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Jerusalem

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of the Middle
East


                        Jerusalem

                        Hebrew          יְרוּשָׁלַיִם (Yerushalayim)
                        Arabic          commonly القـُدْس (Al-Quds);
                                        officially in Israel أورشليم القدس
                                        (Urshalim-Al-Quds)
                        Name meaning    Hebrew: "City of Peace",
                                        Arabic: "The Holiness"
                        Government      City
                        Standard Hebrew Yerushalayim or Yerushalaim
                        District        Jerusalem
                        Population      724,000 ( CBS)
                        Jurisdiction    123,000 dunams (123 km²)
                        Mayor           Uri Lupolianski


                                                            Jerusalem
                                                          * Names
                                                          * History
                                                               + Timeline
                                                          * Places
                                                               + Walls
                                                               + Gates
                                                               + Buildings
                                                          * Demographics
                                                          * Mayors
                                                          * Religions
                                                          * Positions
                                                          * Education
                                                          * Transportation

   Jerusalem (Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם , Yerushaláyim or Yerushalaim; Moslem
   Arabic: القُدس , al-Quds ("the Holy"), Christian Arabic اورشليم
   Ûrshalîm; official Arabic in Israel: اورشليم القدس, Urshalim-al-Quds
   (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names) is the capital
   and largest city of the State of Israel with a population of 724,000
   (as of May 24, 2006) contained in 123 km². An ancient Middle Eastern
   city on the watershed between the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea at
   an elevation of 650-840 metres (about 2000-2500 feet), Jerusalem is
   located southeast of Tel Aviv, south of Ramallah, west of Jericho and
   north of Bethlehem.

   Jerusalem is the holiest city of Judaism (since the 10th century BCE)
   and some denominations of Christianity (since the 5th century CE).
   Jewish law holds that the more important Jewish prayers should be
   conducted facing the direction of the city, specifically in the
   direction of the Temple Mount. Jerusalem is generally regarded by
   Muslims as the location of the third holiest site in Islam, and the
   city was the original Qibla (direction of prayer) for Muslims prior to
   Mecca. Jerusalem appears in the Hebrew Bible 669 times while Zion
   (which usually means Jerusalem, sometimes the Land of Israel) appears
   154 times. The New Testament mentions Jerusalem 154 times and Zion 7
   times.

   A heterogeneous city, Jerusalem represents a wide range of national,
   religious, and socioeconomic groups. The section called the "Old City"
   (barely 1 km²) is surrounded by walls and consists of four quarters:
   Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim. The "Old City" was named by
   the American television show Good Morning America and newspaper USA
   Today as one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World" in 2006. The
   status of united Jerusalem as Israel's capital is not universally
   recognised by the international community, and Israel's annexation of
   East Jerusalem is particularly controversial. East Jerusalem, if not
   all of Jerusalem, is claimed by Palestinians as the desired capital for
   a future Palestinian state.

   The current Israeli mayor of Jerusalem is Uri Lupolianski, the first
   Haredi Jew to ever hold this position.

Name

   A view of the Old City of Jerusalem taken from the Jewish Cemetery on
   the Mount of Olives.
   Enlarge
   A view of the Old City of Jerusalem taken from the Jewish Cemetery on
   the Mount of Olives.
   Closeup
   Enlarge
   Closeup

