Jerusalem: Unified City, Divided City, or International City?

"The complication here is that Jerusalem is holy to three religions, and how to handle this, at the same time as issues of political sovereignty. At Camp David, certainly the issue of internationalization was not the solution." U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright

King David established Jerusalem as the capital city of the Jewish people in 1004 BCE. Throughout the centuries, and even when there was no Jewish state, Jerusalem has been the focus of Jewish culture and ritual. Jewish liturgy includes the wish, "Next year in Jerusalem" as part of holy day ceremonies. Since the 1860s, Jews have been a majority of the residents of Jerusalem.

Yet, Jerusalem is also a holy city for two other religions - Islam and Christianity. Palestinians argue that Jerusalem is the traditional capital of Palestine and that it must also serve as the capital of a forthcoming independent state of Palestine.

That's where some of the differences lie in sorting out and creating a new Palestinian state and coming up with a plan for peace in the Middle East.

1947 to Present

On November 29, 1947, the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 181 which called for the partition of the British-ruled Palestine into a independent Jewish State and an independent Arab State. The resolution also called for Jerusalem to be an international city, and neither Jewish nor Arab, administered by the U.N.'s (now defunct) Trusteeship Council, which would appoint a Governor of the City. Unfortunately, the Arab non-acceptance of Resolution 181 and invasion of Israel immediately upon its declaration of statehood essentially reneged the resolution and the creation of an Arab state at the time.

The 1948-1949 Israeli war of independence resulted in the capture of land from neighboring countries, resulting in an increase in 50% of the size of the State, including west Jerusalem.

In 1950, having recently gained control of west Jerusalem, Israel moved its capital from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem. However, the international community did not follow. Almost all countries maintain their diplomatic missions in Tel-Aviv today and do not consider Jerusalem the official capital of Israel.

In the 1967 Six Day War, Israel took east Jerusalem, reuniting the city once more after its 19-year division into east and west.

Now, Palestinian and Israeli leaders are at odds about what to do with Jerusalem. Israel refuses to budge on the idea of dividing Jerusalem to be a dual-capital city (like East and West Berlin) or as an international city under U.N. Resolution 181. The Palestinians, are pushing for a divided city and control of East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine.

Meanwhile, President Clinton informed both sides in this issue that he'll consider moving the embassy of the United States to Jerusalem. That would certainly be the coup de grace for Israel in its efforts to keep Jerusalem as its capital city. In 1980 Israel's parliament, the Knesset, passed a law called Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel which proclaims in no uncertain terms that, "Jerusalem, complete and united, is the capital of Israel." For Israel to compromise on the unified Jerusalem concept would actually be illegal.

Nonetheless, the peace talks continue as the world awaits the Palestinian deadline of September 13, the day Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat says that Palestine will declare statehood, regardless of the results of the peace talks.

Of the 81 diplomatic missions in Israel, only two are currently located in Jerusalem (Costa Rica and El Salvador) and two are in the suburbs of Jerusalem (Bolivia and Paraguay). For now, the other 77 are in Tel-Aviv or other cities.

Once everything is settled, it's likely that most countries will move their embassies to Jerusalem. The Israeli government and the city of Jerusalem are working to develop a complex for all foreign embassies in Jerusalem.

And, most importantly, CNN.com stays ahead of the news by taking the bold step and declaring Jerusalem to be an international city.

Matt's Note: Shortly following the release of this story, CNN moved Jerusalem back under Israel and sent me the following statement:

Please be advised that as of approximately 1:00 pm EDT, Thursday, Aug. 3, CNN.com's main weather page listing of "Jerusalem" was changed to "Jerusalem, Israel." On the Jerusalem weather page, we have added the following: "The status of Jerusalem, the seat of Israeli government, is the most contentious issue in the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Palestinian and Arab leaders consider part of Jerusalem the capital of the prospective Palestinian state."

CNN.com is a nonpartisan global newsgathering organization. We do not have an editorial position on this or any other political issue.

Thank you for contacting us.

For More Information

• The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides a plethora of documents relating to Jerusalem - Capital of Israel.
• The two sides are well summarized in the Palestine Liberation Organization's page on Jerusalem and the MFA's Status of Jerusalem page.
• A Jerusalem Post article on the world on the street that countries are planning to move their embassies to Jerusalem.
• A List of Diplomatic Missions in Israel.
• Follow the news on Palestine and Israel through Yahoo! Full Coverage.
• About's Israeli Culture site writes about the Partition of Palestine.
• For additional geographic information, visit my World Atlas pages for Israel and Palestine. Visit the Geography Forum to discuss Jerusalem or any geographical topic...

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