At the start of 2022, there were a total of 15.3 million Jews in the world, 7 million of whom, roughly 46% of all Jews worldwide, resided in Israel, Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics revealed on Sunday.
In 1939, on the eve of World War II, Jews numbered 16.6 million, and 449,000 (3%) resided in the Land of Israel. Just under 10 years later, in 1948, the world’s Jewish population had diminished to 11.5 million; of them, 650,000 (6%) lived in Israel.
Ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on the evening of April 17, the CBS also revealed that 147,199 Holocaust survivors or victims of antisemitic actions during the Holocaust are currently living in Israel.
Of those survivors, 61% are women and 39% are men.
In a 2021 survey, 87% of Israel’s survivors said they were either “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their lives, similar to the 88% of Jews and others above the age of 75. However, 17.3% of Holocaust survivors said they felt lonely often, compared to 12.6% of Jews and others 75 and older.