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Jerusalem (Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם (audio) , Yerushaláyim; Arabic: القُدس (audio) , al-Quds)[ii] is the capital[iii] of Israel and its largest city[2] in both population and area,[3] with 732,100 residents in an area of 125.1 square kilometers (49 sq mi).[1][4] Located in the Judean Mountains, between the Mediterranean Sea and the northern tip of the Dead Sea, modern Jerusalem has grown up around the Old City. The city has a history that goes back to the 4th millennium BCE, making it one of the oldest cities in the world.[5] Jerusalem has been the holiest city in Judaism and the spiritual center of the Jewish people since the 10th century BCE,[6] contains a number of significant ancient Christian sites, and is considered the third-holiest city in Islam.[7] Despite having an area of only 0.9 square kilometer (0.35 square mile),[8] the Old City is home to several sites of key religious importance: the Temple Mount and its Western Wall for Jews, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Christians, and the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque for Muslims. The walled area of Jerusalem, which constituted the entire city until the 1860s, is now called the Old City, and was added to the List of World Heritage Sites in danger in 1982.[9] The Old City has been traditionally divided into four quarters, although the names used today—the Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Quarters—were only introduced in the early 19th century.[10] Today, the status of Jerusalem remains a core issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel's annexation of occupied East Jerusalem has been repeatedly condemned by the United Nations and related bodies,[11][12] and Palestinians foresee East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.[13][14] Due to UNSC 478, most foreign embassies are located outside of Jerusalem, especially in Israel's former temporary capital of Tel Aviv.
[edit] Etymology
Although the precise origin of the Hebrew name for Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) remains uncertain, scholars have proposed a variety of interpretations. Some say it means "legacy of peace" — a combination of yerusha (legacy) and shalom (peace). "Shalom" is a cognate of the Hebrew name "Shlomo," i.e., King Solomon, the builder of the First Temple.[15][16] Alternatively, the second part of the word could be Salem (Shalem literally "whole" or "in harmony"), an early name for Jerusalem[17] that appears in the Book of Genesis.[18] Others cite the Amarna letters, where the Akkadian name of the city appears as Urušalim, a cognate of the Hebrew Ir Shalem. Some believe there is a connection to Shalim, the beneficent deity known from Ugaritic myths as the personification of dusk.[19] A Midrashic interpretation in Genesis Rabba explains that Abraham came to the city, then called Shalem, after rescuing Lot.[20] Upon arrival, he asked the king and high priest Melchizedek to bless him, and Melchizedek did so in the name of God (indicating that he, like Abraham, was a monotheist). This encounter between Melchizedek and Abraham was commemorated by renaming the city in their honor: the name Yeru (derived from Yireh, the name Abraham gave to the Temple Mount) was combined with Shalem,[20] producing Yeru-Shalem, meaning the "city of Shalem," or "founded by Shalem." If shalem means "complete" or "without defect, "Yerushalayim would mean the "perfect city," or "the city of he who is perfect".[21] The ending -im indicates the plural in Hebrew grammar and -ayim the dual, leading to an interpretation of the name as representing two facets of the city, such as two hills.[22][23] The pronunciation of the last syllable as -ayim appears to be a late development, which had not yet appeared at the time of the Septuagint. A city called Rushalimum appears in ancient Egyptian records, which many scholars believe to be the first reference to Jerusalem [edit] HistoryCeramic evidence indicates the occupation of Ophel, within present-day Jerusalem, as far back as the Copper Age, c. 4th millennium BCE,[24][5] with evidence of a permanent settlement during the early Bronze Age, c. 3000-2800 BCE.[24] [25] The Execration Texts (c. 19th century BCE), which refer to a city called Roshlamem or Rosh-ramen[24] and the Amarna letters (c. 14th century BCE) may be the earliest mention of the city.[26][27] Some archaeologists, including Kathleen Kenyon, believe Jerusalem as a city was founded by West Semitic people with organized settlements from around 2600 BCE. According to Jewish tradition the city was founded by Shem and Eber, ancestors of Abraham. In the biblical account, Jerusalem was a Jebusite city until the 10th century BCE when David conquered it and made it the capital of the United Kingdom of Israel and Judah (c. 1000s BCE).