   The origin of the name of the city is uncertain. It is possible to
   understand the name (Hebrew Yerushalayim) as either "Heritage of Salem"
   or "Heritage of Peace" – a contraction of "heritage" (yerusha) and
   either Salem (Shalem literally "whole" or "in harmony") or shalom
   ("peace"). (See the Biblical commentator Nachmanides for explanation.)
   "Shalem" is the name used in Genesis 14:18 for the city. Similarly the
   Amarna Letters call the city Urušalim in Akkadian, a cognate of the
   Hebrew Ir Shalem ("city of Salem"). Some consider a connection between
   the name and Shalim - the deity personifying dusk known from Ugaritic
   myths and offering lists. The ending -ayim or -im has the appearance of
   the Hebrew dual or pluralis. It has been argued that it is a dual form
   representing the fact that the city lies on two hills however the
   treatment of the ending as a suffix makes the rest of the name
   incomprehensible in Hebrew. A Midrashic interpretation comes from
   Genesis Rabba, which explains that Abraham came to "Shalem" after
   rescuing Lot. Upon arrival, he asked the king and high priest
   Melchizedek to bless him, and Melchizedek did so in the name of the
   Supreme God (indicating that he, like Abraham, was a monotheist).
   According to exegetes, God immortalizes this encounter between
   Melchizedek and Abraham by renaming the city in honour of them: the
   name "Yeru" (derived from "Yireh", the name Abraham gives to Mount
   Moriah after unbinding Isaac, and explained in Genesis as meaning that
   God will be revealed there) is placed in front of "Shalem". The plural
   ending implies the community of all believers in the One God who
   testify to the city's holiness.

History

   Reconstruction of the First Temple
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   Reconstruction of the First Temple

   Archaeological findings indicate the existence of a settlement in
   Jerusalem in the 3rd millennium BCE. The earliest written record of the
   city to Egyptian records of the Bronze Age in the 2nd millennium BCE.

   The city is believed to have been first built and founded by Canaanite
   peoples (possibly, but not necessarily the Jebusites who occupied the
   city during the late Bronze Age). During this Canaanite period,
   Jerusalem had the name Urušalim, meaning "the city of peace". From
   about 1600 to 1300 BCE, the city came under Egyptian suzerainty and was
   governed by Canaanite rulers who paid tribute to the Pharaohs. During
   this period, the city increasingly came under attacks from the Habiru.
   Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus (W. Kaulbach)
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   Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus (W. Kaulbach)

   According to Midrash, Jerusalem was founded by Shem and Eber, ancestors
   of Abraham. Further, the Bible mentions that the city was controlled by
   the Jebusites until its conquest by David, at a date subsequently
   placed at about 1000 BCE.

   David expanded the city to the south, and declared it the capital city
   of the united Kingdom of Israel. It thus became the capital of the
   Jewish kingdoms of Israel, Judah and Judea in the First Temple and
   Second Temple periods.

   In about 960 BCE, Solomon built the First Jewish Temple. For about four
   centuries after the ten tribes split off to form the northern Kingdom
   of Israel, Jerusalem served as the capital of the southern Kingdom of
   Judah.

   By the end of the First Temple period, Jerusalem was the sole acting
   religious shrine in the kingdom, and a centre of regular pilgrimage.
   Historical records corroborate some of the Biblical history from around
   the 9th century BCE, and attest the significance of the Temple in
   Jewish religious life. In 597 BCE, the city was overcome by the
   Babylonians under Nebuchadrezzar, and in 586 BCE, the city's walls were
   ruined and the Temple was burnt. After several decades of captivity,
   the Jews were allowed by Cyrus II of Persia to return to Judah and
   rebuild the city and the Temple. It continued to be the capital of
   Judah and centre of Jewish worship for another four centuries under the
   Hasmonean Kingdom.
   Capture of Jerusalem during the First Crusade, 1099 (a medieval
   manuscript)
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   Capture of Jerusalem during the First Crusade, 1099 (a medieval
   manuscript)

   By 19 BCE, the Temple Mount was elevated and the Second Temple was
   expanded under Herod the Great, a Jewish client king under Roman rule.
   In 6 CE, the city and Iudaea Province came under direct Roman rule. The
   Great Jewish Revolt resulted in the destruction of the Second Temple in
   70 CE. The city served as the national capital again for almost 3 years
   during the Bar Kokhba's revolt against Rome; it was sacked in 135 CE.
   For almost two millennia thereafter, Jerusalem did not serve as the
   national capital of any independent state, until the renewed
   independence of Israel in 1948.

