Terrorism ties un-mosqued.

In Israel proper are infant mortality rates for Arabs higher or lower than those in Jordan?

Jordan (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 17.38 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.84 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 16.89 deaths/1,000 live births
http://www.indexmundi.com/jordan/infant_mortality_rate.html

Gaza Strip - (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 18.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 19.53 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 17.09 deaths/1,000 live births
http://www.indexmundi.com/gaza_strip/infant_mortality_rate.html

Israel (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 4.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.39 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.05 deaths/1,000 live births
http://www.indexmundi.com/israel/infant_mortality_rate.html


September 09, 2010

A 6 percent increase in infant mortality was registered this year among Israeli Arabs, compared to a 13 percent drop among Jews, according to an annual Ministry of Health report published yesterday. In 2004, 143,956 babies were born in Israel. Of them, 681 died - 331 Jews and 350 Arabs.

Prof. Yona Amitai, director of the ministry's Department of Mother, Child and Adolescent Health and author of the report, said that half of the difference in the rate between Arabs and Jews was explained by the greater prevalence of birth defects among Arabs as the result of higher rates of marriage between closely related individuals, especially among Muslims. The rest of the disparity was explained by the socio-economic gap between Jews and Arabs, he said.
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/gap-widens-between-jewish-and-arab-infant-mortality-rates-1.168252


Central Bureau of Statistics Center for Statistical Information, (November 2002)

According to the study, 156,000 Arabs lived in Israel in 1948. They comprised approximately 19% of the population. In 2001, 1.2 million Arabic people populated the area. Because of increased Jewish immigration to Israel, the proportion of Arab residents remained at 19% in 2001.

Improvements in medicine have largely contributed to the increase in the Arab population, as life expectancy has increased 27 years since 1948. Arabs in Israel tend to live 10 years longer than Arabs in neighboring countries.

Healthcare improvements have also led to a lower infant mortality rate. In 1970, the infant mortality rate for Arabs was 32 deaths for every thousand births. In 2000, the rate had significantly decreased to 8.6 per every thousand. Out of the Arab population, Muslims have the highest rate of infant mortality with 9.1 per every thousand. Improved living standard, an improvement in environmental conditions and an increase in years of schooling also contributed to the decrease in infant mortality.

In general, the standard of living for Arabs in Israel is significantly better than that of Arabs in other countries. For example, the rate of female literacy in Israel is 88% among Arabs, while in Egypt, only 43% of females are literate. Also, life expectancy in Israel is 74.6 years for men, while in Libya, the average lifespan is only 68.6 years. In 1999, the infant mortality rate for the Arab population in Israel was 9 deaths per every thousand births. Egypt's infant mortality rate in the same year was 41 deaths per every thousand. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Society_&_Culture/israeliarabs.html

Arabs and Jews was explained by the greater prevalence of birth defects among Arabs as the result of higher rates of marriage between closely related individuals,

Thanks for the legwork, Sam.

I wonder what percentage of the Jews in Israel are Arab? I wonder how their infant mortality rates compare with non-Arab Jews.

I grew up with Lebanese neighbors. The parents were devout Roman Catholic, and first cousins. It is, or at least was, the tradition in Lebanon to marry a family member, cousins being most common. At least that's what they told me all those years ago.

My point is, I don't think that's a Muslim thing. I think it's an Arab thing.