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Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the oldest cities in the world, and is considered holy to the three major Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Both Israel and Palestine claim Jerusalem as their capital city; Israel maintains its primary governmental institutions there, while Palestine ultimately foresees it as its seat of power. Neither claim is widely recognized internationally.

Throughout its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice, besieged 23 times, captured and recaptured 44 times, and attacked 52 times. According to Eric H. Cline's tally in Jerusalem Besieged. The part of Jerusalem called the City of David shows first signs of settlement in the 4th millennium BCE, in the shape of encampments of nomadic shepherds. During the Canaanite period (14th century BCE), Jerusalem was named as ''Urusalim'' on ancient Egyptian tablets, probably meaning "City of Shalem" after a Canaanite deity. During the Israelite period, significant construction activity in Jerusalem began in the 10th century BCE (Iron Age II), and by the 9th century BCE, the city had developed into the religious and administrative center of the Kingdom of Judah. In 1538, the city walls were rebuilt for a last time around Jerusalem under Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire. Today those walls define the Old City, which since the 19th century has been divided into four quarters—the Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim quarters. The Old City became a World Heritage Site in 1981, and is on the List of World Heritage in Danger. Since 1860, Jerusalem has grown far beyond the Old City's boundaries. In 2022, Jerusalem had a population of some 971,800 residents, of which almost 60% were Jews and almost 40% Palestinians. In 2020, the population was 951,100, of which Jews comprised 570,100 (59.9%), Muslims 353,800 (37.2%), Christians 16,300 (1.7%), and 10,800 unclassified (1.1%).

According to the Hebrew Bible conquered the city from the Jebusites and established it as the capital of the United Kingdom of Israel, and his son, King Solomon, commissioned the building of the First Temple. Modern scholars argue that Israelites branched out of the Canaanite peoples and culture through the development of a distinct monolatrous—and later monotheistic—religion centered on El/Yahweh.Tubb (1998), pp. 13–14.Mark Smith in "The Early History of God: Yahweh and Other Deities of Ancient Israel" states "Despite the long regnant model that the Canaanites and Israelites were people of fundamentally different culture, archaeological data now casts doubt on this view. The material culture of the region exhibits numerous common points between Israelites and Canaanites in the Iron I period (c. 1200–1000 BCE). The record would suggest that the Israelite culture largely overlapped with and derived from Canaanite culture... In short, Israelite culture was largely Canaanite in nature. Given the information available, one cannot maintain a radical cultural separation between Canaanites and Israelites for the Iron I period." (pp. 6–7). Smith, Mark (2002) "The Early History of God: Yahweh and Other Deities of Ancient Israel" (Eerdman's) These foundational events, straddling the dawn of the 1st millennium BCE, assumed central symbolic importance for the Jewish people.Since the 10th century BCE:
* "Israel was first forged into a unified nation from Jerusalem some 3,000 years ago, when King David seized the crown and united the twelve tribes from this city... For a thousand years Jerusalem was the seat of Jewish sovereignty, the household site of kings, the location of its legislative councils and courts. In exile, the Jewish nation came to be identified with the city that had been the site of its ancient capital. Jews, wherever they were, prayed for its restoration." Roger Friedland, Richard D. Hecht. ''To Rule Jerusalem'', University of California Press, 2000, p. 8.
* "The centrality of Jerusalem to Judaism is so strong that even secular Jews express their devotion and attachment to the city, and cannot conceive of a modern State of Israel without it.... For Jews Jerusalem is sacred simply because it exists... Though Jerusalem's sacred character goes back three millennia...". Leslie J. Hoppe. ''The Holy City: Jerusalem in the theology of the Old Testament'', Liturgical Press, 2000, p. 6.
* "Ever since King David made Jerusalem the capital of Israel 3,000 years ago, the city has played a central role in Jewish existence." Mitchell Geoffrey Bard, ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Middle East Conflict'', Alpha Books, 2002, p. 330.
* "Jerusalem became the center of the Jewish people some 3,000 years ago" Moshe Maoz, Sari Nusseibeh, ''Jerusalem: Points of Friction—and Beyond'', Brill Academic Publishers, 2000, p. 1. The sobriquet of holy city () was probably attached to Jerusalem in post-exilic times. The holiness of Jerusalem in Christianity, conserved in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible,Isaiah 52:1 πόλις ἡ ἁγία. which Christians adopted as the Old Testament,Joseph T. Lienhard, ''The Bible, the Church, and Authority: The Canon of the Christian Bible in History and Theology'', Liturgical Press, 1995 pp. 65–66: 'The Septuagint is a Jewish translation and was also used in the synagogue. But at the end of the first century C.E. many Jews ceased to use the Septuagint because the early Christians had adopted it as their own translation, and it began to be considered a Christian translation.' was reinforced by the New Testament account of Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection there. Meanwhile, in Islam, Jerusalem is the third-holiest city, after Mecca and Medina.Third-holiest city in Islam:
*
*
* The city was the first standard direction for Muslim prayers, and in Islamic tradition, Muhammad made his Night Journey there in 621, ascending to heaven where he spoke to God, per the Quran. As a result, despite having an area of only , the Old City is home to many sites of seminal religious importance, among them the Temple Mount with its Western Wall, Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

