KING SOLOMON: The Wisdom of Israel's Own

For Thanksgiving, with my thoughts on our brethren in Israel, I am reposting one from my archive that was inspired by my friend Shlomi in Israel.  My prayers are for him and his family, and all of Israel, this Thanksgiving.  May G-d remember His beloved Israel and protect them from His enemies.  As always, we Stand With Israel and are eternally #4Zion - WARCHICK

KING SOLOMONTHE WISDOM OF ISRAEL'S OWN

By Resa LaRu Kirkland

 

 

 

 

 

***Originally printed at Etherzone October 8, 2003***

 

 

 

There is hope for the Middle East. I truly believe that.

Why? Because Israel is a good land, made up of good people…and while the behavior of Islam raises only my ire and disgust, Israel’s behavior gives me hope.

I have a friend named Shlomi, an officer in the IDF in Israel, about whom I deeply care. I lovingly refer to Shlomi as "King Solomon," because his name in Hebrew means "Solomon," and because he is wise, and kind. Shlomi has taught me to have hope as he has explained the Israeli perspective, he has taught me humility with his own admissions of fear, hate, and sorrow, and his words touch me too deeply to keep to myself:

 

 

It started during my officer’s course- the 1^st uprising of Palestinians in Israel, March 1989; the name "Intifada" was still unknown. We were called to bring back order to a violent neighborhood called Anab’ta. It was my 1^st encounter with hate, from both sides.

 

 

The Arab population seemed like it was full of hate. Shouting at us, calling as names, throwing stones, everything. Friends of mine, still very young, trained as soldiers, educated as officers, but doing something that reminded us of a police job – controlling local population. We were confused. The orders that were given to us were still a blur.

 

 

Then a friend of mine got hit with a stone on his face. He was bleeding real bad and was sent to a hospital, where we found out that he lost his left eye. All the blood and the pain of a hurt friend lit up the fire of hate among us too…They were violent and so were we…I was amazed that such feelings were also inside of me…

 

 

During the 1^st Intifada I was subjected to horrible stuff – kids with mother’s milk on their lips throwing stones with so much hate in their eyes…my driver hit by an 8 pound stone, policemen spraying pepper gas upon a prisoner’s face, an old man forced to clean up hatful graffiti on the wall, and more.

 

 

But I also found some stuff that lit my hope. An Arab psychologist that really welcomed us while we did a search in his house and told me stuff about psychology that later on made me choose it as my bachelor degree…A soldier giving a kid that was caught throwing stones a candy since he was more hungry than hateful. An old Arab and his wife that welcomed us and gave us tea and cigars during a patrol in his neighborhood; later on I found out that he was a Marine in the states and he knew what we were going through. I realized that in every culture there are pleasant people, but we hear and see and encounter only the extremists…

 

 

As an officer I was sent to do a one-year tour with the 9^th battalion that was located near Jericho. It was a Merkava 2B battalion (tanks unit) with about 400 officers and soldiers. Located near one of the biggest Muslim Arab cities, our encounters with the local people were on a daily basis. They walked on the road near the camp, we passed their houses and stores on the way to the base, sharing bus stops, and more. There was always some tension in the air. After all – the man or woman sitting next to you is an Arab – is he/she full of hate? Are you sitting near your enemy? You could never tell…

 

 

 

One day, a jeep with 4 soldiers aboard it went outside the camp, heading towards the brigade. About 200 yards from the camp the jeep took a tight corner too fast and it crashed just beside the road. The driver and one of the soldiers were OK but in shock. 2 soldiers were wounded but nothing too harsh. A local car with an old Arab man in it saw what happened and came to help out. He started bandaging one of the hurt soldiers in order to stop the blood running. The driver, still in shock, saw the Arab man, the wounded soldier, the blood, and panicked. He took out his rifle and pointed it to the Arab man’s head shouting for him to let go of his friend. The man did that and lifted his hands above his head. The other two soldiers witnessed the whole thing and were afraid that the driver might do something wrong. They grabbed the driver and dragged him to the floor. The Arab guy did not escape, he continued wrapping the soldier’s wounded arm and used his cellular phone to call for help…