   The city remained under Roman and Byzantine rule, until it was taken by
   the advancing Muslim forces in 638. The rights of the non-Muslims under
   Islam were governed by the Pact of Umar, and Christians and Jews living
   in the city were granted autonomy in exchange for a required poll tax.
   Whereas the Byzantine Christian authorities had not tolerated the
   presence of Jews within the walls of the city, the Muslim rulers
   allowed the reestablishment of a Jewish community. After the treaty of
   Capitulation signed with the Byzantines, Umar ordered the Patriarch
   Sophronius to guide him and those who accompanied him to the sanctuary
   of King David, where he later decided to build a mosque in front of the
   Rock. The mosque became known as Masjid Umar.
   The oldest printed prospect of Jerusalem (Hartmann Schedel, Nürnberg
   1493)
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   The oldest printed prospect of Jerusalem (Hartmann Schedel, Nürnberg
   1493)

   In 1099, the city was conquered by the First Crusaders, who slaughtered
   most of its Muslim and Jewish inhabitants. A series of conquests
   followed: in 1187 the city was taken from the Crusaders by Saladin.
   From 1228 to 1244, it was given by Saladin's descendant al-Kamil to the
   Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II.

   Jerusalem fell again to the Ayyubids of Egypt in 1244. The Ayyubids
   were replaced in 1260 by the Mamelukes, and in 1517, Jerusalem and its
   environs fell to the Ottoman Turks.

   In 1917, the British Army led by General Allenby captured the city.
   Under the League of Nations Mandate, Britain was entrusted with
   establishing a Jewish National Home in Palestine. This period saw the
   construction of new garden suburbs in the western part of the city and
   establishment of institutions of learning such as the Hebrew
   University, founded in 1925.

   As the British Mandate of Palestine was expiring, the 1947 UN Partition
   Plan (Part III) recommended that "The City of Jerusalem shall be
   established as a corpus separatum under a special international regime
   and shall be administered by the United Nations." However, this plan
   was never implemented and at the end of the 1948-49 war, Jerusalem
   found itself divided between Israel and Jordan (then known as
   Transjordan).

   The 1949 cease-fire line between Israel and Jordan, which was part of
   the Green Line, cut through the centre of the city from 1949 until
   1967, during which time west Jerusalem was part of Israel and East
   Jerusalem was part of Jordan. From 1950 to 1967, the capital declared
   by Israel was comprised of western Jerusalem. Ever since Israel
   captured eastern Jerusalem from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel
   has administered and asserted sovereignty over the entire city.

   Israel's 1980 Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel declared
   Jerusalem to be the 'eternal, undivided' capital of Israel, while East
   Jerusalem is being claimed as the intended capital of a future
   Palestinian state. The status of the city and of its holy places is
   disputed.

Status of Jerusalem

Religious significance

   Jerusalem plays an important role in three major religions: Judaism,
   Christianity, and Islam, as well as in a number of smaller religious
   groups. A large number of places have religious significance for these
   religions, among which the Temple Mount and its Western Wall for Jews,
   the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Christians and the Al-Aqsa Mosque
   and Dome of the Rock for Muslims.

   The Western Wall

   Main entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

   The Al-Aqsa Mosque

Jerusalem as the capital of Israel

   State of Israel
                      Geography

   Land of Israel · Districts · Cities
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   Jerusalem · Tel Aviv · Haifa
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   Jewish history · Timeline · Zionism · Aliyah
   Herzl · Balfour · Mandate · 1947 UN Plan
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   Peace treaties with: Egypt, Jordan
            Israeli-Palestinian conflict

   Timeline · Peace process · Peace camp
   1st Intifada · Oslo · 2nd Intifada
   Terrorism · Barrier · Disengagement
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                   Laws · Politics

   Law of Return · Jerusalem Law
   Parties · Elections · PM · President
   Knesset · Supreme Court · Courts
                   Foreign affairs

   Intl. Law · UN · US · Arab League
                   Security Forces

   Israel Defense Forces
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   Police · Border Police · Prison Service

