Since 1994 the West Bank has been under the control of the Palestinian Authority, the governing body of the Palestinian Arabs of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. As of 2005 Palestine was not yet an independent sovereign state, although the Palestinian people hoped to achieve independence from Israel.

The West Bank lies to the west of Jordan. Occupying 5,860 square kilometers (2,263 square miles, slightly larger than the state of Delaware), it is surrounded to the north, west, and south by Israel. Mountains reaching elevations of 3,000 feet run north to south. Their western slopes receive moderate winter rains, whereas their eastern slopes, leading to the Jordan Valley, are arid.

The current population of the West Bank was estimated at 2.4 million in 2004. Most are Palestinian Arabs and Muslims; a small minority (approximately 10%) are Palestinian Christians. Almost 700,000 West Bank Palestinians are refugees from the areas of former Palestine that became...