At present, the status of Jerusalem remains one of the core issues in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Under the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, Jerusalem was to be "established as a '' corpus separatum'' under a special international regime" administered by the United Nations. During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, West Jerusalem was among the areas incorporated into Israel, while East Jerusalem, including the Old City, was occupied and annexed by Jordan. Israel occupied East Jerusalem from Jordan during the 1967 Six-Day War and subsequently annexed it into the city's municipality, together with additional surrounding territory. One of Israel's Basic Laws, the 1980 Jerusalem Law, refers to Jerusalem as the country's undivided capital. 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. The international community rejects the annexation as illegal and regards East Jerusalem as Palestinian territory occupied by Israel.

Etymology and names

Etymology

The name "Jerusalem" is variously etymologized to mean "foundation (Semitic ''yry 'to found, to lay a cornerstone') of the pagan god Shalem"; the god Shalem was thus the original tutelary deity of the Bronze Age city.

Shalim or Shalem was the name of the god of dusk in the Canaanite religion, whose name is based on the same root S-L-M from which the Hebrew word for "peace" is derived (''Shalom'' in Hebrew, cognate with Arabic ''Salam''). The name thus offered itself to etymologizations such as "The City of Peace", "Abode of Peace", "Dwelling of Peace" ("founded in safety"), or "Vision of Peace" in some Christian authors.

The ending ''-ayim'' indicates the dual, thus leading to the suggestion that the name ''Yerushalayim'' refers to the fact that the city initially sat on two hills.

Ancient Egyptian sources

The Execration Texts of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt (c. 19th century BCE), which refer to a city called ''rwšꜣlmm'' or '' ꜣwšꜣmm'', variously transcribed as ''Rušalimum'', or ''Urušalimum'', may indicate Jerusalem. Alternatively, the Amarna letters of Abdi-Heba (1330s BCE), which reference an ''Úrušalim'', may be the earliest mention of the city.

Hebrew Bible and Jewish sources

The form ''Yerushalem'' or ''Yerushalayim'' first appears in the Bible, in the Book of Joshua. According to a Midrash, the name is a combination of two names united by God, ''Yireh'' ("the abiding place", the name given by Abraham to the place where he planned to sacrifice his son) and '' Shalem'' ("Place of Peace", the name given by high priest Shem).

Oldest written mention of ''Jerusalem''

One of the earliest extra-biblical Hebrew writing of the word ''Jerusalem'' is dated to the sixth or seventh century BCE and was discovered in Khirbet Beit Lei near Beit Guvrin in 1961. The inscription states: "I am Yahweh thy God, I will accept the cities of Judah and I will redeem Jerusalem", or as other scholars suggest: "Yahweh is the God of the whole earth. The mountains of Judah belong to him, to the God of Jerusalem". An earlier example of the name appears in a papyrus from the 7th century BCE.

