Israel’s population continues to grow. Photo: Wikipedia.

JNS.org – In advance of Rosh Hashanah, Israel’s population has reached 8,412,000 people.

According to data released by the country’s Central Bureau of Statistics, Israel’s population over the past year grew by 158,000—a 1.9-percent increase. Jews comprised 6.3 million of the population (74.9 percent), with Arabs comprising 1.746 million (20.7 percent) in addition to 366,000 other residents (4.4 percent).

Additionally, during the past year, roughly 168,000 babies were born and 42,000 people died in Israel. The Jewish state also saw a net migration of roughly 32,000 people, of which 28,000 were Jewish immigrants, representing a 35-percent increase over last year. Most of these Jewish immigrants came from Ukraine (26 percent), France (25 percent), Russia (21 percent), and the U.S. (9 percent).

The Central Bureau of Statistics estimates that between the years 2025 and 2030, Israel’s population will exceed 10 million.