President Trump's Deal — Trump Vision 2020

  6

· Episode No. 6

· Jerusalem                                  

· Chapter Five

-        I hereby present the continuation of the summary of Chapter Five (Section Five) of Part One of the political framework from the Summary of the Texts of the Deal of the Century.. (Jerusalem)

-        The United States recognizes the intense sensitivities surrounding Jerusalem, a city that means so much to so many.
Jerusalem is a unique city in the history of civilization. There is no other place on earth that can claim importance for the three largest religions; every day, Jews pray at the Western Wall, Muslims bow in prayer at al-Aqsa Mosque, and Christians worship in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

-        Over the course of history, Jerusalem has been subject to wars and conquests. It has been used to divide people and to incite conflict by those with malicious intentions. But it should not be this way.

-        Jerusalem must remain a city that brings people of all faiths together to visit, to worship, to respect one another, to appreciate the majesty of history and the glory of God’s creation.

-        The approach of this vision is to preserve the unity of Jerusalem, to make it accessible to everyone, and to recognize its sanctity for all in a manner that respects everyone...

·       The Religious Aspects of the Jerusalem Issue

-        We understand that religious interpretations differ within each faith. The following descriptions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It is clear that each of these great religions has a special connection to Jerusalem..
For Judaism: Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). According to Jewish tradition, the site of the Temple Mount is where Abraham once attempted to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice to God, had God not intervened, and for subsequent centuries Jerusalem became the political and spiritual center of the Jewish people, when King David united the twelve tribes of Israel and made the city the capital and spiritual center of the Jewish people, which it remained for nearly 3,000 years.

-        King Solomon, son of King David, built the First Temple on the Temple Mount, according to Jewish tradition, and within the Temple, the Holy of Holies, the original Ten Commandments were stored, after God revealed them to Moses on Mount Sinai. The First Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Second Temple was built on the same mount and remained until it was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE.

-        Nevertheless, Jerusalem did not lose its sanctity for the Jewish people; it remained the direction to which Jews turn in their prayers around the world, and the destination of Jewish pilgrimage each year on the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av, when Jews fast and commemorate the destruction of the Temples and mourn them with lamentation. Although Jews today pray at the Western Wall, which dates from the period of the Second Temple, the Temple Mount itself is the holiest site in Judaism. There are nearly 700 separate references to Jerusalem in the Hebrew Bible, and over some 100 generations, the hopes and dreams of the Jewish people were embodied in the phrase "Next year in Jerusalem!"

-        For Christianity, Jerusalem is the place where Jesus of Nazareth preached, was tried and crucified, was baptized and ascended to heaven. Immediately after the recognition of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire by Emperor Constantine in the early fourth century CE, religious institutions were established at important sites such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Mount of Olives. After the Islamic conquest of Jerusalem in 637 CE, Christians longed to reclaim the holy city, which they finally achieved in 1099, although it was lost to them again in 1187. During the medieval period, Jerusalem remained a destination and site of pilgrimage for Christians, with throngs of visitors flowing to the city to follow in the footsteps of Christ, despite the risks and challenges inherent in such travel. Under the Ottoman Empire, Christians were granted legal rights to their holy sites in Jerusalem through imperial firman in the 18th and 19th centuries, establishing the Christian "status quo," which was reaffirmed in 1993 in the Fundamental Agreement between the Vatican and Israel. Today, Jerusalem is home to more than ten Christian denominations and Christian populations..