In extra-biblical inscriptions, the earliest known example of the ''-ayim'' ending was discovered on a column about 3 km west of ancient Jerusalem, dated to the first century BCE.

Jebus, Zion, City of David

An ancient settlement of Jerusalem, founded as early as the Bronze Age on the hill above the Gihon Spring, was, according to the Bible, named Jebus., p. 113 Called the "Fortress of Zion" (''metsudat Zion''), it was renamed as the "City of David", and was known by this name in antiquity. Another name, "Zion", initially referred to a distinct part of the city, but later came to signify the city as a whole, and afterwards to represent the whole biblical Land of Israel.

Greek, Roman and Byzantine names

In Greek and Latin, the city's name was transliterated ''Hierosolyma/Hierosoluma'' (Greek: Ἱεροσόλυμα; in Greek ''hieròs'', ''ἱερός'', means holy), and was the term used by Matthew and Mark in their gospels instead of the Hebrew term.

Up until the 2010s the consensus among historians was that following Alexander the Great's conquest, Hierosoluma was set to be incorporated into the larger temple cities of the Seleucid kingdom, and to be Hellenized as ''Hierapolis.'' However, modern historians dispute this as a proper Ancient Greek translation for the polis would be similar to ''Hierolophos''.

The city was renamed Aelia Capitolina for part of the Roman period of its history.

Salem

The Aramaic Apocryphon of Genesis of the Dead Sea Scrolls (1QapGen 22:13) equates Jerusalem with the earlier "Salem" (שלם), said to be the kingdom of Melchizedek in Genesis 14. Other early Hebrew sources, early Christian renderings of the verse and ''targumim'', however, put Salem in Northern Israel near Shechem (Sichem), now Nablus, a city of some importance in early sacred Hebrew writing. Possibly the redactor of the Apocryphon of Genesis wanted to dissociate Melchizedek from the area of Shechem, which at the time was in possession of the Samaritans. However that may be, later Rabbinic sources also equate Salem with Jerusalem, mainly to link Melchizedek to later Temple traditions.

Arabic names

Originally titled Bayt al-Maqdis, today, Jerusalem is most commonly known in Arabic as , transliterated as ''al-Quds'' and meaning "the holy" or "the holy sanctuary", cognate with . The name is possibly a shortened form of ''Madīnat al-Quds'' "city of the holy sanctuary" after the Hebrew nickname with the same meaning, ''Ir ha-Qodesh'' (). The (Q) is pronounced either with a voiceless uvular plosive (/q/), as in Classical Arabic, or with a glottal stop (ʔ) as in Levantine Arabic. Official Israeli government policy mandates that , transliterated as ''Ūrušalīm'', which is the name frequently used in Christian translations of the Bible into Arabic, be used as the Arabic language name for the city in conjunction with , giving , Ūrušalīm-al-Quds. Palestinian Arab families who hail from this city are often called "''Qudsi''" () or "''Maqdasi''" (), while Palestinian Muslim Jerusalemites may use these terms as a demonym.

History

Jerusalem is one of the world's oldest cities, with a history spanning over 5,000 years. Its origins trace back to around 3000 BCE, with the first settlement near the Gihon Spring. The city is first mentioned in Egyptian Execration texts around 2000 BCE as "Rusalimum." By the 17th century BCE, Jerusalem had developed into a fortified city under Canaanite rule, with massive walls protecting its water system. During the Late Bronze Age, Jerusalem became a vassal of Ancient Egypt, as documented in the Amarna letters.

The city's importance grew during the ''Israelite period'', which began around 1000 BCE when King David captured Jerusalem and made it the capital of the United Kingdom of Israel. David's son, Solomon, built the First Temple, establishing the city as a major religious center. Following the kingdom's split, Jerusalem became the capital of the Kingdom of Judah until it was captured by the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 586 BCE. The Babylonians destroyed the First Temple, leading to the Babylonian exile of the Jewish population. After the Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, Cyrus the Great allowed the Jews to return and rebuild the city and its temple, marking the start of the ''Second Temple period''. Jerusalem fell under Hellenistic rule after the conquests of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE, leading to increasing cultural and political influence from Greece. The Hasmonean revolt in 164 BCE briefly restored Jewish sovereignty, with Jerusalem as the capital of an independent state.

