East Jerusalem

East Jerusalem refers to the parts of Jerusalem captured by Jordan in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and then taken by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War . It includes Jerusalem's Old City and some of the holiest sites of Judaism , Christianity , and Islam , such as the Temple Mount , Western Wall , Al-Aqsa Mosque , and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre . The term "East Jerusalem" may refer to either the area under Jordanian rule between 1949 and 1967 which was incorporated into the municipality of Jerusalem after 1967, covering some 70 km (27 sq mi), or the territory of the pre-1967 Jordanian municipality, covering 6.4 km (2 sq mi). Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War , Jerusalem was divided into two parts—the western portion, populated primarily by Jews, came under Israeli rule, while the eastern portion, populated mainly by Arabs, came under Jordanian rule. Arabs living in such western Jerusalem neighbourhoods as Katamon or Malha were forced to leave; the same fate befell Jews in the eastern areas, including the Old City and Silwan . The only eastern area of the city that remained in Israeli hands throughout the 19 years of Jordanian rule was Mt. Scopus , where the Hebrew University is located, which formed an enclave during that period and therefore is not considered part of East Jerusalem. Despite the Armistice terms guaranteeing access to Holy Sites, under Jordanian control Jews were banned from the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, and all synagogues were demolished. Following the 1967 Six-Day War , the eastern part of Jerusalem came under Israeli rule and was annexed to Jerusalem, together with several neighbouring West Bank villages. In November 1967, the United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 was passed, calling for Israel to withdraw "from territories occupied in the recent conflict". In 1980, the Knesset passed the Jerusalem Law , which declared that "Jerusalem, complete and united, is the capital of Israel", however, without specifying boundaries. This declaration was declared "null and void" by United Nations Security Council Resolution 478 . The term “ East Jerusalem ” is used in three different, incompatible ways: From 1949 to 1967 it referred to the Jordanian part of the city (6.4 km²), just as “West Jerusalem” referred to the Israeli part of the city. In June 1967, after the war, Israel de facto annexed some 70 km (27.03 sq mi ) from the West Bank and Jordanian Jerusalem, and included them in the expanded metropolitan boundary of Jerusalem. The term “East Jerusalem” was applied to the area of the expanded Jerusalem that had been captured by Israel in 1967, which lies north, east and south of the former East Jerusalem. More recently, Israelis use the term “East Jerusalem” to refer only to those areas of Jerusalem which were captured in 1967 and which are inhabited by Arabs (plus Arab industrial areas).

The Arab areas are coloured green while the Jewish areas are blue. East Jerusalem or Eastern Jerusalem ( , ) is the sector of Jerusalem that was not part of Israeli-held West Jerusalem at the end of the 1948-1949 Arab–Israeli War . Israeli and Palestinian definitions of it differ; the Palestinian official position is based on the 1949-1967 post-armistice situation, while the Israeli position is mainly based on the current municipality boundaries of Jerusalem, which resulted from a series of administrative enlargements decided by Israeli municipal authorities since 1967. Despite its name, East Jerusalem includes neighborhoods to the north, east and south of the Old City , and in the wider definition of the term even on all these sides of West Jerusalem. During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War , Jerusalem was contested between Jordan and Israel, and on the cessation of hostilities, the two countries secretly negotiated a division of the city, with the eastern sector coming under Jordanian rule. This arrangement was formalized in the Rhodes Agreement in March 1949. A week after David Ben-Gurion presented his party's assertion that "Jewish Jerusalem is an organic, inseparable part of the State of Israel" in December 1949, Jordan annexed East Jerusalem. These decisions were confirmed respectively in the Knesset in January 1950 and the Jordanian Parliament in April 1950. On being captured by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War , East Jerusalem, with expanded borders, came under Israeli rule. It includes Jerusalem's Old City and some of the holiest sites of Judaism , Christianity , and Islam , such as the Temple Mount , Western Wall , Al-Aqsa Mosque , Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre . The term sometimes refers to the area which was incorporated into the municipality of Jerusalem after 1967, covering some 70 km (27 sq mi), while sometimes it refers to the smaller area of the pre-1967 Jordanian controlled part of the Jerusalem municipality, covering 6.4 km (2.5 sq mi). In the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)'s Palestinian Declaration of Independence of 1988, Jerusalem is stated to be the capital of the State of Palestine . In 2000, the Palestinian Authority passed a law proclaiming Jerusalem as such, and in 2002, this law was ratified by then chairman Yasser Arafat , although Israel does not allow Palestinian government offices in East Jerusalem. In 1980, Israel unilaterally declared all of Jerusalem, both its eastern and western sectors, to be its undivided capital, while formally disavowing that its incorporation constituted annexation. East Jerusalem's status in international law however remains uncertain: the United Nations' Security Council immediately dismissed the resolution of unification as a "violation of international law", and the international community does not recognize Israel's sovereignty there.