 

 

On the way to battalion camp, we always paused to rest a bit at Ibrahim’s restaurant. The owner of the restaurant was a big Arab, always smiling, always kind, named Ibrahim. He was about 50 years old. Sometimes his kids served those who came to the restaurant. The Humus he made was so good that people from all over the country came to taste it. His place was always filled with tourists that paused from sight-seeing Jericho’s ruins and soldiers on their way to the base (the soldiers enjoyed the good food and also drooled over the hot blond female tourists who came to the restaurant)!

 

 

One day a group of local extremists thought that his restaurant was a pretty good place to collide with the soldiers attending the place. They grabbed stones and waited for the soldiers to come out of the diner. About 10 soldiers came out of the restaurant and headed towards the bus waiting to take them to the bases.

 

 

A shower of stones hit them on the spot. They were too far from the bus to run for cover. While they had m-16s and Galils rifles, they didn’t want to use them, not yet. They knew that their weapons were more deadly than any stone and if they used their arms, Arab people might die and the world would tumble…

 

 

They escaped back to the diner taking cover from the stones. The extremists gathered a mob outside the diner. There were at least 300 people outside waiting for the soldiers to come out.

 

 

Ibrahim decided to help out. He went out to meet the mob and tried to calm them down. He talked with them for a while, at the same time the soldiers skipped out from the kitchen entrance (as Ibrahim had directed them to do) and ran to the bus. While Ibrahim was still talking to the mob, the bus started to move out and the mob started running after it to throw stones. The soldiers were saved and no one was killed.

 

 

That night an unknown hand burned the diner, and Ibrahim was slaughtered in his bed at home. The black remains of the diner stood silent for many years on one side of the road, Jericho’s main ruins on the other. Both are monuments for brave people….

 

 

Given the events of this past weekend, Shlomi is an even more remarkable man. Let’s face it…99% of the time, Islam is the aggressor, and Israel’s innocent civilians suffer its wrath. Israel wishes only to live and let live…Islam will not rest until they are dust. Israel has taken a tiny strip of desert and made it blossom as a rose…Islamic nations are backward and their populace poor in spite of being the richest oil-producing regions on earth…Israel attacks only those who attack them…Islam attacks families sitting down to dinner. Shlomi speaks of Arabs who died to save him…the Palestinian Prime Minister says he "will not listen to America, I will listen to our national rights." Pretty kind talk from one of the most ancient, significant, and persecuted of lands in human history… pretty big talk for a nation that doesn’t even exist

It is plain to the intellect and the spirit who has been called of God, and from whom He has withheld His blessings.

And yet….

…Shlomi sees good in his enemy, hope for his foe, kind faces among his adversary. He recognizes his own flaws before condemning the enemy’s, and his Kingly wisdom is countered with Godly compassion. "King Solomon" is why I have hope for the Middle East…because in the face of inexplicable hatred and indescribable savagery, he who is the object of the rage chooses compassion and hope. While the wretched UN and all but America utter the hypocrisy of condemning the beat-ee for daring to defend himself against the beat-er, I grow in my love for a just people, and fight with a vigor to keep America on the side of these brethren who choose the right.

Israel will win, because they are right, because they are just, because they are good…and because they have King Solomon on their side. Israel, Israel, God is calling…you have listened, and I pray America will as well, and choose your side. I know I have.

Keep the faith, bros, and in all things courage.


G-d bless Israel and America, Judah and Joseph, forever and ever, amen.



Let there be NO doubt where I stand

A re-run from 2003...worth repeating!

WHY I PROUDLY WEAR THE STAR OF DAVID
By:  Resa LaRu Kirkland

I stand with Israel. I said it, I mean it and I don't care who knows it.