In 63 BCE, Jerusalem was captured by Pompey and brought under Roman rule. The city was embellished by Herod the Great who expanded the Second Temple, making it one of the largest sanctuaries in the ancient world. Tensions between the Jews and Roman authorities eventually escalated into the First Jewish Revolt, resulting in the siege and destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple in 70 CE. A few decades later, the city was rebuilt as the Roman colony ''Aelia Capitolina'', dedicated to Jupiter, provoking the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132–136 CE). After the revolt's suppression, Jews were banned from the city. During the Byzantine period, Jerusalem gained prominence as a center of Christian pilgrimage, especially after Constantine the Great supported the construction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In 638 CE, Jerusalem was conquered by the Rashidun Caliphate, and under early Islamic rule, the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque were built, solidifying its religious importance in Islam.

During the Crusades, Jerusalem changed hands multiple times, being captured by the Crusaders in 1099 and recaptured by Saladin in 1187. It remained under Islamic control through the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods, until it became part of the Ottoman Empire in 1517. In the modern period, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Israel captured East Jerusalem during the Six-Day War in 1967, uniting the city under Israeli control. The status of Jerusalem remains a highly contentious issue, with both Israelis and Palestinians claiming it as their capital. Historiographically, the city's history is often interpreted through the lens of competing national narratives. Israeli scholars emphasize the ancient Jewish connection to the city, while Palestinian narratives highlight the city's broader historical and multicultural significance. Both perspectives influence contemporary discussions of Jerusalem's status and future.

Political status

From 1923 until 1948, Jerusalem served as the administrative capital of Mandatory Palestine.

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 27 June 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.

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. The Oslo Accords stated that the final status of Jerusalem would be determined by negotiations with the Palestinian Authority. The accords banned any official Palestinian presence in the city until a final peace agreement, but provided for the opening of a Palestinian trade office in East Jerusalem. The Palestinian Authority regards East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

President Mahmoud Abbas has said that any agreement that did not include East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine would be unacceptable. Israeli Prime Minister 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 suburb of 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 its Jerusalem Affairs Offices are all located in Abu Dis.

International status

While the international community regards East Jerusalem, including the entire Old City, as part of the occupied Palestinian territories, neither part, West or East Jerusalem, is recognized as part of the territory of Israel or the State of Palestine. Under the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1947, Jerusalem was envisaged to become a corpus separatum administered by the United Nations. 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 over the city.

Status under Israeli rule

Following the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel extended its jurisdiction and administration over East Jerusalem, establishing new municipal borders.

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 its capital are mistaken and misleading".

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 in order to expand the Jewish presence in East Jerusalem, while some 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. Palestinians regard Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Palestine, and the city's borders have been the subject of bilateral talks. A team of experts assembled by the then Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak in 2000 concluded that the city must be divided, since Israel had failed to achieve any of its national aims there.

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in 2014 that "Jerusalem will never be divided". A poll conducted in June 2013 found that 74% of Israeli Jews reject the idea of a Palestinian capital in any portion of Jerusalem, though 72% of the public regarded it as a divided city. A poll conducted by Palestinian Centre for Public Opinion and American Pechter Middle East Polls for the Council on Foreign Relations, among East Jerusalem Arab residents in 2011 revealed that 39% of East Jerusalem Arab residents would prefer Israeli citizenship contrary to 31% who opted for Palestinian citizenship. According to the poll, 40% of Palestinian residents would prefer to leave their neighbourhoods if they would be placed under Palestinian rule.

