Of the countries that do not recognize Israel, 17 are part of the 22 members of the Arab League. These countries include:
- Algeria
- Bahrain
- Comoros
- Djibouti
- Iraq
- Kuwait
- Lebanon
- Libya
- Morocco
- Oman
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- Somalia
- Sudan
- Syria
- Tunisia
- United Arab Emirates
- Yemen
Nine of the countries that do not recognize Israel are members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation:
Sixteen countries do not accept Israeli passports:
- Algeria
- Bangladesh
- Brunei
- Iran (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Iraq (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Kuwait (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Lebanon (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Libya (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Malaysia
- Pakistan (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Saudi Arabia
- Sudan (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- Syria (does not accept visitors with Israeli passport stamps)
- United Arab Emirates
- Yemen
The table below contains the countries that recognize Israel as an independent state.