Israel's Independence Day (Yom Ha'atzmaut)

Culture of origin: National · National holiday

Holiday sources: Israel

On 14 May 1948, eight hours before the British Mandate for Palestine ended, David Ben-Gurion read the Declaration of Independence establishing the State of Israel. The next day neighbouring Arab states declared war and invaded, turning the fighting into the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The holiday opens at sundown on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem with the lighting of twelve torches, and families mark it with picnics, barbecues and flags on balconies and cars.