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Welcome to Wikipedia,the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.2,363,428 articles in EnglishArtsBiographyGeographyHistoryMathematicsScienceSocietyTechnologyAll portalsOverview · Editing · Questions · HelpContents · Categories · Featured content · A–Z indexToday’s featured articleIsrael is a country in Western Asia located on the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea. The country is the world’s only Jewish state, although it is also home to a significant Arab minority. Israel maintains a representative democracy with a parliamentary system and universal suffrage. Its geography varies widely, from the desert regions of the south to the mountainous regions of the north. Meanwhile, the economic, cultural, and population centers of Israel are located in the center of the country and throughout the coastal plain. The modern state has its roots in the Land of Israel, a concept that has been central to Judaism for over three thousand years, and the region still contains several sites of key religious importance in various monotheistic faiths. In 1948, Israel declared its independence after accepting a plan to establish a Jewish state on part of the former British Mandate of Palestine. Since then, however, Israel has been in conflict with many of the neighboring Arab countries, as well as with Palestinians, resulting in several major wars and decades of violence. (more…)Recently featured: West Indian cricket team in England in 1988 – Battle of Blenheim – El Señor PresidenteArchive – By email – More featured articles…Did you know…From Wikipedia’s newest articles:… that McCarty Church (pictured) in Los Angeles gained attention for its pastor’s decision to racially integrate his white Protestant church in the mid-1950s?… that Bradford City footballers Geoff Smith and George Mulholland each played more than 200 consecutive appearances for the club during the 1950s?… that Salt Lake City-based robotics firm Sarcos is developing a military powered exoskeleton allowing wearers to easily lift 200 pounds (91 kg)?… that in 1847 French Admiral Jean-Baptiste Cécille sent a captain to attack Vietnam to obtain the release of a bishop, not knowing the bishop had already been freed?… that a riot reportedly instigated by writer André Breton broke out during the 1923 premiere of Tristan Tzara’s Le Coeur à gas, a play written as a nonsensical dialog between human body parts?… that in 1994 Martin Doherty became the first person to be killed in the Republic of Ireland by loyalist paramilitaries since 1975?… that inscriptions found on a stone pillar in the village of Talagunda in India describe the rise of the Kadamba dynasty?… that the Silky Sifaka is a white, diurnal rainforest sifaka found solely within a small area of northeastern Madagascar?Archive – Start a new article…In the newsAn international relief operation begins after Cyclone Nargis (pictured) strikes Burma, with at least 63,500 people reported killed or missing.In Zimbabwe, results of the presidential election held in March 2008 are announced with no outright winner, necessitating a run-off between Morgan Tsvangirai and incumbent Robert Mugabe.HP Labs announces the creation of a memristor, the fourth basic element of electronic circuits with the resistor, capacitor, and inductor.A train collision near Zibo, China, kills at least 72 people.Maoists win a plurality of seats in the Nepalese Constituent Assembly election, the first election in Nepal in nine years.Researchers discover what is believed to be the first use of oil painting at Bamyan in Afghanistan, predating European oil painting by some six centuries.Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events…On this day…May 8: Yom Ha’atzmaut in Israel (2008); Victory in Europe Day; World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day1429 – Siege of Orléans: French troops led by Joan of Arc lifted the English siege and turned the tide of the Hundred Years’ War.1541 – The expedition led by Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto reached the Mississippi River.1794 – French chemist and economist Antoine Lavoisier, a former royal tax collector with the Ferme Générale, was tried, convicted, and guillotined on the same day during the Reign of Terror.1886 – In Atlanta, Georgia, American druggist John Pemberton first sold his carbonated beverage Coca-Cola as a patent medicine, claiming that it cured a number of diseases.1945 – Most armed forces under German control ceased active operations by 23:01 hours CET at the end of World War II in Europe, in accordance with the capitulation documents signed by General Alfred Jodl (pictured) on behalf of Reichspräsident Karl Dönitz the day before.More events: May 7 – May 8 – May 9Archive – By email – More anniversaries…Today’s featured pictureThe John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, designed by I. M. Pei, in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, at dusk. This is the official repository for original papers and correspondence of the John F. Kennedy administration, as well as special bodies of other materials, such as books and papers by and about Ernest Hemingway.Photo credit: Eric BaetscherRecently featured: Autotomy – Saltbox – Acapulco in 1628Archive – More featured pictures…