Israel officially became a state on May 14, 1948, following the United Nations' approval of the partition plan for Palestine. The declaration of the establishment of the State of Israel was made by David Ben-Gurion, who became the country's first Prime Minister. This marked the culmination of the Zionist movement's decades-long struggle to create a Jewish homeland in the biblical land of Israel. The official statehood of Israel was met with immediate challenges, including subsequent wars with neighboring Arab states and ongoing tensions with the Palestinian population. Nevertheless, Israel's establishment as a state remains a pivotal moment in the history of the Middle East and continues to shape geopolitics in the region to this day.
