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Half of Israeli Jews favor separation of religion and state

Jews gather at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for the final selichot, or penitential prayers, ahead of Yom Kippur, Oct. 9, 2019. Source: Twitter.
Jews gather at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for the final selichot, or penitential prayers, ahead of Yom Kippur, Oct. 9, 2019. Source: Twitter.

Forty-nine percent of Israeli Jews, or 2.3 million people, believe there should be a divide between religion and state, according to a survey by the Central Bureau of Statistics on the influence of religion.

The survey polled Israelis over the age of 20.

Three-quarters of Israeli Jews—and half of Israeli Arabs—say that religion has a “strong influence” on life in the country, the survey found.

More than half of Israelis polled believe that the influence of religion has increased in various spheres of society over the last several years.

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