What to understand first
- Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bahá’ís and others worship freely.
- The world centre of the Bahá’í Faith is in Haifa and Acre.
- Holy places of every religion are protected by law.
- Religious communities run their own courts, schools and institutions.
Does ‘Jewish state’ mean Jews only?
Communities and holy places
Jewish
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Muslim
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Christian
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Druze
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Bahá’í
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Ahmadi Muslim
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Samaritan
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Other communities
Maintains its own houses of worship, institutions and religious life.
Protection of holy places
Protection of Holy Places Law
The law protects holy places from desecration and from anything likely to violate freedom of access by members of different religions.
Basic Law: Jerusalem, section 3
The Basic Law repeats these protections for places sacred to all religions.
What does “Jewish state” mean?
Sources for this article
- S41Nationality Law, 5712–1952
Knesset archive. Citizenship by return, residence, birth and naturalisation.
- S43Israel’s population on the eve of Independence Day 2026
Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Population estimate of 2.157 million Arabs, 21.1 percent of the resident population.
- S45Katsav sentenced to seven years
Ynet / Associated Press. George Karra presided over the district-court panel that convicted former President Moshe Katsav.
- S46Court cuts Olmert sentence to 18 months
Reuters / Ynet. Salim Joubran sat on the five-justice Supreme Court panel deciding Ehud Olmert’s appeal.
- S47Khaled Kabub sworn in as Supreme Court’s first permanent Muslim justice
Times of Israel. Kabub’s permanent appointment to Israel’s Supreme Court.
- S52Protection of Holy Places Law
Government of Israel. Protection against desecration and interference with access to holy places.
- S53Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel
Knesset. Statutory protection for holy places and freedom of access.
- S54International Religious Freedom Report: Israel
US Department of State. Legal protections, recognised communities, restrictions and reported religious-freedom concerns.