Jerusalem as capital of Israel

On 5 December 1949, Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, proclaimed Jerusalem as Israel's "eternal" and "sacred" capital, and eight days later specified that only the war had "compelled" the Israeli leadership "to establish the seat of Government in Tel Aviv", while "for the State of Israel there has always been and always will be one capital only—Jerusalem the Eternal", and that after the war, efforts had been ongoing for creating the conditions for "the Knesset... returning to Jerusalem." This indeed took place, and since the beginning of 1950 all branches of the Israeli government—legislative, judicial, and executive—have resided there, except for the Ministry of Defense, which is located at HaKirya in Tel Aviv. At the time of Ben Gurion's proclamations and the ensuing Knesset vote of 24 January 1950, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan, and thus the proclamation only applied to West Jerusalem.

In July 1980, Israel passed the Jerusalem Law as Basic Law. The law declared Jerusalem the "complete and united" capital of Israel. The Jerusalem Law was condemned by the international community, which did not recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 478 on 20 August 1980, which declared that the Jerusalem Law is ''"a violation of international law"'', is ''"null and void and must be rescinded forthwith"''. Member states were called upon to withdraw their diplomatic representation from Jerusalem.

Following the resolution, 22 of the 24 countries that previously had their embassy in (West) Jerusalem relocated them in Tel Aviv, where many embassies already resided prior to Resolution 478. Costa Rica and El Salvador followed in 2006. There are five embassies—United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Papua New Guinea and Kosovo—and two consulates located within the city limits of Jerusalem. Paraguay maintains an embassy in the Jerusalem District town of Mevaseret Zion,, in addition to Bolivia whose embassy is now closed. There are a number of consulates-general located in Jerusalem, which work primarily either with Israel, or the Palestinian authorities.

In 1995, the United States Congress passed the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which required, subject to conditions, that its embassy be moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. On 6 December 2017 U.S. President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital and announced his intention to move the American embassy to Jerusalem, reversing decades of United States policy on the issue. The move was criticized by many nations. A resolution condemning the US decision was supported by all the 14 other members of the UN Security Council, but was vetoed by the US on 18 December 2017. A subsequent resolution condemning the US decision was passed in the United Nations General Assembly. On 14 May 2018, the United States officially opened its embassy in Jerusalem, transforming its Tel Aviv location into a consulate. Due to the general lack of international recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, some non-Israeli media outlets use Tel Aviv as a metonym for Israel.

In April 2017, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced it viewed Western Jerusalem as Israel's capital in the context of UN-approved principles which include the status of East Jerusalem as the capital of the future Palestinian state. On 15 December 2018, Australia officially recognized West Jerusalem as Israel's capital, but said their embassy in Tel Aviv would stay until a two-state resolution was settled. The decision was reversed in October 2022.

Government precinct and national institutions

The Kiryat HaLeom (national precinct) project is intended to house most government agencies and national cultural institutions. They are located in the Kiryat HaMemshala (government complex) in the Givat Ram neighbourhood. Some government buildings are located in Kiryat Menachem Begin. The city is home to the Knesset, the Supreme Court, the Bank of Israel, the National Headquarters of the Israel Police, the official residences of the President and Prime Minister, the Cabinet, and all ministries except for the Ministry of Defense (which is located in central Tel Aviv's HaKirya district) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (which is located in Rishon LeZion, in the wider Tel Aviv metropolitan area, near Beit Dagan).

Israeli settlements

Since its capture in 1967, the Israeli government has built 12 Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem, with a population amounting to 220,000 Israeli Jewish settlers as of 2019. The international community consider Israeli settlements to be illegal under international law.

Jerusalem as capital of Palestine

The Palestinian National Authority views East Jerusalem as occupied territory according to United Nations Security Council Resolution 242. The Palestinian Authority claims Jerusalem, including the Haram al-Sharif, as the capital of the State of Palestine,In the Palestine Liberation Organization's Palestinian Declaration of Independence of 1988, Jerusalem is stated to be the capital of the State of Palestine. In 1997, the Palestinian Legislative Council passed the Palestinian ''Basic Law'' (ratified by Chairman Yasser Arafat in 2002), designating the city as such. Article 3: ''"Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine."''