[28][29][iv] Recent excavations of a large stone structure are interpreted by some archaeologists as lending credence to the biblical narrative.[30] [edit] Temple periodsKing David reigned until 970 BCE. He was succeeded by his son Solomon,[31] who built the Holy Temple on Mount Moriah. Solomon's Temple (later known as the First Temple), went on to play a pivotal role in Jewish history as the repository of the Ark of the Covenant.[32] For over 600 years, until the Babylonian conquest in 587 BCE, Jerusalem was the political and religious capital of the Jews.[33] This period is known in history as the First Temple Period.[34] Upon Solomon's death (c. 930 BCE), the ten northern tribes split off to form the Kingdom of Israel. Under the leadership of the House of David and Solomon, Jerusalem remained the capital of the Kingdom of Judah.[35] 
When the Assyrians conquered the Kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE, Jerusalem was strengthened by a great influx of refugees from the northern kingdom.[citation needed] The First Temple period ended around 586 BCE, as the Babylonians conquered Judah and Jerusalem, and laid waste to Solomon's Temple.[35] In 538 BCE, after fifty years of Babylonian captivity, Persian King Cyrus the Great invited the Jews to return to Judah to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. Construction of the Second Temple was completed in 516 BCE, during the reign of Darius the Great, seventy years after the destruction of the First Temple.[36][37] Jerusalem resumed its role as capital of Judah and center of Jewish worship. When Macedonian ruler Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire, Jerusalem and Judea fell under Macedonian control, eventually falling to the Ptolemaic dynasty under Ptolemy I. In 198 BCE, Ptolemy V lost Jerusalem and Judea to the Seleucids under Antiochus III. The Seleucid attempt to recast Jerusalem as a Hellenized polis came to a head in 168 BCE with the successful Maccabean revolt of Mattathias the High Priest and his five sons against Antiochus Epiphanes, and their establishment of the Hasmonean Kingdom in 152 BCE with Jerusalem again as its capital.[38] [edit] Jewish-Roman wars and the Jewish diaspora
As Rome became stronger it installed Herod as a Jewish client king. Herod the Great, as he was known, devoted himself to developing and beautifying the city. He built walls, towers and palaces, and expanded the Temple Mount, buttressing the courtyard with blocks of stone weighing up to 100 tons. Under Herod, the area of the Temple Mount doubled in size.[39][40][31] In 6 CE, the city, as well as much of the surrounding area, came under direct Roman rule as the Iudaea Province[41] and Herod's descendants through Agrippa II remained client kings of Judea until 96 CE. Roman rule over Jerusalem and the region began to be challenged with the first Jewish-Roman war, the Great Jewish Revolt, which resulted in the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. In 130 CE Hadrian Romanized the city, and renamed it Aelia Capitolina.[42] Jerusalem once again served as the capital of Judea during the three-year rebellion known as the Bar Kochba revolt. The Romans succeeded in recapturing the city in 135 CE and as a punitive measure Hadrian banned the Jews from entering it. Hadrian renamed the entire Iudaea Province Syria Palaestina after the biblical Philistines in an attempt to de-Judaize the country.[43][44] Enforcement of the ban on Jews entering Aelia Capitolina continued until the 4th century CE. In the five centuries following the Bar Kokhba revolt, the city remained under Roman then Byzantine rule. During the 4th century, the Roman Emperor Constantine I constructed Christian sites in Jerusalem such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Jerusalem reached a peak in size and population at the end of the Second Temple Period: The city covered two square kilometers (0.8 sq mi.) and had a population of 200,000[45][43] From the days of Constantine until the 7th century, Jews were banned from Jerusalem.[46] [edit] Roman-Persian WarsWithin the span of a few decades, Jerusalem shifted from Roman to Persian rule and returned to Roman dominion once more. Following Sassanid Khosrau II's early seventh century push into Byzantine and advancing through Syria, Sassanid Generals Shahrbaraz and Shahin decided to attack the famous Byzantine-controlled city of Jerusalem (Persian: Dej Houdkh).[47] In the Siege of Jerusalem (614), after 21 days of relentless siege warfare, Jerusalem was captured and the Persian victory resulted in the territorial annexation of Jerusalem. After the Sassanid army entered Jerusalem, the holy "True Cross" was stolen and sent back to the Sassanian capital as a battle-captured holy relic. The conquered city and the Holy Cross would remain in Sassanid hands for some fifteen years until the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius recovered them in 629.