My reason is the best one of all – because not only is it right, but because Israel is right, and Islam – and for that matter, anyone who lines up against Israel – is so wickedly wrong.

Look at some harsh facts here. First, the land of Israel has been the target of Arab nations since its recent re-inception in 1948 – yes, in spite of People Magazine's claims this past year, it did exist before the 20th century – and Jews in general worldwide since the 1920s. Not only does Islam and the entire Arab world despise with a red-hot hatred the nation and people of Israel, they go beyond that by refusing to recognize Israel's right to exist! That is not only in outright defiance of logic and reason, it is way in the outfield of any token of sanity. Hating them is one thing ... refusing to recognize the first inalienable right – the right to life – is sheer madness. Standing with Israel and against Islam, therefore, becomes a matter of sanity vs. insanity.

By this first reason, Islam is meshuga – crazy.

Second, Islam's religion specifically states that in order to be a member in good standing, in order to please Allah, they must kill not just Jews, but all Israel, and anyone who supports Israel. For those of you who have forgotten, Israel encompassed 12 brothers, of which Judah was only one. There are 11 other brothers out there, and given the massive branches that the House of Israel has, I am willing to bet that there isn't a modern-day people outside of the Arab world who doesn't have lineage back to the House of Israel somewhere within their genealogy. That means that eventually, Islam's ire could – and given their history, will – be turned against you and me. Standing with Israel and against Islam, therefore, is a matter of self-preservation.

By this second reason, Islam is our oyev – enemy – a fact they have proven in attacks against America at home and abroad.

Third, it is an absolute impossibility to separate Judaism from Christianity. I know many Christians who have tried, but they can never get past a certain point ... the birth of Jesus Christ. There never would have been Christianity without Judaism first, because the man at the center of Christianity was born through Judah's line and raised in the Jewish religion. Judaism is the foundation of Christian belief, and if you remove the foundation, the rest cannot stand.

My Jewish friends have asked me why I, as a Christian, am so fervent in my devotion to Judaism and Israel. It is because we really aren't that different in what we believe. When you get past the different prayers, chants and religious rhetoric, the foundation of both is exactly analogous: Both religions believe that the Son of God – the Messiah – will be born through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, through Jacob's son Judah, and that He will come to save us. Christians believe He has already been born and is coming for the second time; Jews believe He has yet to be born. The only difference in this basic cornerstone of both religious beliefs is the timing.

By this third reason, standing with Israel is a matter of emunah – faith, and achvah – brotherhood.

My fourth reason became even clearer in recent times. Two years ago, I met a dear woman I have grown to love named Andy, and it is she who inspired this article. Andy is Jewish, and her son Michael has chosen to go to Israel and fight for the Israeli Defense Force. How is it that a boy raised in North America in American neighborhoods playing Nintendo chose to fight for Israel?

Some would say it is because he is a Jew. I say it is because Michael – taught by a good mother – knew that Israel was not the aggressor, not the evil one here. Michael – taught by a wise mother – has a soul that recognizes justice. Michael chose a life dedicated to the fight for right. Way to go, Andy.


By this fourth reason, fighting for Israel is mutsdak – justified, by a mother's torot – teachings, and a son's unselfish brayrah – choice.

Then there is the plethora of reasons such as the constant attacks by Palestinians / Islam against the civilians of Israel – not the IDF or military targets, but everyday people going to work, school, or to play – the regular promises to stop said perpetrators, only to stall for time and attack again, and their illogical justifications of igniting the world's anger against Jews when Israel has the nerve to defend itself. Israel has shown remarkable restraint despite being surrounded and vastly out-numbered by a backward and vicious people hell-bent on their annihilation.