   Portal:Israel

   Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950 and all the branches
   of Israeli government (Presidential, Legislative, Judicial and
   Administrative) are seated in Jerusalem. In 1950, given that the city
   was divided between Israel and Jordan, this proclamation related only
   to western Jerusalem. Immediately after the Six Day War in 1967,
   Israeli legislation incorporated East Jerusalem into Israel, annexing
   it to the municipality of Jerusalem, and making it a de facto part of
   its capital. Israel enshrined the status of united Jerusalem, west and
   east, as its undivided capital, in Israel's 1980 Basic Law: Jerusalem,
   Capital of Israel. United Nations Security Council Resolution 478
   declared that this law was 'null and void and must be rescinded
   forthwith' and advised member states to withdraw their diplomatic
   representation from the city as a punitive measure, which most of the
   few countries with embassies in Jerusalem did, relocating their
   embassies to Tel Aviv.

   Most UN member states already located their embassy in Tel Aviv prior
   to Resolution 478. Currently, only two UN member states have located
   their embassies within the city limits of Jerusalem, Costa Rica and El
   Salvador, with the embassies of Bolivia and Paraguay to be found in
   Mevasseret Zion, a suburb of Jerusalem. On August 16, 2006, the newly
   elected Costa Rican president stated the intention to relocate its
   embassy to Tel Aviv. Nine days later, El Salvador followed with a
   similar statement.

   Jerusalem is home to a number of key Israeli government buildings,
   including the Knesset, the Israeli Supreme Court and the houses of the
   President and Prime Minister. With the exception of the house of the
   premier, these buildings can be toured.

   Much of the international community argues that Israel's annexation of
   the eastern part of Jerusalem after the Six-Day War was in violation of
   international law, and that the final issue of the status of East
   Jerusalem should be determined in future Israeli-Palestinian
   negotiations. Therefore, although all ambassadors and other official
   diplomats submit their accreditation to the President of Israel in his
   house at Jerusalem, nearly all countries maintain their embassies in
   Tel Aviv, Israel's economic and financial centre.

   The Knesset building, Israel's parliament

   Frontal view of The Supreme Court building

   "Government Campus" consisting of the office building of Prime Minister
   of Israel, the building of Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry, Finance
   Ministry and Ministry of Interior

Palestinian claims

   The Palestinian National Authority asserts that the capital of a future
   Palestinian state will be situated in East Jerusalem. According to the
   Oslo Agreements the final status of Jerusalem should be determined by
   peaceful negotiation. The most notable "official" Palestinian presence
   in the city is the Orient House, which has been subject to strict
   monitoring by the Israeli authorities and since August 2001 has been
   occupied by the Israeli security services. The Palestinian flag has
   since been taken down from it.

   The Palestinian National Authority also regards East Jerusalem as the
   provincial capital of its Jerusalem Governorate (محافظة القدس).

Physical geography

   Jerusalem is situated in 31°46′45″N, 35°13′25″E, upon the southern spur
   of a plateau the eastern side of which slopes from 2,460 ft. above
   sea-level north of the Temple Mount to 2,130 ft. at the southeastern
   extremity. The western hill is about 2,500 ft. high and slopes
   southeast from the Judean plateau.

Topography

   Jerusalem is surrounded upon all sides by valleys, of which those on
   the north are less pronounced than those on the other three sides. The
   principal two valleys start northwest of the present city. The first
   runs eastward with a slight southerly bend (the present Wadi al-Joz),
   then, deflecting directly south, the Kidron (Hebrew) Valley or Wadi
   Sitti Maryam (Arabic), divides the Mount of Olives from the city. The
   second runs directly south on the western side of the city, turns
   eastward at its southeastern extremity, then runs directly east, and
   joins the first valley near Bir Ayyub ("Job's Well"). This valley is
   called the Valley of Hinnom or Ge-Hinnom in Hebrew, and Wadi al-Rababi
   in Arabic.
   A view from Mount Scopus
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   A view from Mount Scopus

   A third valley, commencing in the northwest where the Damascus Gate is
   now, ran south-southeasterly down to the Pool of Siloam, and divided
   the lower part into two hills (the lower and the upper cities of
   Josephus). This is probably the later Tyropoeon ("Cheese-makers'")
   valley. A fourth valley led from the western hill (near the present
   Jaffa Gate) over to the Temple area: it is represented in modern
   Jerusalem by David Street. A fifth cut the eastern hill into a northern
   and a southern part. Later Jerusalem was thus built upon four spurs.
   Today, neighboring towns are Bethlehem and Beit Jala at the southern
   city border, Abu Dis and Ma'ale Adummim to the East, Mevaseret Zion to
   the West, Giv'at Ze'ev to the North.