The Arab areas are coloured green while the Jewish areas are blue. Since the 1967 Arab–Israeli War , East Jerusalem has been considered occupied by Israel by the international community. This area includes Jerusalem's Old City and some of the holiest sites of Judaism , Christianity , and Islam , such as the Temple Mount , Western Wall , Al-Aqsa Mosque , Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre , as well as a number of adjacent neighbourhoods. Israeli and Palestinian definitions of it differ. The Palestinian official position is based on the 1949 Armistice Agreements , while the Israeli position is based mainly on the current municipality boundaries of Jerusalem. These were determined by a series of administrative enlargements decided by Israeli municipal authorities since the June 1967 Six-Day War . Despite its name, East Jerusalem includes neighborhoods to the north, east and south of the Old City and, in the wider definition of the term, even on all these sides of West Jerusalem. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank , including East Jerusalem, to be illegal under international law . During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War , Jerusalem was contested between Jordan and Israel. At the cessation of hostilities, the two countries secretly negotiated a division of the city, with the eastern sector coming under Jordanian rule. This arrangement was formalized in the Rhodes Agreement in March 1949. David Ben-Gurion presented his party's assertion that "Jewish Jerusalem is an organic, inseparable part of the State of Israel" in December 1949, and, the following year, Jordan annexed East Jerusalem. These decisions were confirmed respectively in the Knesset in January 1950 and the Jordanian Parliament in April 1950. When occupied by Israel after the 1967 Six-Day War, East Jerusalem, with expanded borders, came under direct Israeli rule, though, according to Ian Lustick , never formally annexed . In a unanimous General Assembly resolution, the UN declared the measures changing the status of the city to be invalid. In the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)'s Palestinian Declaration of Independence of 1988, Jerusalem is stated to be the capital of the State of Palestine . In 2000, the Palestinian Authority passed a law proclaiming Jerusalem as its capital, and in October 2002, this law was approved by chairman Yasser Arafat . Since that time Israel has shut down all offices and NGO organisations connected to the PLO in East Jerusalem, saying that the Oslo Accords do not permit the Palestinian National Authority to operate in Jerusalem. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) recognised East Jerusalem as capital of the State of Palestine on 13 December 2017. The annual number of building permits granted for construction in Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem have expanded by 60% since Donald Trump became US president in 2017. Since 1991, Palestinians, who make up the majority of the residents in East Jerusalem, have only received 30% of building permits. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Part of the West Bank, under Israeli occupation since 1967 "Arab Jerusalem" redirects here. The Arab areas are coloured green, while the Jewish areas are blue. Under international law , East Jerusalem is considered a part of the West Bank and, therefore, of the Palestinian territories . A number of states currently recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Palestine (such as Argentina, Brazil, China, Russia, and all 57 members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation ), whereas other states (such as Australia, Finland, France, and others) assert that East Jerusalem "will be the capital of Palestine", while referring to East Jerusalem at present as "an occupied territory ". In 2020, East Jerusalem had a population of 595,000 inhabitants, of which 361,700 (61%) are Palestinian Arabs and 234,000 (39%) are Israeli Jewish settlers . The international community regards Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem illegal under international law . Jerusalem was envisaged as a separate, international city under the 1947 United Nations partition plan . It was, however, divided by the 1948 war that followed Israel's declaration of independence . As a result of the 1949 Armistice Agreements , the city's western half came under Israeli control, while its eastern half, containing the famed Old City , fell under Jordanian control. Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War ; since then, the entire city has been under Israeli control. The 1980 Jerusalem Law declared unified Jerusalem the capital of Israel, formalizing the effective annexation of East Jerusalem . Palestinians and many in the international community consider East Jerusalem to be the future capital of the State of Palestine . This includes 157 (out of 193) member countries of the United Nations , among them Argentina , Brazil , China , India , Russia , Sweden , and the 57 members countries of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation . The status of Jerusalem has been described as "one of the most intractable issues in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict ", with conflicting claims to sovereignty over the city or parts of it, and access to its holy sites. Israeli and Palestinian definitions of East Jerusalem differ. Following the 1967 Six-Day War, Jerusalem's municipal boundaries were extended totaling an area three times the size of pre-war West Jerusalem. This includes several nearby West Bank villages to the north, east and south of the Old City that are now considered neighborhoods of the city, as well as eight suburban neighborhoods that were built since then. The international community considers these neighborhoods illegal settlements , but the Israeli government disputes this. The Israeli position is based on the extended municipal boundaries, while the Palestinian position is based on the 1949 Armistice Agreements. East Jerusalem includes the Old City, which is home to many sites of seminal religious importance for the three major Abrahamic religions — Judaism , Christianity , and Islam , including the Temple Mount / Al-Aqsa , the Western Wall , the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre . In 2016, the population of East Jerusalem was 542,400, comprising 61% of Jerusalem's population. Of these, 327,700 (60.4%) were Arabs and 214,600 (39.6%) were Jews. Arab residents of East Jerusalem are increasingly becoming integrated into Israeli society, in terms of education, citizenship, national service and in other aspects. According to Middle East expert David Pollock, in the hypothesis that a final agreement was reached between Israel and the Palestinians with the establishment of a two-state solution , 48% of East Jerusalem Arabs would prefer being citizens of Israel, while 42% of them would prefer the State of Palestine . 