Six months ago, I bought a small, sterling silver Star of David to wear around my neck. You see, not only do I fully support Israel because they are right, but because I, too, come through that mighty House. If you'll travel back in time for a moment to Sunday School, it should ring a bell in your mind that Judah had a little brother named Joseph. You remember him ... kind of a dreamer, dressed colorfully, held a high political office (eventually) in Egypt, and saved his family from a devastating famine? I come through his line, through his son Ephraim. So if Islam succeeds in destroying Judah, what will stop them from next targeting Joseph? Or Levi? Or Gad? Or Dan? Or the tribe from which you descended?

The truth of this is that Israel has been repeatedly attacked and murdered by one evil enemy after another – between communism and Islam, they should have died out long ago. But they didn't. They have not only survived, they have flourished. Why? How is this possible when so many have plotted and sought their demise? They are so much smaller than those who want them wiped off the face of the earth ... what has kept them so resilient?

That one is easy: God. You see, unlike Jimmy Carter, I do believe that God, being on the side of Israel, is more than enough reason to support them. God has made it abundantly clear that He is madly in love with the line of Judah, and terrifyingly clear what will happen to anyone – including us – who raises their hand against His chosen. Face it, Hamas ... God has chosen, and it ain't you.

But even without God, here are the facts: It is Muslims who have repeatedly broken the cease fire. It is Muslims who have repeatedly attacked – unprovoked, no less – the peaceful Israel night. It is Muslims who have made it abundantly clear that they will only be stilled when Israel is no more. It is Islam, people, not Israel.

Israel has consistently gone above and beyond; Islam has proven that they will sink to the lowest depths. The writing is on the wall as to who is most definitely in the right here. I can read and comprehend – it is plain to see and time to choose sides. As for me and my house, we stand with Israel – not because we fear God, but because we love Him, because He loves Israel and because Israel is in the right.

So given the recent – and fully deserved – response by Israel to that evil bombing by Hamas, I have these words: Ani itach Yisra'el – I am with you, Israel.

And to the wretched Palestinians who continue to break the cease fire, I also have some words: Lech La'azazel – Go to hell.

Keep the faith, bros, and in all things courage.

Ahem...Jerusalem is Israel's Capital!

FROM WIKIPEDIA:


Jerusalem (Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם‎‎ (audio) (help·info), Yerushaláyim, ISO 259-3 Yrušalaym, "Abode of Peace"; Arabic: القُدس (audio) (help·info), al-Quds [al-Sharif], "The Holy Sanctuary", أُورشَلِيم, Ūrshalīm)^[ii] is the capital of Israel, though not internationally recognized as such.^[iii] If the area and population of East Jerusalemlargest city^[1] in both population and area,^[2] with a population of 763,800 residents over an area of 125.1 km² (48.3 sq mi).^[3][4][iv] Located in the Judean Mountains, between the Mediterranean Sea and the northern edge of the Dead Sea, modern Jerusalem has grown far beyond the boundaries of the Old City.

Note the wording...see anything at all about the phony baloney, don't even exist Palestinians?  "Israel's capital," "Israel's Largest City."

During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times.^[12] The oldest part of the city was settled in the 4th millennium BCE, making Jerusalem one of the oldest cities in the world.^[13] The old walled city, a World Heritage site, has been traditionally divided into four quarters, although the names used today—the Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Quarters—were introduced in the early 19th century.^[14] The Old City was nominated for inclusion on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger by Jordan in 1982.^[15]

Today, the status of Jerusalem remains one of the core issues in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. After the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel annexed East Jerusalem (which was controlled by Jordan following the 1948 war) and considers it a part of Israel, although the international community has rejected the annexation as illegal and considers East Jerusalem to be Palestinian territory held by Israel under military occupation.^{[16][17][18][19]}Jerusalem Law of 1980. Israel, however, considers the entire city to be a part of Israel following its annexation of East Jerusalem through the

Settled in the 4th BC, one of the oldest cities in the world...Jerusalem, NOT Al Quds.