Climate and environment

   February 2003 in Jerusalem
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   February 2003 in Jerusalem

   Jerusalem is situated at a relatively high altitude and experiences
   cold, wet winters with an average of 9 °C. The average annual
   precipitation is about 600 mm (24 inches). Snowfalls, when they occur,
   are generally mild. Summers in Jerusalem are dry and often hot with
   temperatures averaging around 26 °C.

   There is almost no industrial pollution in Jerusalem. Most pollutants
   are the product of heavy bus and personal vehicle traffic, especially
   along the arterial roads, and a by-product from heavy building. With
   this exception, air pollution is low.

   The building code in Jerusalem prescribes that all buildings should be
   covered with native Jerusalem stone. Although this increases building
   costs somewhat, it gives the city a very distinct look in comparison
   with other cities. Since the 1950s only a small number of buildings
   have been constructed in Jerusalem which do not conform to this code.

   With the exception of the central plateau, many neighborhoods are
   divided by deep valleys, which are the natural green areas of the city.
   To the west of the city is the larger Jerusalem Forest. Especially in
   open spaces near major roads, large parks were developed. To the east
   and the southeast of the Old City, where little grows without constant
   irrigation, promenades with parks were developed, which allow walkers
   to enjoy the view of the Old City, the Judean Desert, the irrigated
   vegetation, and - depending on location and weather conditions - the
   Dead Sea and Jordanian mountains.

People and culture

Demography

   When it first appears in historical records, Jerusalem was inhabited by
   a Canaanite tribe. The Bible specifies them as the Jebusites, and says
   they ruled it until its conquest by King David. After taking control of
   the city from the Canaanites, Jews formed the majority of the
   population for 1,200 years, until Jerusalem's destruction by Rome in
   the second century. Subsequent demographic changes are uncertain,
   although the city's population probably attained a Muslim majority by
   the time of the Crusades. An official 16th century survey confirms that
   the city was largely Muslim. By 1844, Jews were once again the largest
   single ethnic group in the city and formed a majority by the late 19th
   century.

   As of May 24, 2006, Jerusalem's population is 724,000 (about 10% of the
   total population of Israel), of which 65.0% were Jews (approx.
   one-quarter of whom live in East Jerusalem), 32.0% Muslim (almost all
   of whom live in East Jerusalem) and 2% Christian. 35% of the city's
   population were children under age of 15. In 2005, the city had 18,600
   newborns.

   It should be noted that these official Israeli statistics refer to the
   expanded Israel municipality of Jerusalem. This includes not only the
   area of the pre-1967 Israeli and Jordanian municipalities, but also
   outlying Palestinian villages and neighbourhoods to the north-east of
   the city which were not part of the Jordanian municipality of East
   Jerusalem prior to 1967. A reasonable assumption is that all or part of
   these may not remain part of Jerusalem when its final status is
   established, but rather be returned to the West Bank as part of the
   Palestinian state. Some of these villages and neighbourhoods have
   already been returned to the West Bank de facto by way of the Israeli
   West Bank barrier, although formally, their legal status has not been
   reverted.

Culture

   Jerusalem houses many museums. The Israel Museum is one of the most
   famous. It includes a large collection of art and archaeological
   artifacts. In the "Shrine of the Book", it exhibits the Dead Sea
   Scrolls. The Rockefeller Museum is the city's specific museum for
   archeology. The Ticho House exhibits art collections in an historical
   building. The Tower of David Museum is the main municipal museum; it
   includes models of the city and changing exhibits. Yad Vashem is the
   national Holocaust museum and monument. The Islamic Museum in the Old
   City and Islamic Art Museum near the President's house both have
   collections of Islamic art, holy scripts and artifacts.