-        For Islam, Jerusalem derives its status as mentioned in the Qur'an: "Glory be to Him Who took His servant on a night journey from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs; indeed He is the Hearing, the Seeing." This verse refers to the Prophet Muhammad’s Night Journey from Mecca to Jerusalem (al-Isra’) when he arrived at the area of the Temple Mount/ al-Haram al-Sharif, and when he ascended to heaven (al-Mi‘raj), met the earlier prophets and led them in prayer.... The Prophet Muhammad established Jerusalem as a qibla for Muslims in their prayers (the first qibla), after taking his followers from Mecca to Medina, before the direction of prayer was later changed to Mecca. There were also Muslim rulers who emphasized the religious importance of Jerusalem; the Umayyad Caliphate, based in Damascus, presented Jerusalem as an alternative pilgrimage site when Mecca was controlled by a strong rival to the caliphate.... The victory of Salah ad-Din al-Ayyubi over the Crusaders in 1187 revived Islamic interest in Jerusalem, and in 1517 Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent rebuilt its walls and religious sites; Jerusalem is considered the third-holiest site for Muslims in the world..!!
The status of the holy places in Jerusalem after the Six-Day War in 1967, when the State of Israel took control of all of Jerusalem, the State of Israel assumed responsibility for protecting all the holy sites in the city., these holy sites include, for example but not limited to, the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif (writing them as one word for two places h- a conflict over the same place)!!!, the Western Wall, the holy Islamic shrines, the Church of Saint Anne, the Via Dolorosa (Stations of the Cross), the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Church of the Holy Galilee, the Church of Saint Stephen, the Dormition Abbey, the Tomb of the Virgin Mary, the Cenacle (Room of the Last Supper), the Augusta Victoria Church of the Ascension, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Church of Mary Magdalene, the Dominus Flevit Church, the Pater Noster Church, the Church of Saint Peter in Gallicantu, the Church of the Ascension, the Russian Compound, the Abraham House Catholic in Sikoris, Mount Scopus, Hurva Synagogue, the Tomb of Absalom, the Tomb of Zechariah, the Second Pilgrimage Way of the Temple, the Tomb of the Prophets Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, the Gihon Spring, the City of David, the Mount of Olives, the Jewish Sambuski Cemetery, and Solomon’s Pool..

-        Unlike many previous powers that ruled Jerusalem and destroyed the holy places of other religions, the State of Israel deserves praise for protecting the religious sites of all and for preserving the religious status quo...

-        In light of this commendable record for more than half a century, and given the extreme sensitivity regarding some of the holy places in Jerusalem, we believe this practice should remain in place, and that all holy places in Jerusalem should be subject to the same governance system that exists today. In particular, the status quo at al-Haram al-Sharif / the Temple Mount (Haram al-Sharif Temple Mount/)!!! should continue without interruption.

-        The holy places in Jerusalem must remain open and available to peaceful worshippers and tourists of all faiths. People of every faith should be allowed to pray at al-Haram al-Sharif / the Temple Mount, in a manner that fully respects their religion, taking into account the prayer times and holidays of each faith, as well as other religious considerations.!!

·       The Political Status of Jeru

-    One of the most complex issues in achieving peace is resolving the question of Jerusalem’s political status,
Before 1967, divided Jerusalem was a major source of tension in the region, with Jordanian and Israeli forces separated by barbed wire, and Israeli residents in Jerusalem threatened by sniper fire.!!

-        The division of Jerusalem contradicts the policy statement of the United States Embassy in Jerusalem of 1995. All previous presidents who participated in the peace process agreed that Jerusalem should not be divided again.!!
On December 6, 2017, on behalf of the United States of America, President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The President also clarified that the specific boundaries of Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem would be subject to final status negotiations between the parties.

-        We believe that returning to a divided Jerusalem, and particularly the presence of two separate security forces in one of the most sensitive areas on earth, would be a grave mistake.

-        While the physical division of the city should be avoided, there is currently a security barrier that extends beyond the municipal boundaries and already separates neighboring Arab neighborhoods (i.e., Kafr Aqab and the eastern part of Shu'fat) in Jerusalem from the rest of the neighborhoods in the city.!!

-        This physical barrier must remain in place, and it should serve as the border between the two capitals.!!
 Jerusalem will remain the capital of the State of Israel and under its sovereignty, and it should remain an undivided city.
 The capital of the State of Palestine should be in a part of East Jerusalem located in all the eastern and northern areas where there is a security barrier, including Kafr Aqab, the eastern part of Shuafat, and Abu Dis, and it may be called Jerusalem, or any other name as determined by the State of Palestine.!!!
 This vision would allow the Arab residents in the capital of Israel, Jerusalem, beyond the 1949 armistice line but inside the area that has a security barrier, to choose one of three options:
 To become citizens of the State of Israel, or to become citizens of the State of Palestine, or to retain their status as permanent residents of Israel.!!!!

-         Over the years, some of the Arab residents in these areas (about 6%) chose to become Israeli citizens, and the option must remain available to the Arab residents of these areas in the future!!
 Other Arab residents in these areas may wish to hold a Palestinian political identity by choosing to become citizens of the State of Palestine, and this option must also be available to them..
Many of the Arab residents in these areas may wish to maintain a political identity separate from Israel or Palestine, which allows them to take pride in their unique identity and history, and this option must remain available to them .

-        Wednesday, 5-2-2020