All branches of the Israeli government are located in Jerusalem, including the Knesset (Israel's parliament), the residences of the Prime Minister and President, and the Supreme Court. Jerusalem is home to the Hebrew University and to the Israel Museum with its Shrine of the Book. The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo has ranked consistently as Israel's top tourist attraction for Israelis.<sup>[23][24]

Couldn't be anymore clear than if it was made up of God's water supply.</sup> 

A city called Rušalimum or Urušalimum (Foundation of Shalem)^[25] appears in ancient Egyptian records as the first two references to Jerusalem, in c. 2000 BCE and c. 1330 BCE respectively.^[26][27][28] The form Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) first appears in the Bible, in the book of Joshua. This form has the appearance of a portmanteau (blend) of Yireh (an abiding place of the fear and the service of God)^[29] and the original root S-L-M and is not a simple phonetic evolution of the form in the Amarna letters. The meaning of the common root S-L-M is unknown but is thought to refer to either "peace" (Salam or Shalom in modern Arabic and Hebrew) or Shalim, the god of dusk in the Canaanite religion.<sup>[30][31][32]

Where in the koran is Jerusalem or AlQuds mentioned?</sup> 

Ceramic evidence indicates the occupation of City of David, within present-day Jerusalem, as far back as the Copper Age (c. 4th millennium BCE),^[13][44] with evidence of a permanent settlement during the early Bronze Age (c. 3000–2800 BCE).^[44][45] The Execration Texts (c. 19th century BCE), which refer to a city called Roshlamem or Rosh-ramen^[44] and the Amarna letters (c. 14th century BCE) may be the earliest mention of the city.^[46][47] Some archaeologists, including Kathleen Kenyon, believe Jerusalem^[48] as a city was founded by Northwest 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 ("Salem") when first mentioned is ruled by Melchizedek, an ally of Abraham (identified with Shem in legend). Later, in the time of Joshua, Jerusalem lay within territory allocated to the tribe of Benjamin (Joshua 18:28), but continued to be under the independent control of the Jebusites until it was conquered by David and made into the capital of the united Kingdom of Israel (c. 11th century BCE).^[49][50][v] Recent excavations of a Large Stone Structure and a nearby Stepped Stone Structure are widely believed^{[by whom?]} to be the remains of King David's palace. The excavations have been interpreted by some archaeologists as lending credence to the biblical narrative.^[51]
According to Hebrew scripture, King David reigned until 970 BCE. He was succeeded by his son Solomon,^[52] 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.^[53] For more than 400 years, until the Babylonian conquest in 587 BCE, Jerusalem was the political capital of the united Kingdom of Israel and then the Kingdom of Judah. During this period, known as the First Temple Period,^[54] the Temple was the religious center of the Israelites.^[55] On 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.^[56]
When the Assyrians conquered the Kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE, Jerusalem was strengthened by a great influx of refugees from the northern kingdom. The First Temple period ended around 586 BCE, as the Babylonians conquered Judah and Jerusalem, and laid waste to Solomon's Temple.^[54] In 538 BCE, after 50 years of Babylonian captivity, Persian King Cyrus the Great invited the Jews to return to Judah to rebuild the Temple.^[57] Construction of the Second Temple was completed in 516 BCE, during the reign of Darius the Great, 70 years after the destruction of the First Temple.^[58][59] In about 445 BCE, King Artaxerxes I of Persia issued a decree allowing the city and the walls to be rebuilt.^[60] Jerusalem resumed its role as capital of Judah and center of Jewish worship.

No commentary necessary.