   The city has two professional orchestras, the Jerusalem Symphony
   Orchestra-IBA and the Israel Camerata Jerusalem. In walking distance
   from the old city (southwest) is a cluster of cultural institutions.
   Theaters include the Khan Theatre, Jerar Bachar, Beit Shmuel, Beit
   Agron and Jerusalem's Theatre. The Jerusalem Cinematheque is the venue
   in Jerusalem to watch non-commercial movies. It houses annually an
   international film festival and a Jewish film festival. In the Sultan
   Pool open air concerts are held, by Israeli artists and guests from
   abroad. The Jerusalem Music Centre in Mishkenot Sha’ananim hosts
   chamber music concerts and workshops.

   Adjacent to the Hebrew University’s Givat Ram campus are the Jerusalem
   Botanical Gardens. The Givat Ram campus is also the home to the Jewish
   National and University Library, itself home to the Albert Einstein
   archives and the Eran Laor Cartographic Collection. The Synagogue of
   the Hadassah Medical Centre is home to the Marc Chagall stained glass
   windows depicting the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Another theatre, the
   Palestinian National Theatre is located next to Orient House.

   The main cultural event of the year is the Israel Festival, with
   international and local street performances and repertory and
   alternative musicians and theatre groups.

   Shrine of the Book

   The David Tower Museum

   Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Givat Ram campus

   The Khan Theatre in Jerusalem

   Old gristmill in Mishkenot Sha’ananim

   The hall of Binyanei Hauma hosted the Eurovision in 1979 and 1999

   The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo

Economy

   Heavy industry is discouraged in Jerusalem, leaving Jerusalem's economy
   as mainly service-based. While Tel Aviv remains Israel's financial
   capital, almost half of Jerusalem's residents work in government,
   public service, or tourism, although there has been an increasing
   number of high-technology start-ups in the city, as well.

   The civilian labor force of Jerusalem was 183,000 (48.1%) out of
   384,000 persons ages 15+. This is low in comparison to Tel Aviv and
   Haifa, 58.0% and 52.4% respectively. This reflects a higher percentage
   of one income households, especially among the Arab and Haredi
   populations. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, the
   average wage for a Jerusalem worker was NIS 5,568 in 2000. In Tel Aviv
   the income was 17.8% higher and in Haifa 14.1% higher. Income in
   Jerusalem was on average lower both for wage-earners and self-employed
   people.

   The population of Jerusalem is poorer in comparison to Israeli national
   figures. This is also often attributed to large Arab and Haredi
   population segments. In 1995 25% of the city population and 37% of its
   children lived below poverty level, as compared to 17% of all Israelis
   and 23% of Israeli children.

Tourism

   Coffee shop in Jerusalem's centre
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   Coffee shop in Jerusalem's centre
   Nightlife in Jerusalem centre
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   Nightlife in Jerusalem centre

   Jerusalem is home to many attractions. Some of these include:
     * The Old City of Jerusalem
     * Jerusalem Centre around Jaffa and Ben Yehuda streets
     * The various Museums
     * The Biblical Zoo
     * The City of David
     * Quaint neighbourhoods such as Mishkenot Sha’ananim, Ein Kerem, Mea
       Shearim and German Colony
     * Malha Centre
     * Main nightlife in Jerusalem around the Russian Compound, Nachalat
       Shivaa, ShlomZion and Talpiot
     * The Haas Promenade

Transportation

Roads

   Begin Boulevard is western Jerusalem's inner city expressway. It runs
   south to north from Manahat (Malha) to Ramot, where it merges into the
   Modi'in-Tel Aviv highway ( Highway 443). Other major north-south
   arteries include: the Talpiot- Atarot route ( Route 60), which
   traverses the city centre and roughly separates East and West
   Jerusalem; and Herzl Boulevard, which begins at the northern entrance
   of the city and continues south via Mount Herzl and the Yad VaShem
   Holocaust memorial. It then merges into additional routes that lead to
   the southwestern quarters. The Golomb-Herzog-Ben-Zvi route also links
   the southern quarters with the city centre.