Se
''2003 Amended Basic Law''
. Retrieved 2 June 2013
Arafat Signs Law Making Jerusalem Palestinian Capital
, People's Daily, published 6 October 2002
Arafat names Jerusalem as capital
, BBC News, published 6 October 2002. The PLO claims that West Jerusalem is also subject to permanent status negotiations. However, it has stated that it would be willing to consider alternative solutions, such as making Jerusalem an open city.

The PLO's position is that East Jerusalem, as defined by the pre-1967 municipal boundaries, shall be the capital of Palestine and West Jerusalem the capital of Israel, with each state enjoying full sovereignty over its respective part of the city and with its own municipality. A joint ''development council'' would be responsible for coordinated development. Orient House in East Jerusalem served as the headquarters of the PLO in the 1980s and 1990s. It was closed by Israel in 2001, two days after the Sbarro restaurant suicide bombing.

Some states, such as Russia and China, recognize the Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. United Nations General Assembly Resolution 58/292 affirmed that the Palestinian people have the right to sovereignty over East Jerusalem.

Palestinian offices and institutions

Government offices are located outside the Israeli municipal limits include the Palestinian Security Services, Force 17, the Preventative Security Service and the Ministry of Interior. There is a Palestinian Authority regional office and an electoral office located in the Dahiyat al Barid neighborhood.

Municipal administration

The Jerusalem City Council is a body of 31 elected members headed by the mayor, who serves a five-year term and appoints eight deputies. The former mayor of Jerusalem, Uri Lupolianski, was elected in 2003. In the November 2008 city elections, Nir Barkat was elected. In November 2018, Moshe Lion was elected mayor.

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 28 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. Within the city council, religious political parties form an especially powerful faction, accounting for the majority of its seats.

The headquarters of the Jerusalem Municipality and the mayor's office are at Safra Square (''Kikar Safra'') on Jaffa Road. The municipal complex, comprising two modern buildings and ten renovated historic buildings surrounding a large plaza, opened in 1993 when it moved from the old town hall building built by the Mandate authorities. The city falls under the Jerusalem District, with Jerusalem as the district's capital. 37% of the population is Palestinian, but in 2014 not more than 10% of tax revenues were allocated for them. In East Jerusalem, 52% of the land was excluded from development, 35% designated for Jewish settlements, and 13% for Palestinian use, almost all of which was already built upon. Nathan Thrall
'Rage in Jerusalem,'
London Review of Books Vol. 36 No. 23 4 December 2014, pp. 19–21.

In Oslo I Accord, certain parts of few neighborhoods were allotted to the Palestinian Authority. Parts of Sur Baher, Wadi al-Hummus, Umm Leisun and Umm Tuba, altogether came under Area A, which is completely controlled by the Palestinian Authority. Al-Ram and Dahiyat al-Barid are mostly in Area B, where both Palestine and Israel has control. Other parts of Beit Hanina, Kafr Aqab and Arab al-Jahalin also falls under Area B.'Arab al Jahalin Locality Profile
, ARIJ, p. 17

Geography

Jerusalem is situated on the southern spur of a plateau in the Judaean Mountains, which include the Mount of Olives (East) and Mount Scopus (North East). The elevation of the Old City is approximately . The whole of Jerusalem is surrounded by valleys and dry riverbeds (''wadis''). The Kidron, Hinnom, and Tyropoeon Valleys intersect in an area just south of the Old City of Jerusalem. The Kidron Valley runs 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.

The Tyropoeon Valley commenced in the northwest near the Damascus Gate, ran south-southeasterly through the centre 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 is hidden by debris that has accumulated over the centuries. In biblical times, Jerusalem was surrounded by forests of almond, olive and pine trees. Over centuries of warfare and neglect, these forests were destroyed. Farmers in the Jerusalem region built stone terraces along the slopes to hold back the soil, a feature still very much in evidence in the Jerusalem landscape.

Water supply has always been a major problem in Jerusalem, as attested to by the intricate network of ancient aqueducts, tunnels, pools and cisterns found in the city.