With the annexation of Jerusalem by Muhammad Ali of Egypt in 1831, foreign missions and consulates began to establish a foothold in the city. In 1836, Ibrahim Pasha allowed Jerusalem's Jewish residents to restore four major synagogues, among them the Hurva.^[89] In the 1834 Arab revolt in Palestine, Qasim al-Ahmad led his forces from Nablus and attacked Jerusalem, aided by the Abu Ghosh clan, entered the city on May 31, 1834. The Christians and Jews of Jerusalem were subjected to attacks. Ibrahim's Egyptian army routed Qasim's forces in Jerusalem the following month.^[90]

Ben-Zakai Synagogue in 1893

Ottoman rule was reinstated in 1840, but many Egyptian Muslims remained in Jerusalem and Jews from Algiers and North Africa began to settle in the city in growing numbers.^[89] In the 1840s and 1850s, the international powers began a tug-of-war in Palestine as they sought to extend their protection over the region's religious minorities, a struggle carried out mainly through consular representatives in Jerusalem.^[91] According to the Prussian consul, the population in 1845 was 16,410, with 7,120 Jews, 5,000 Muslims, 3,390 Christians, 800 Turkish soldiers and 100 Europeans.^[89] The volume of Christian pilgrims increased under the Ottomans, doubling the city's population around Easter time.^[92]
In the 1860s, new neighborhoods began to develop outside the Old City walls to house pilgrims and relieve the intense overcrowding and poor sanitation inside the city. The Russian Compound and Mishkenot Sha'ananim were founded in 1860.^[93] In 1867 an American Missionary reports an estimated population of Jerusalem of 'above' 15,000, with 4,000 to 5,000 Jews and 6,000 Muslims. Every year there were 5,000 to 6,000 Russian Christian Pilgrims.^[94]

British Mandate

Further information: British Mandate of Palestine

General Edmund Allenby enters the Old City of Jerusalem on December 11, 1917

In 1917 after the Battle of Jerusalem, the British Army, led by General Edmund Allenby, captured the city,^[95]League of Nations at the Conference of Lausanne entrusted the United Kingdom to administer the Mandate for Palestine, the neighbouring mandate of Transjordan to the east across the River Jordan, and the Iraq Mandate beyond it. and in 1922, the
From 1922 to 1948 the total population of the city rose from 52,000 to 165,000 with two thirds of Jews and one-third of Arabs (Muslims and Christians).^[96] The situation between Arabs and Jews in Palestine was not quiet. In Jerusalem, in particular, riots occurred in 1920 and in 1929. Under the British, new garden suburbs were built in the western and northern parts of the city^[97][98] and institutions of higher learning such as the Hebrew University were founded.^[99]

Division and reunification 1948–1967

Further information: 1947-1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and Siege of Jerusalem (1948)

See also: UN General Assembly Resolution 194, Occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan, and East Jerusalem