[47] [edit] Islamic ruleIn 638, the Islamic Caliphate extended its dominion to Jerusalem. At this time, Jerusalem was declared Islam's third holiest city after Mecca and Medina, and referred to as al Bait al-Muquddas. Later, it was known as al-Quds al-Sharif.[48] With the Arab conquest, Jews were allowed back into the city.[49] The Rashidun caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab signed a treaty with Monophysite Christian Patriarch Sophronius, assuring him that Jerusalem's Christian holy places and population would be protected under Muslim rule. [50] Umar was led to the Foundation Stone on the Temple Mount, which he cleared of refuse in preparation for building a mosque. According to the Gaullic bishop Arculf, who lived in Jerusalem from 679-688, the Mosque of Umar was a rectangular wooden structure built over ruins which could accommodated 3,000 worshipers. [51] The Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik commissioned the construction of the Dome of the Rock in the late 7th century.[52]The 10th century historian El Muqadasi writes that Abd al-Malik built the shrine in order to compete in grandeur of Jerusalem's monumental churches. [53]Over the next four hundred years, Jerusalem's prominence diminished as Arab powers in the region jockeyed for control.[54] [edit] Crusades, Saladin and the Mamluks
In 1099, Jerusalem was conquered by the Crusaders, who massacred most of its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants.[55] The surviving Jews were sold into slavery in Europe or ransomed to the Jewish community of Egypt. [56]Christian Arab tribes brought to Jerusalem from east of the Jordan River settled in the homes of the Jews in the Old City.[57]That would be the first of several conquests to take place over the next four hundred years. In 1187, the city was taken from the Crusaders by Saladin.[58] Between 1228 and 1244, it was given by Saladin's descendant al-Kamil to the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II. Jerusalem fell again in 1244 to the Khawarizmi Turks, who were later, in 1260, replaced by the Mamluks led by Baibars.[citation needed] [edit] Ottoman rule
In 1517, Jerusalem and its environs fell to the Ottoman Turks, who remained in control of the city until the 20th century.[58] In the 16th and 17th centuries, the walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt and nomadic marauders were staved off. Regional trade flourished and Jerusalem's economy and population expanded until the 18th and 19th centuries, as the power of the Ottoman Empire receded and Turkish investment in the city declined. The mid-19th century saw radical shifts in the political climate in the city, along with a new international presence in the city. After the Egyptian General Ibrahim Pasha's occupation of Syria in 1832, foreign missions and consulates were established throughout the province. This era saw the first expansion outside the Old City walls, as new neighborhoods were built to house pilgrims and relieve overcrowding. The Russian Compound and Mishkenot Sha'ananim were founded in 1860.[59] Wealthy Muslim families built Ottoman-style villas on the edge of the German Colony.[citation needed] [edit] British Mandate transition period and the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
In 1917 after the Battle of Jerusalem, the British Army, led by General Edmund Allenby, captured the city.[60] The League of Nations, through its 1922 ratification of the Balfour Declaration, entrusted the United Kingdom to administer the Mandate for Palestine and help establish a "Jewish National Home" in the region.[61] The period of the Mandate saw the construction of new garden suburbs in the western and northern parts of the city[62][63] and the establishment of institutions of higher learning such as the Hebrew University, founded in 1925.[64] Eric H. Cline, author of Jerusalem Besieged, notes that Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice, besieged 23 times, attacked an additional 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times.[65] As the British Mandate for Palestine was expiring, the 1947 UN Partition Plan (Part III) recommended "the creation of a special international regime in the City of Jerusalem, constituting it as a corpus separatum under the administration of the United Nations."[66] The international regime was to remain in force for a period of ten years, whereupon a referendum was to be held in which the residents of Jerusalem were to decide the future regime of the city. (Jerusalem had a Jewish majority both in 1948 and in 1958.)