Jerusalem is east of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea. On the opposite side of the city, approximately away, is the Dead Sea, the lowest body of water on Earth. Neighbouring 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. (See map 9 for Jerusalem)

Mount Herzl, at the western side of the city near the Jerusalem Forest, serves as the national cemetery of Israel.

File:Jeruselum 1918 Hurley SLNSW FL520655.jpg, Aerial view of Jerusalem, 1918
File:Jerusalem, Israel.JPG, Astronauts' view of Jerusalem
File:Israel-2013-Aerial-Mount of Olives.jpg, Sunset aerial photograph of the Mount of Olives

Climate

The city is characterized by a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen: ''Csa''), with hot, dry summers, and mild, wet winters. Snow flurries usually occur once or twice a winter, although the city experiences heavy snowfall every three to four years, on average, with short-lived accumulation.

January is the coldest month of the year, with an average temperature of ; July and August are the hottest months, with an average temperature of , and the summer months are usually rainless. The average annual precipitation is around , with rain occurring almost entirely between October and May. Snowfall is rare, and large snowfalls are even more rare. Jerusalem received over of snow on 13 December 2013, which nearly paralyzed the city. A day in Jerusalem has on average, 9.3 sunshine hours. With summers averaging similar temperatures as the coastline, the maritime influence from the Mediterranean Sea is strong, in particular given that Jerusalem is located on a similar latitude as scorching hot deserts not far to its east.

The highest recorded temperature in Jerusalem was on 28 and 30 August 1881, and the lowest temperature recorded was on 25 January 1907.

Most of the air pollution in Jerusalem comes from vehicular traffic. 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.

Demographics

Demographic history

Jerusalem's population size and composition has shifted many times over its 5,000-year history. Since the 19th century, the Old City of Jerusalem has been divided into Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Armenian quarters. Matthew Teller writes that this convention may have originated in the 1841 British Royal Engineers map of Jerusalem, or at least Reverend George Williams' subsequent labelling of it.

Most population data before 1905 is based on estimates, often from foreign travellers or organisations, since previous census data usually covered wider areas such as the Jerusalem District. These estimates suggest that since the end of the Crusades, Muslims formed the largest group in Jerusalem until the mid-nineteenth century.

Between 1838 and 1876, a number of estimates exist which conflict as to whether Jews or Muslims were the largest group during this period, and between 1882 and 1922 estimates conflict as to exactly when Jews became an absolute majority of the population.

Current demographics

In December 2007, Jerusalem had a population of 747,600—63.7% were Jewish, 33.1% Muslim, and 2% Christian.

According to a study published in 2000, the percentage of Jews in the city's population had been decreasing; this was attributed to a higher Muslim birth rate, and Jewish residents leaving. The study also found that about nine percent of the Old City's 32,488 people were Jews. Of the Jewish population, 200,000 live in East Jerusalem settlements which are considered illegal under international law.

In 2005, 2,850 new immigrants settled in Jerusalem, mostly from the United States, France and the former Soviet Union. In terms of the local population, the number of outgoing residents exceeds the number of incoming residents. In 2005, 16,000 left Jerusalem and only 10,000 moved in. Nevertheless, the population of Jerusalem continues to rise due to the high birth rate, especially in the Haredi Jewish and Arab communities. Consequently, the total fertility rate in Jerusalem (4.02) is higher than in Tel Aviv (1.98) and well above the national average of 2.90. The average size of Jerusalem's 180,000 households is 3.8 people.

In 2005, the total population grew by 13,000 (1.8%)—similar to the Israeli national average, but the religious and ethnic composition is shifting. While 31% of the Jewish population is made up of children below the age fifteen, the figure for the Arab population is 42%.

In 1967, Jews accounted for 74 percent of the population, while the figure for 2006 is down nine percent. Possible factors are the high cost of housing, fewer job opportunities and the increasingly religious character of the city, although proportionally, young Haredim are leaving in higher numbers. The percentage of secular Jews, or those who 'wear their faith lightly' is dropping, with some 20,000 leaving the city over the past seven years (2012). They now number 31% of the population, the same percentage as the rising Haredi population.

