6 facts
While deforestation has reduced forest cover in most countries over the past 100 years, Israel stands out as the only nation to have more trees at the end of the 20th century than at the beginning. Through massive afforestation programs planting over 240 million trees, Israel transformed vast areas of desert and degraded land into forest.
The Dead Sea surface sits about 430 meters below sea level — the lowest point on Earth's land surface. With no outlet, the water is nearly ten times saltier than ocean water, making it impossible for most life to survive. Alarmingly, the sea is shrinking by about one meter per year due to water diversion from the Jordan River.
While Iran dominates the headlines, the Strait of Hormuz is jointly shared between Iran and Oman. Oman controls the Musandam Peninsula — a non-contiguous exclave separated from mainland Oman by the UAE — which forms the strait's southern shore. Any ship using the international shipping lanes technically passes through Omani territorial waters.
Hormuz Island, which gives the strait its name, is a geological marvel covered in vivid red iron-oxide soil so striking that it looks like a Martian landscape. The island also features salt caves, colorful mineral-streaked cliffs, and a rainbow mountain. Locals use the red soil as a spice in food and as a natural paint.
Despite controlling a fifth of the world's oil supply, the Strait of Hormuz narrows to just 33 kilometers (21 miles) at its tightest point. The actual navigable shipping lanes are even narrower — two corridors of just 3.2 km each, separated by a 3.2 km buffer zone, carrying traffic in opposite directions simultaneously.
Roughly 17–21 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products transit the Strait of Hormuz daily, representing about 20% of global oil consumption. No other maritime chokepoint on Earth comes close — making it the single most important oil corridor in the world, and a constant focus of geopolitical tension.
