Jerusalem Conflict

The conflict
The city of Jerusalem has a special meaning for Jews, Muslims and
Christians. In East
Jerusalem and its environs, the year 2011 will be recorded as the year of
the greatest
expansion of Israeli settlements since 1967. In general, the question of
Jerusalem
represents one of the most sensitive and complex red lines of the conflict
between
Israelis and Palestinians. For Palestinians, East Jerusalem al-Quds is
to be the
capital of the future Palestinian State. For Israelis, the entirety of
Jerusalem
Yerushalyim is the sole and indivisible capital of the Jewish State.
Given the
intractable nature of the dispute and its social, economic and religious
implications,
multiple attempts at negotiations have stalled over the question of
Jerusalem, and there
is little sign of change on the horizon.

Israels control
East Jerusalem was captured by the Israel Defense Forces during the 1967
Six Day War. The Moroccan Quarter containing several hundred homes
was demolished and its inhabitants expelled; thereafter a public plaza was
built in its place adjoining the Western Wall. However, the Waqf (Islamic
trust) was granted administration of the Temple Mount and thereafter
Jewish prayer on the site was prohibited by both Israeli and Waqf
authorities.
Most Jews celebrated the event as a liberation of the city; a new Israeli
holiday was created, Jerusalem Day (Yom Yerushalayim), and the most
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popular secular Hebrew song, "Jerusalem of Gold" (Yerushalayim shel

zahav), became popular in celebration. Many large state gatherings of the
State of Israel take place at the Western Wall today, including the
swearing-in of various Israel army officers units, national ceremonies such
as memorial services for fallen Israeli soldiers on Yom Hazikaron, huge
celebrations on Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israel Independence Day), huge
gatherings of tens of thousands on Jewish religious holidays, and ongoing
daily prayers by regular attendees. The Western Wall has become a major
tourist destination spot.
Under Israeli control, members of all religions are largely granted access
to their holy sites. The major exceptions being security limitations placed
on some Arabs from the West Bank and Gaza Strip from accessing holy
sites due to their inadmissibility to Jerusalem, as well as limitations on
Jews from visiting the Temple Mount due to both politically motivated
restrictions (where they are allowed to walk on the Mount in small groups,
but are forbidden to pray or study while there) and religious edicts that
forbid Jews from trespassing on what may be the site of the Holy of the
Holies. Concerns have been raised about possible attacks on the al-Aqsa
Mosque after a serious fire broke in the mosque in 1969 (started by Denis
Michael Rohan, an Australian fundamentalist Christian found by the court
to be insane). Riots broke out following the opening of an exit in the Arab
Quarter for the Western Wall Tunnel on the instructions of the Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which prior Prime Minister Shimon Peres
had instructed to be put on hold for the sake of peace (stating "it has
waited for over 1000 years, it could wait a few more").
Conversely, Israeli and other Jews have showed concerns over excavations
being done by the Waqf on the Temple Mount that could harm Temple
Relics, particularly excavations to the north of Solomon's Stables that
were designed to create an emergency exit for them (having been
pressured to do so by Israeli authorities).[53] Some Jewish sources allege
that the Waqf's excavations in Solomon's Stables also seriously harmed

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the Southern Wall; however an earthquake in 2004 that damaged the

eastern wall could also be to blame.
The status of East Jerusalem remains a highly controversial issue. The
international community does not recognize the annexation of the eastern
part of the city, and most countries, including the US, maintain their
embassies in Tel Aviv. The United States Congress has pledged to move its
embassy to Jerusalem, subject to Presidential approval, which has not
been forthcoming as the peace process continues. The United Nations
Security Council Resolution 478 declared that the Knesset's 1980
"Jerusalem Law" declaring Jerusalem as Israel's "eternal and indivisible"
capital was "null and void and must be rescinded forthwith". This
resolution advised member states to withdraw their diplomatic
representation from the city as a punitive measure. The council has also
condemned Israeli settlement in territories captured in 1967, including
East Jerusalem (see UNSCR 452, 465 and 741).
Since Israel gained control over East Jerusalem in 1967, Jewish settler
organizations have sought to establish a Jewish presence in
neighborhoods such as Silwan.[54][55] In the 1980s, Haaretz reports, the
Housing Ministry "then under Ariel Sharon, worked hard to seize control of
property in the Old City and in the adjacent neighborhood of Silwan by
declaring them absentee property. The suspicion arose that some of the
transactions were not legal; an examination committee ... found numerous
flaws." In particular, affidavits claiming that Arab homes in the area were
absentee properties, filed by Jewish organizations, were accepted by the
Custodian without any site visits or other follow-up on the claims.[56]
ElAd, a settlement organization[57][58][59][60] which Haaretz says
promotes the "Judaization" of East Jerusalem,[61] and the Ateret Cohanim
organization, are working to increase Jewish settlement in Silwan in
cooperation with the Committee for the Renewal of the Yemenite Village in
Shiloah.[62]

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