In 2010, 61% of all Jewish children in Jerusalem studied in Haredi (Ultra-Orthodox) schools. This correlates with the high number of children in Haredi families.

While some secular Jews leave Jerusalem for its relative lack of development and religious and political tensions, Jerusalem-born Palestinians cannot leave Jerusalem, or they lose their right to live in the city. Palestinians with a "Jerusalem resident status" are entitled to the subsidized healthcare and social security benefits Israel provides to its citizens, and have the right to vote in municipal elections, but not to be voted in municipal elections, or to vote in national elections. Arabs in Jerusalem can send their children to Israeli-run schools, although not every neighbourhood has one, and universities. Israeli doctors and highly regarded hospitals such as Hadassah Medical Centre are available to residents.

Demographics and the Jewish-Arab population divide play a major role in the dispute over Jerusalem. In 1998, the Jerusalem Development Authority expanded city limits to the west to include more areas heavily populated with Jews.

Within the past few years, there has been a steady increase in the Jewish birthrate and a steady decrease in the Arab birthrate. In May 2012, it was reported that the Jewish birthrate had overtaken the Arab birthrate. The city's birthrate stands about 4.2 children per Jewish family and 3.9 children per Arab family. In addition, increasing numbers of Jewish immigrants chose to settle in Jerusalem. In the last few years, thousands of Palestinians have moved to previously fully Jewish neighbourhoods of East Jerusalem, built after the 1967 Six-Day War. In 2007, 1,300 Palestinians lived in the previously exclusively Jewish neighbourhood of Pisgat Ze'ev and constituted three percent of the population in Neve Ya'akov. In the French Hill neighbourhood, Palestinians today constitute one-sixth of the overall population.At the end of 2008, the population of East Jerusalem was 456,300, comprising 60% of Jerusalem's residents. Of these, 195,500 (43%) were Jews, (comprising 40% of the Jewish population of Jerusalem as a whole), and 260,800 (57%) were Muslim (comprising 98% of the Muslim population of Jerusalem). In 2008, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics reported the number of Palestinians living in East Jerusalem was 208,000 according to a recently completed census.

Jerusalem's Jewish population is overwhelmingly religious. Only 18% of Jewish residents are secular. In addition, Haredi Jews comprise 35% of the city's adult Jewish population. In a phenomenon seen rarely around the world, the percentage of Jewish women who work, 81%, exceeds the percentage of Jewish men who work, 70%.

Jerusalem had a population of 804,400 in 2011, of which Jews comprised 499,400 (62.1%), Muslims 281,100 (34.9%), Christians 14,700 (1.8%), and 9,000 (1.1%) were not classified by religion.

Jerusalem had a population of 882,700 in 2016, of which Jews comprised 536,600 (60.8%), Muslims 319,800 (36.2%), Christians 15,800 (1.8%), and 10,300 unclassified (1.2%).

Jerusalem had a population of 951,100 in 2020, of which Jews comprised 570,100 (59.9%), Muslims 353.800 (37.2%), Christians 16.300 (1.7%), and 10,800 unclassified (1.1%).

According to Peace Now, approvals for building in Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem have expanded by 60% under Donald Trump's term as U.S. president. Since 1991, Palestinians, who make up the majority of the residents in East Jerusalem, have only received 30% of the building permits.

Urban planning issues

Critics of efforts to promote a Jewish majority in Jerusalem say that government planning policies are motivated by demographic considerations and seek to limit Arab construction while promoting Jewish construction. According to a World Bank report, the number of recorded building violations between 1996 and 2000 was four and half times higher in Jewish neighbourhoods but four times fewer demolition orders were issued in West Jerusalem than in East Jerusalem; Arabs in Jerusalem were less likely to receive construction permits than Jews, and "the authorities are much more likely to take action against Palestinian violators" than Jewish violators of the permit process. In recent years, private Jewish foundations have received permission from the government to develop projects on disputed lands, such as the City of David archaeological site in the 60% Arab neighbourhood of Silwan

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