   Running east through the city centre, Jaffa Road connects the Jaffa
   Gate of the Old City as well as East Jerusalem with the northwestern
   city entrance and Highway 1. Yigal Yadin Boulevard serves as a northern
   bypass of the city centre, and links Ma'ale Adummim and the
   northeastern neighborhoods to Begin Boulevard near Ramot.

   A future ring-road would include Yadin and Begin boulevards as the
   respective north and west sectors.

Buses

   Jerusalem Central Bus Station is Jerusalem's intercity bus station. It
   is served mainly by Egged buses and by a single joint Egged - Dan bus
   line, while Superbus and Margalit, serving Modi'in, have their stops
   close by. City buses in the Jewish and Israeli areas are run by Egged,
   which runs close to 100 bus lines throughout the city and its suburbs.

   Palestinian-run buses serve the city's Arab neighborhoods as well as
   Palestinian towns in the West Bank and Israeli Arab towns. This system
   is based out of the East Jerusalem Central Bus Station on Sultan
   Suleiman Street, though buses also leave from outside the Damascus Gate
   of the Old City.

   The Egged and Palestinian city bus networks are almost completely
   separated. There are only a handful of bus stops that both companies
   serve. Arab residents of Jerusalem do use Egged buses frequently, but
   Jewish residents rarely use the Palestinian buses, in part because
   while Arabs do regularly visit the Israeli centre of town, Jews do not
   frequently come to the Arab parts of the city.

Railway

   Israel Railways operates train service to Southern Jerusalem with 2
   stops: Jerusalem Malha near the Malha Mall and the Biblical Zoo. Very
   few trains stop at the latter stop. The line was out of use for seven
   years because of deteriorating conditions and was restored on April 9,
   2005. Jerusalem Malha is a new station which replaces the historical
   Khan Station at Remez Square near the Old City. The train ride from Tel
   Aviv to Jerusalem takes about 80 minutes.

   The existing rail line serving Jerusalem began operating in 1892. A
   brand new high-speed electrified rail link is currently under
   construction, which will run from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem via Ben Gurion
   Airport and terminate at a new underground station - Binyanei HaUmah,
   located between the Jerusalem Central Bus Station and the International
   Convention Centre. It is anticipated that the new rail link will open
   in 2011, with an expected transit time from Tel Aviv of less than 30
   minutes.
   Wall painting on Jaffa Road of the future light rail network in
   Jerusalem
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   Wall painting on Jaffa Road of the future light rail network in
   Jerusalem

   A local light rail network is being planned and has already been
   partially constructed. The first line is at the height of its
   construction and is slated to begin operating from Pisgat Ze'ev in the
   northeast through the French Hill and through Yaffo Street to the
   Central Bus Station and the southwestern neighborhoods around 2008.
   Unusually, for a city with a population of over 700,000, Jerusalem
   never had a previous first generation tramway network, although, before
   the war, one was proposed but was cancelled for political reasons.

Airports

   Atarot Airport is Jerusalem's airport, but was closed to civilian
   traffic in 2000 due to security concerns arising from the Al-Aqsa
   Intifada, and was later placed under IDF control during 2001. Ben
   Gurion International Airport, 40 km northwest of the city, serves as
   the primary international air transport hub for both Jerusalem and Tel
   Aviv.

Sports

   Teddy Stadium
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   Teddy Stadium

   The most popular sport in Jerusalem is football (soccer). The city has
   two major teams, the yellow Beitar Jerusalem FC and the red Hapoel
   Jerusalem FC. Beitar plays in the Premier League, was 4 times Israeli
   champion (1986, 1993, 1997 and 1998) and has won the national cup 5
   times. Hapoel currently plays in the Leumit or second league and has
   won one national cup, in 1973. In basketball, however, Hapoel Jerusalem
   has the upperhand. In a league dominated by Maccabi Tel Aviv it never
   won a championship, yet twice won the Israeli Cup, in 1996 and 1997. In
   2004 it won the European ULEB Cup.