9% would prefer Jordanian citizenship. "The Illegality of the Israeli Occupation of the Palestinian West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza: What the International Court of Justice Will Have to Determine in its Advisory Opinion for the United Nations General Assembly" . China supports Palestinian UN bid (Xinhua, 8 September 2011) "China recognizes Palestine as a country with east Jerusalem as its capital and possessing full sovereignty and independence, in accordance with borders agreed upon in 1967, according to Jiang" Medvedev reaffirms Soviet recognition of Palestine (Ynet News, 18 January 2011) "Russian president says Moscow has not changed its position since 1988 when it 'recognized independent Palestinian state with its capital in east Jerusalem'" Muslim leaders urge world to recognise East Jerusalem as capital of Palestine (France 24, 2017-12-13) "their final statement declared "East Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Palestine" and invited "all countries to recognise the State of Palestine and East Jerusalem as its occupied capital."" "Finland's country strategy for Palestine - 2021-2024" . "Israel / Palestinian Territories – France condemns the expulsion of Mr Salah Hamouri (18 Dec. 2022)" . France Diplomacy - Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs . "India pres. ahead of Israel trip: 'Palestine belongs to Arabs like England belongs to English' " . "The desire of eastern Jerusalem Arabs to integrate in Israeli society outweighs the threats of the Palestinian Authority" . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Section of Jerusalem on the Jordanian side of the Green Line in 1949 "Arab Jerusalem" redirects here. The Arab areas are coloured green, while the Jewish areas are blue. Captured and occupied in 1967, this area was unilaterally annexed by Israel in 1980. Under international law , East Jerusalem is considered part of the Palestinian territories , and under illegal occupation by Israel. Many states recognize East Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Palestine (such as Brazil, China, Russia, and all 57 members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation ), whereas other states (such as Australia, France and others) assert that East Jerusalem "will be the capital of Palestine", while referring to it as "an occupied territory ". In 2020, East Jerusalem had a population of 595,000 inhabitants, of which 361,700 (61%) were Palestinian Arabs and 234,000 (39%) Jewish settlers . Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem are illegal under international law and in the eyes of the international community . Jerusalem was envisaged as a separate, international city under the 1947 UN partition plan . It was, however, divided by the 1948 war that followed Israel's declaration of independence . As a result of the 1949 Armistice Agreements , the city's western half came under Israeli control, while its eastern half, containing the famed Old City , fell under Jordanian control, at the exception of Mount Scopus enclave. Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War ; since then, the entire city has been under Israeli control. The 1980 Jerusalem Law declared unified Jerusalem the capital of Israel, formalizing the effective annexation of East Jerusalem . Palestinians and many in the international community consider East Jerusalem to be the future capital of the State of Palestine. The status of Jerusalem has been described as "one of the most intractable issues in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict ", with conflicting claims to sovereignty over the city or parts of it, and access to its holy sites. Israeli and Palestinian definitions of East Jerusalem differ. Following the 1967 Six-Day War, Jerusalem's municipal boundaries were extended totaling an area three times the size of pre-war West Jerusalem. This includes several West Bank villages to the north, east and south of the Old City that are now considered neighborhoods of the city, as well as eight suburban neighborhoods that were built since then. The international community considers these neighborhoods illegal settlements , but the Israeli government disputes this. The Israeli position is based on the extended municipal boundaries, while the Palestinian position is based on the 1949 Agreements. East Jerusalem includes the Old City, which is home to many sites of seminal religious importance for the three major Abrahamic religions — Judaism , Christianity , and Islam , including the Temple Mount / Al-Aqsa , the Western Wall , the Dome of the Rock and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre . Arab residents of East Jerusalem are increasingly becoming integrated into Israeli society, in terms of education, citizenship, national service and other aspects. "Top UN court says Israel's presence in occupied Palestinian territories is illegal and should end" . "The Illegality of the Israeli Occupation of the Palestinian West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza: What the International Court of Justice Will Have to Determine in its Advisory Opinion for the United Nations General Assembly" . "Israel / Palestinian Territories – France condemns the expulsion of Mr Salah Hamouri (18 Dec. 2022)" . France Diplomacy - Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs . "The desire of eastern Jerusalem Arabs to integrate in Israeli society outweighs the threats of the Palestinian Authority" . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).