Israel’s population on the eve of 2015 stood at 8.3 million.

Some 6.2 million people are Jewish and 1.7 million are Arabs, Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics reported on Dec. 29.

The population’s percentage breakdown is 74.9 percent Jewish, 20.7 percent Arab and 4.3 percent others, including Christians and people who do not identify with any religion or nationality.

Israel’s population grew by 2 percent in 2014, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics. Some 176,600 babies were born during the year and some 23,000 new immigrants arrived.

At the end of December 2013, Israel’s population was estimated at 8.13 million. — jta