Israel ranks 14th in UN's first World Happiness Report

Israel ranked 14th in the United Nations' first World Happiness Report, which was conducted by Columbia University's Earth Institute.

Although wealthy nations like Denmark, Norway, Finland and the Netherlands lead the rankings of happiest countries while poor nations like Togo, Benin, Central African Republic and Sierra Leone ranked among the least happy, the report noted that social factors such as the strength of social support, the absence of corruption and the degree of personal freedom were more important than wealth. (Yitzhak Benhorin, Washington)