What is the situation like for Palestinians in Jerusalem ?
Jerusalem is holy to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and is the site of cherished shrines for each of the three religions. In recognition of this, the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan provided for an international administration of the city, allocating it to neither the proposed Jewish nor Palestinian state.
Zionist militias took over the western half of the city in 1948, and then seized the eastern half from Jordan in 1967 and claimed to unite them under Israeli law. But legal sovereignty over both halves of the city remains unsettled in the view of most nations, which is why they have established embassies in Tel Aviv, not Jerusalem. Under international law, East Jerusalem (including the Old City and its holy sites) are not legally part of Israel.
When Israel took over East Jerusalem, it also expanded municipal boundaries to encompass 28 villages in the West Bank.
Palestinian residents, now about 428,000, were given a status akin to permanent residency, entitled to vote in municipal but not Israeli national elections. A tiny minority of others have sought and received Israeli citizenship.
Israel has engaged in a concerted campaign since 1967 to “Judaize” and ensure its permanent control over the city. The components of this campaign include ringing the eastern side of the city with Jewish settlements, disconnecting Palestinians in the city from surrounding towns and villages; barring most West Bank Palestinians from entering the city, including for worship; severely limiting permits for new Palestinian construction, coupled with demolitions of unauthorized Palestinian homes; displacing Palestinians in favor of Jewish settlers, such as in Sheikh Jarrah, or archeological parks emphasizing Jewish history, such as in Silwan; denying Palestinians residency rights if they cannot prove Jerusalem to be their “center of life;” closing important Palestinian institutions; and more.
The attachment of Jews to Jerusalem is real, and should be respected. But their attachment is not superior to that of either Christians or Muslims. Elected officials should encourage Jerusalem to be made an open city so that all religious traditions may pray and practice there equally.