   A marathon is held in the streets of Jerusalem every year and the
   popular Jerusalem hike starts west of the city and ends in its streets.
   The municipality, universities, schools, clubs and businesses operate
   over a thousand sport facilities throughout the city. The largest
   sports facility is the Teddy Kollek Stadium in Malha, a football
   stadium with 21,000 seats. Major basketball games are held at the
   Strauss Arena.

Education

     * Hebrew University of Jerusalem
     * Al-Quds University
     * Jerusalem College of Technology
     * Bezalel Academy of Art and Design
     * Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance
     * Mir yeshiva
     * Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem
     * Brisk yeshiva
     * Brigham Young University Jerusalem Centre
     * Studium Biblicum Franciscanum
     * École Biblique et Archéologique Française

Museums

     * Israel Museum
     * Rockefeller Museum
     * Yad Vashem
     * Ticho House
     * The Archaeological Museum of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum
     * The Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem
     * The Tower Of David Museum
     * The Time Elevator

Born in Jerusalem

     * Saint Angelus (Catholic saint)
     * Fathi Arafat (physician)
     * Suha Arafat (public figure)
     * Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (rabbi)
     * Mili Avital (actress)
     * Yosef Avni (activist)
     * Chaim Joseph David Azulai (rabbi, scholar)
     * Yossi Banai (performer)
     * Mustafa Barghouti (politician)
     * Elisha Ben Abuyah (heretic)
     * Amit Ben-Shushan (football player)
     * Aviram Bruchyan (football player)
     * Mordechai Eliyahu (rabbi)
     * Saeb Erekat (politician)
     * Yuval Gabay (drummer)
     * Yehoram Gaon (performer)
     * Eliezer Goldberg (judge)
     * David Grossman (author)
     * Eran Groumi (swimmer)
     * Mordechai Gur "Motta" (general)
     * Michael Halika (swimmer)
     * Tzahi Hanegbi (politician)
     * Amira Hass (journalist)
     * Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni (commander)
     * Amin al-Husayni (public figure)
     * Eliahu Inbal (orchestral conductor)
     * Flavius Josephus (historian)
     * Yousef Al-Khalidi (politician)
     * George Khoury (murder victim)
     * Amos Kollek (film director)
     * Itzik Kornfine (football goalkeeper)
     * Moshe Levinger (rabbi, activist)

     * Isaac Luria (rabbi, scholar)
     * Raphael Maklouf (sculptor)
     * Uri Malmilian (football player)
     * Yoav Meiri (swimmer)
     * Yossi Mizrahi (goalkeeper)
     * Dorrit Moussaieff (first lady)
     * Shlomo Moussaieff (businessman)
     * Al-Muqaddasi (geographer)
     * Nathan (son of David) (prince)
     * Solomon (King of Israel)
     * Yitzhak Navon (president)
     * Sari Nusseibeh (academic)
     * Shaike Ofir (actor)
     * Eli Ohana (football player)
     * Amos Oz (author)
     * Nehemiah Persoff (actor)
     * Natalie Portman (actress)
     * Ibn Qudamah (scholar)
     * Yitzhak Rabin (prime-minister)
     * Reuven Rivlin (politician)
     * Edward Said (literary theorist)
     * Sirhan Sirhan (assassin)
     * Eliezer Waldenberg (rabbi)
     * Ayelet Waldman (author)
     * William of Tyre (archbishop)
     * Yigael Yadin (archeologist)
     * A. B. Yehoshua (novelist)
     * Eli Yishai (politician)
     * Munib Younan (bishop)
     * Nurit Zarchi (actress)
     * Nissim Zeev (politician)
     * Rehavam Zeevi (politician)

Sister cities

     * United States New York City, USA (1993)
     * Spain Toledo, Spain

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