Using the thesaurus entry, which word best replaces the underlined word without changing the overall meaning of the sentence?

what is the context here? we need to know what story you're talking about : )

israel is a small country in the middle east about the size of the state of new jersey. the country has a diverse climate with snowy mountains in the north and the hot desert in the south. jordan, syria, and the palestinian authority all border israel to the east. lebanon serves as the northern border and egypt borders in the south.about two-thirds of the population was born in israel. all other israelis come from over 100 different countries. most israeli jews live a lifestyle similar to western europeans and north americans.israel's population is about 75 percent jewish; most of the rest is arab. the israeli-occupied palestinian territories have some 3.5 million inhabitants—about 11 percent jewish, 89 percent palestinian.because of israel's variety of terrain and climate, the country has a large variety of animals. boars roam the damp oak woodlands of the golan heights. caspian turtles live in the marshlands along the coast. and hyenas are prevalent in the negev desert region in the southern israel.israel is the only fully democratic country in the middle east. elections are held for seats in the knesset or parliament every four years. if a party wins 2 percent of the votes, the party gets one or more seats in parliament. no one party has control so they have to work together. the leader of the largest party becomes prime minister.the story of modern israel begins more than 3,500 years ago. most israelis are jews, who are said to be descended from the biblical figure abraham, through his son isaac.

(hope this and mark me as brainliest)

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