Jerusalem. Photo: Berthold Werner.

Jewish women in Israel are having more children, while Muslim women are having less, a new report issued by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics has revealed.

According to the report, Jewish women give birth on average to 3 children, up from 2.53 in 1995. Muslim women give birth to 3.51 children on average, down considerably from last decade, when the number reached 4.74.

Druze women have seen a considerable decrease in fertility rate, though the time period included in the report was much more significant. In 1965 Druze women were having on average 7.61 children. In 2012 that number was 2.33.

Overall in 2012 166,296 babies were born in Israel. About 73% of those were Jewish, 21% Muslim, 3% born to women whose religion is not classified by the Ministry of the Interior.

According to the report Israel has a population of 7.8366 million people, 73% of which are Jewish. Israel’s population grew last year by 1.8% – a rise of approximately 141, 500 people.