[67] However, this plan was not implemented as the Haganah and the Jordanian Arab Legion fought for control of the city. On May 28, the Arab Legion gained control over the Old City; all of its Jewish inhabitants were either taken prisoner or handed over to the Red Cross to be permanently transferred to Israeli-controlled areas.[68] The 1948 War occasioned massive displacement of Arab and Jewish populations shifting space in conjunction with shifts in control. Due to mob and militia violence on both sides, 1,500 of the 3,500 (mostly ultra-Orthodox) Jews in the Old City moved to west Jerusalem as a unit. The Arab town of Lifta (today within the bounds of Jerusalem) was captured by the nascent Israeli troops in 1948, and its residents were loaded on trucks and taken to East Jerusalem.[69] [70][71] In addition to the depopulation of thousands of Arabs from Jerusalem's surrounding villages of Lifta, Deir Yassin, Ein Karem, and al-Maliha, all predominantly Arab urban centers ringing the western side of Jerusalem's old city were transferred to Israeli control (i.e. Talbiya, al-Qatamon, upper and lower Baqa'a, Mamilla, and Abu-Tur-Musrara).[72] [73] [edit] 1949-67: Divided city
At the end of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Jerusalem was left divided between Israel and Jordan (then known as Transjordan). The ceasefire line established through the Armistice Agreement of 1949 between Israel and Jordan, cut through the center of the city, and left Mount Scopus as an Israeli exclave. Barbed wire and checkpoints divided the city, and military skirmishes frequently threatened the cease-fire. Contrary to the terms of the Armistice Agreement of 1949 between Jordan and Israel, Israelis were denied access to Jewish holy sites, many of which were desecrated, and only allowed extremely limited access to Christian holy sites.[74][75] In 1949, Israel designated West Jerusalem as its capital, and in 1950 Jordan formally annexed East Jerusalem and declared the Palestinian Arab population to be Jordanian citizens. This move was not internationally recognized. In 1951 the Jordanian King Abdullah was assassinated by a Palestinian while visiting the city. [edit] 1967 unification of Jerusalem
During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel captured East Jerusalem and asserted sovereignty over the entire city. Jewish access to holy sites was restored, while the Temple Mount remained under the jurisdiction of the Islamic waqf. The slum neighborhood [76]around the Western Wall was razed [77]to provide access for the throngs of Jews who were now able to pray there for the first time since 1948.[78]New neighborhoods and suburbs were built, and the city passed a law in 1980 declaring united Jerusalem the capital of Israel.[79] The demolition of the Moroccan Quarter, or Harat Magharibah, as it was known, on June 10, 1967, led to the eviction of 100 families, who were given two hours notice to leave their houses. This expansion of the Jewish quarter and other attempts to alter the physical and demographic landscape were censured, [80] and UNSC resolution 478, declared the assertion of sovereignty to be "null and void." Resolution 478 was preceded by a number of resolutions "recalling the principle that acquisition of territory by military conquest is inadmissible" and condemning Israeli actions in the occupied portion of the city,[81] and followed by an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice which found that under Customary international law "Israel has continued to have the status of occupying Power" in that area.[82]Since 1967, Jerusalem has expanded its boundaries and established a ring of Jewish neighbourhoods on unoccupied land beyond the Green Line. Municipal policies on housing construction in East Jerusalem have been criticized as discriminatory: permits in Arab areas are said to be difficult to acquire.[83] The Palestinians hope to establish the capital of a future Palestinian state in some or all of Jerusalem (القـُدْس, Al-Quds.)[84][85] [11] At the Camp David 2000 summit Israel offered to assign areas of predominantly Arab population in East Jerusalem to the Palestinian Authority in return for the annexation of Jewish settlements to Israel proper while the Palestinian delegation took the position that the 1949 cease-fire line must be the international border; an impasse which led in part to the breakdown in negotiations and the Second Intifada. At the follow-up Taba Summit the delegations agreed in principle to an open city with Palestinian sovereignty over mostly Arab neighbourhoods and Israeli sovereignty over mostly Jewish ones. The status of the city and of its holy places remains a core issue in the conflict. [edit] Geography