Israeli policemen meet a Jordanian Legionnaire near the Mandelbaum Gate

As the British Mandate for Palestine was expiring, the 1947 UN Partition Plan 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."^[100] The international regime (which also included the city of Bethlehem) was to remain in force for a period of ten years, whereupon a referendum was to be held in which the residents were to decide the future regime of their city. However, this plan was not implemented, as the 1948 war erupted, while the British withdrew from Palestine and Israel declared its independence.^[101] The war led to displacement of Arab and Jewish populations in the city. The 1,500 residents of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City were expelled and a few hundred taken prisoner when the Arab Legion captured the quarter on 28 May.^[102][103] The Arab Legion also attacked Western Jerusalem with snipers.^[104] Arab residents of Katamon, Talbiya, and the German Colony were driven from their homes. By the end of the war Israel had control of 12 of Jerusalem's 15 Arab residential quarters. An estimated minimum of 30,000 people had become refugees.^[105][106]
The war of 1948 resulted in Jerusalem being divided, with the old walled city lying entirely on the Jordanian side of the line. A no-man's land between East and West Jerusalem came into being in November 1948: Moshe Dayan, commander of the Israeli forces in Jerusalem, met with his Jordanian counterpart Abdullah el Tell in a deserted house in Jerusalem’s Musrara neighborhood and marked out their respective positions: Israel’s position in red and Jordan's in green. This rough map, which was not meant as an official one, became the final line in the 1949 Armistice Agreements, which divided the city and left Mount Scopus as an Israeli exclave inside East Jerusalem.^[107] Barbed wire and concrete barriers ran down the center of the city, passing close by Jaffa Gate on the western side of the old walled city, and a crossing point was established at Mandelbaum Gate slightly to the north of the old walled city. Military skirmishes frequently threatened the ceasefire. After the establishment of the State of Israel, Jerusalem was declared its capital. Jordan formally annexed East Jerusalem in 1950, subjecting it to Jordanian law.^[101][108] Only the United Kingdom and Pakistan formally recognized such annexation, which, in regard to Jerusalem, was on a de facto basis.^{[109][110][111]} Also, it is dubious if Pakistan recognized Jordan's annexation.
After 1948, since the old walled city in its entirety was to the east of the armistice line, Jordan was able to take control of all the holy places therein, and contrary to the terms of the armistice agreement, Israelis were denied access to Jewish holy sites, many of which were desecrated. 34 of the 35 synagogues in the Old City, including the Hurva and the Tiferet Yisrael Synagogue, were destroyed over the course of the next 19 years, either razed or used as stables and hen-houses. Many other historic and religiously significant buildings were replaced by modern structures.^[112] The Jewish Quarter became known as Harat al-Sharaf and was occupied by refugees from the 1948 war. In 1966 the Jordanian authorities relocated 500 of them to the Shua'fat refugee camp as part of plans to redevelop the area.^[113]
Jordan allowed only very limited access to Christian holy sites.^[114] During this period, the Dome of the Rock^[115] and al-Aqsa Mosque underwent major renovations.

Map of East Jerusalem

In 1967, the Six-Day War saw hand to hand fighting between Israeli and Jordanian soldiers on the Temple Mount, and it resulted in Israel capturing East Jerusalem. Hence Jewish and Christian access to the holy sites inside the old walled city was restored, while the Temple Mount remained under the jurisdiction of an Islamic waqf. The Moroccan Quarter, which was located adjacent to the Western Wall, was vacated and razed^[116][117] Since the war, Israel has expanded the city's boundaries and established a ring of Jewish neighbourhoods on land east of the Green Line. Since 1967, Israel has gone to considerable lengths to make the sections of Jerusalem it captured in the Six Day War more Jewish.^[118] to make way for a plaza for those visiting the wall.
However, the takeover of East Jerusalem was met with international criticism. Following the passing of Israel's Jerusalem Law, which declared Jerusalem, "complete and united", the capital of Israel,^[119] the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution that declared the law "a violation of international law" and requested all member states to withdraw all remaining embassies from the city.^[120]

Today

Further information: Positions on Jerusalem

The status of the city, and especially its holy places, remains a core issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Israeli government has approved building plans in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City^[121] in order to expand the Jewish presence in East Jerusalem, while prominent Islamic leaders have made claims that Jews have no historical connection to Jerusalem, alleging that the 2,500-year old Western Wall was constructed as part of a mosque.^[122] Palestinians envision East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state,^[123][124] and the city's borders have been the subject of bilateral talks. A strong longing for peace is symbolized by the Peace Monument (with farming tools made out of scrap weapons), facing the Old City wall near the former Israeli-Jordanian border and quoting from the book of Isaiah in Arabic and Hebrew.<sup>[125]

How could a wall of a group's mosque have existed 2500 years ago when the information above it clearly indicates they did NOT exist?</sup>


Under the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine passed by the United Nations in 1947, Jerusalem was envisaged to become a corpus separatum administered by the United Nations. While the Jewish leaders accepted the partition plan, the Arab leadership (the Arab Higher Committee in Palestine and the Arab League) rejected it, opposing any partition.^[162][163] In the war of 1948, the western part of the city was occupied by forces of the nascent state of Israel, while the eastern part was occupied by Jordan. The international community largely considers the legal status of Jerusalem to derive from the partition plan, and correspondingly refuses to recognize Israeli sovereignty in the city.