Jerusalem is situated around on the southern spur of a plateau in the Judean Mountains, which include the Mount of Olives (East) and Mount Scopus (North East). The elevation of the Old City is approximately 760 m.[86] The whole of Jerusalem is surrounded by valleys and dry riverbeds (wadis), although those to the north are less pronounced than those on the other sides. Three of the most prominent valleys in the region, the Kidron, Hinnom, and Tyropoeon Valleys, intersect in an area just south of the Old City of Jerusalem.[87] The Kidron Valley runs just to the east of the Old City and separates the Mount of Olives from the city proper. Along the southern side of old Jerusalem is the Valley of Hinnom, a steep ravine associated in Biblical eschatology with the concept of Gehenna or hell.[88] A third valley commenced in the northwest near the present-day location of Damascus Gate, ran south-southeasterly through the center of the Old City down to the Pool of Siloam, and divided the lower part into two hills, the Temple Mount to the east, and the rest of the city to the west (the lower and the upper cities described by Josephus). Today, this valley, the Tyropoeon Valley, is mostly hidden from view due to the amount of debris that has accumulated within the ravine over the past few millennia.[87] Jerusalem is 60 kilometers (37 mi)[89] east of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea. On the opposite side of the city, approximately 35 kilometers (22 mi)[90] away, is the Dead Sea, the lowest body of water on Earth. Neighboring cities and towns include Bethlehem and Beit Jala to the south, Abu Dis and Ma'ale Adumim to the east, Mevaseret Zion to the west, and Ramallah and Giv'at Ze'ev to the north.[91][92][93] 
[edit] ClimateThe city is characterized by a Mediterranean climate, with hot, dry summers, warm to cool spring and autumn, and cool, wet winters. Significant snowfall occurs every couple of winters, with trace snow in 4 out of 5 winters on average. January is the coldest month of the year, with an average monthly temperature of 8 °C (46 °F). July and August are the hottest months, with an average monthly temperature of 23 °C (73 °F).[94] Temperatures vary widely from day to night, and Jerusalem evenings are typically cool even in summer. The average annual precipitation is close to 590 millimetres (23 in) with rain occurring mostly between October and May.[94]
Most of the air pollution in Jerusalem comes from vehicular traffic, especially in East Jerusalem.[96] Many main streets in Jerusalem were not built to accommodate such a large volume of traffic, leading to traffic congestion and more carbon monoxide released into the air. Industrial pollution inside the city is sparse, but emissions from factories on the Israeli Mediterranean coast can travel eastward and settle over the city.[96][97] [edit] Development plans(Below is a partial listing of important plans in the city center. See end of article for listing of neighborhoods and settlements of Jerusalem, or see List of places in Jerusalem.) Kikar Ha Chatulim, Museum of Human Dignity: Kikar Ha Chatulim is a small square in the immediate vicinity of the West Jerusalem city center, Zion Square, a few minute's walk from the Old City. The American Jewish institution, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, has launched the development of a 'Museum of Tolerance and Human Dignity' modeled after its media-based Hollywood-style museum in Los Angeles, to be located adjacent to Independence Park on the grounds of Mamilla cemetery,[98] largely regarded as the most important Muslim cemetery in the region.[99] Frank Gehry has designed the future museum in the theme of a fruit bowl.[100] The plan has elicited a considerable outcry from many in the Israeli archaeologist community as well as Muslim authorities, and has been stayed several times by the courts. It has also been critiqued for its emphasis on tolerance amongst Jews (rather than Palestinians and Israelis) and for the Simon Wiesenthal Center's lack of transparency throughout the process.[101][102] The museum is due for completion in 2009.[103] Mamilla Complex: As of 2004, the former Mizrahi ghetto of Mamilla, directly adjacent to the Old City's Jaffa Gate, was in the process of redevelopment into an elite complex with luxury apartments and a shopping center.[104] During the construction stage the project significantly altered the layout of downtown Jerusalem; as of 2008, the project was still under construction. Silwan, City of David: An archaeological park in conjunction with new Jewish settlement are currently under construction in Silwan, a Palestinian neighborhood of 45,000 located directly southeast of the Old City. On maps issued by the Israeli government and organizations, part of Silwan is labeled "City of David" (Ir David in Hebrew). Since Israel gained control over East Jerusalem in 1967, Jewish settler organizations have sought to root a Jewish presence in Silwan. In particular the ElAd Foundation, a settler organization,[105] was established in 1986[106] with the aim of constructing a modern-day "City of David" in the Palestinian village of Silwan. The State of Israel has entrusted full responsibility and control over the archaeological sites in Silwan to ElAd, which has destroyed Palestinian archaeological findings[107] and conducted excavations in the midst of Palestinian properties.[108] Writes The Times Online, according to Israeli anti-settlement campaigners, "Jewish settler groups are digging an extensive tunnel network under Muslim areas of Jerusalem's Old City while building a ring of settlements around it to bolster their claim to the disputed city in any future peace deal."[109] In 2005, the Israeli government announced plans to demolish 88 Palestinian homes in Al-Bustan neighborhood[110] to make way for ElAd's planned archaeological park. Over the years 50 Jewish families have moved into the area and more are being recruited.[111] As of April 2008, the Israeli High Court had issued a temporary order staying further construction of the Ir David archaelogical park for the time being.[112] However in May 2008, the Jerusalem municipality began "the process of approving a plan for a new housing complex, including a synagogue, in the heart of the Arab neighborhood of Silwan south of the Old City."[113] [edit] Demographics
In May 2007, Jerusalem had a population of 743,000, of whom 68% were Jewish, 30% were Muslim, and 2% were Christian, and a population density of 5,750.4 inhabitants per square kilometer (14,893.5/sq mi).[3][114] In 2005, Jerusalem received 2,850 immigrants, with nearly three quarters of them arriving from the United States, France, and former members of the Soviet Union. Within Israel, emigrants from Jerusalem outnumber immigrants to the city. In 2005, over ten thousand Israelis migrated to Jerusalem while over sixteen thousand left the city.[3] The population of Jerusalem, however, continues to rise due to high birth rates, especially among the Arab and Haredi Jewish communities (whose birth rates are higher than the Israeli national average). Consequently, the total fertility rate in Jerusalem (4.02) is far higher than those of comparable cities in the region such as Tel Aviv (1.98) and well above the national average of 2.90. Similarly, the average size of Jerusalem's 180,000 households is 3.8 people.[3] In 2005, the total number of residents in Jerusalem grew by approximately 13,000 (1.8%) — similar to Israeli national average. However, as the city has continued to grow, the religious and ethnic composition of Jerusalem has proceeded to shift. Although children under age fifteen account for 31% of the Jewish population, they account for 42% of the Arab one.[3] These recent data corroborate the observation that the percentage of Jews in Jerusalem has been declining over the past four decades. In 1967, the year of the Six-Day War, Jews accounted for 74 percent of the population, which is nine percent more than 2006.[115] Explanations for this decline are the soaring cost of housing in Jerusalem, the smaller job market and the growing religious character of the city. Many young people are moving to the suburbs and coastal cities in search of cheaper housing and the more secular lifestyle offered by other cities.[116] Demographics and the Jewish-Arab population divide continue to play a major role in the dispute over Jerusalem. In 1998, the Jerusalem Development Authority proposed expanding city limits to the west to include more areas heavily populated with Jews.[117] [edit] Local government
The Jerusalem City Council has thirty-one elected members, one of whom is the mayor. The mayor serves a five-year term and appoints six deputies. The current mayor of Jerusalem, Uri Lupolianski was elected in 2003.[118] Apart from the mayor and his deputies, City Council members receive no salaries and work on a voluntary basis. The longest-serving Jerusalem mayor was Teddy Kollek, who spent twenty-eight years — six consecutive terms — in office. Most of the meetings of the Jerusalem City Council are private, but each month, it holds a session that is open to the public.[118] Within the city council, religious political parties form an especially powerful faction, accounting for the majority of its seats.[119] The headquarters of the Jerusalem Municipality and the mayor's office are at Safra Square (Kikar Safra) on Jaffa Road. The new municipal complex, comprising two modern buildings and ten renovated historic buildings surrounding a large plaza, opened in 1993.[120] The city falls under the Jerusalem District, with Jerusalem as the district's capital. [edit] Capital of Israel