Kiryat HaMemshala government complex

On December 5, 1949, the State of Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, proclaimed Jerusalem as Israel's capital,^[164] and since then all branches of the Israeli government—legislative, judicial, and executive—have resided there, except for the Ministry of Defense, located at HaKirya in Tel Aviv.^[165] At the time of the proclamation, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan and thus only West Jerusalem was proclaimed Israel's capital. However, immediately after the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel took control of East Jerusalem, incorporating it into the Jerusalem Municipality, making it a de facto part of the Israel. Israel confirmed its annexation and enshrined the status of the "complete and united" Jerusalem—West and East—as its capital, in the 1980 Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel.^[166] The status of a "united Jerusalem" as Israel's "eternal capital"^[164][167] has been a matter of immense controversy within the international community. Although some countries maintain consulates in Jerusalem, all embassies are located outside the city proper, mostly in Tel Aviv.^[168][169] Due to the non-recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, some non-Israeli press use Tel Aviv as a metonym for Israel.^{[170][171][172][173]}

Supreme Court of Israel

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 Jerusalem 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.^[169] 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.^[174] However, U.S. presidents 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 United States embassy is still in Tel Aviv.^[175]
On 28 October 2009, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned that Jerusalem must be the capital of both Israel and Palestine if peace is to be achieved.^[176]
In 2010, Israel approved legislation giving Jerusalem the highest national priority status in Israel. The law prioritized construction throughout the city, and offered grants and tax benefits to residents to make housing, infrastructure, education, employment, business, tourism, and cultural events more affordable. Communications Minister Moshe Kahlon said that the bill sent "a clear, unequivocal political message that Jerusalem will not be divided", and that "all those within the Palestinian and international community who expect the current Israeli government to accept any demands regarding Israel's sovereignty over it's [sic] capital are mistaken and misleading".^[177]

View of modern Jerusalem

The Israeli government has placed almost all of its institutions in Jerusalem. The city is currently home to the Knesset,^[178] the Supreme Court,^[179] the official residences of the President and Prime Minister, the Cabinet, all ministries except the Ministry of Defense, and the Bank of Israel. Prior to the creation of the State of Israel, Jerusalem served as the administrative capital of the British Mandate for Palestine, which included present-day Israel and Jordan.^[180] From 1949 until 1967, West Jerusalem served as Israel's capital, but was not recognized as such internationally because UN General Assembly Resolution 194 envisaged Jerusalem as an international city. As a result of the Six-Day War in 1967, the whole of Jerusalem came under Israeli control. On June 27, 1967, the government of Levi Eshkol extended Israeli law and jurisdiction to East Jerusalem, but agreed that administration of the Temple Mount compound would be maintained by the Jordanian waqf, under the Jordanian Ministry of Religious Endowments.^[181] In 1988, Israel ordered the closure of Orient House, home of the Arab Studies Society, but also the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization, for security reasons. The building reopened in 1992 as a Palestinian guesthouse.^[182][183] The Oslo Accords stated that the final status of Jerusalem would be determined by negotiations with the Palestinian National Authority, which regards East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.^[20][184] while Benjamin Netanyahu has similarly stated that Jerusalem would remain the undivided capital of Israel. Due to its proximity to the city, especially the Temple Mount, Abu Dis, a Palestinian town bordering Jerusalem, has been proposed as the future capital of a Palestinian state by Israel. Israel has not incorporated Abu Dis within its security wall around Jerusalem. The Palestinian Authority has built a possible future parliament building for the Palestinian Legislative Council in the town, and all its Jerusalem Affairs Offices are also located in Abu Dis.^[185] Mahmoud Abbas has said that any agreement that did not not include East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine would be unacceptable,

^{Absolutely clear...Jerusalem was always set to be the capital, and has ONLY not become so due to #PoliticallyCastrated #Islammunist #fagatronics.  AMEN.}