By Israeli law, Jerusalem is the de-jure capital of Israel, and de-facto contains the parliament, government offices, Supreme Court, President's quarters, and Prime Ministers's quarters. However Jerusalem has not been recognized internationally as the capital of Israel. Many countries see Jerusalem as equally the capital of the future Palestinian state, or view the city as a shared international heritage site that should be governed by a range of stakeholders locally and worldwide. On December 5, 1949, the State of Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, proclaimed Jerusalem as Israel's capital[121] and since then all branches of the Israeli government — legislative, judicial, and executive — have resided there.[122] At the time of the proclamation, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan and thus only West Jerusalem was considered Israel's capital. Immediately after the 1967 Six-Day War, however, Israel annexed East Jerusalem, making it a de facto part of the Israeli capital. Israel enshrined the status of the "complete and united" Jerusalem — west and east — as its capital, in the 1980 Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel.[79] 
The status of a "united Jerusalem" as Israel's "eternal capital"[123][121] has been a matter of immense controversy within the international community. Although some countries maintain consulates in Jerusalem, and two maintain embassies in Jerusalem suburbs, all embassies are located outside of the city proper, mostly in Tel Aviv.[124][125] The non-binding United Nations Security Council Resolution 478, passed on August 20, 1980, declared that the Basic Law was "null and void and must be rescinded forthwith." Member states were advised to withdraw their diplomatic representation from the city as a punitive measure. Most of the remaining countries with embassies in Jerusalem complied with the resolution by relocating them to Tel Aviv, where many embassies already resided prior to Resolution 478. Currently there are no embassies located within the city limits of Jerusalem, although there are embassies in Mevaseret Zion, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, and four consulates in the city itself.[124] In 1995, the United States Congress had planned to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem with the passage of the Jerusalem Embassy Act.[126] However, U.S. presidents, including President Bush and President Clinton, have argued that Congressional resolutions regarding the status of Jerusalem are merely advisory. The Constitution reserves foreign relations as an executive power, and as such, the US embassy is still in Tel Aviv.[127] Israel's most prominent governmental institutions, including the Knesset,[128] the Supreme Court,[129] and the official residences of the President and Prime Minister, are located in Jerusalem. [edit] Palestinian claims
Prior to the creation of the State of Israel, Jerusalem served as the administrative capital of the British Mandate of Palestine, which included present-day Israel and Jordan.[130] From 1949 until 1967, West Jerusalem served as Israel's capital but was not recognized internationally as Israel's capital, because UN General Assembly Resolution 194 ruled Jerusalem an international city. As a result of the Six-Day War in 1967, the whole of Jerusalem came under Israeli control. According to the Oslo Accords, the final status of Jerusalem should be determined by peaceful negotiations, as the Palestinian National Authority sees East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.[13] Orient House was the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization in the 1980s and 1990s, but is currently closed.[131] [edit] Culture
Although Jerusalem is known around the world for its religious significance, the city is also home to many artistic and cultural venues. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem's premier art museum, annually attracts nearly one million visitors, approximately one-third of them international tourists.[132] The twenty-acre museum complex comprises several buildings featuring special exhibits and extensive collections of Judaica, archaeological findings, and Israeli and European art. The Dead Sea scrolls, discovered in the mid-twentieth century in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea, are housed in the Museum's Shrine of the Book.[133] The Youth Wing, which mounts changing exhibits and runs an extensive art education program, is visited by 100,000 children a year. The museum has a large outdoor sculpture garden, and a scale-model of the Second Temple was recently moved from the Holyland Hotel to a new location on the museum grounds.[132] Other museums affiliated with the Israel Museum are the Rockefeller Archaeological Museum, | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
