Jerusalem : The Heart of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

The city of Jerusalem has a special meaning for Jews, Muslims and Christians. In East Jerusalem and its environs, the year 2011 will be recorded as the year of the greatest expansion of Israeli settlements since 1967. In general, the question of Jerusalem represents one of the most sensitive and complex red lines of the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. For Palestinians, East Jerusalem — al-Quds — is to be the capital of the future Palestinian State. For Israelis, the entirety of Jerusalem —Yerushaláyim — is the sole and indivisible capital of the Jewish State. Given the intractable nature of the dispute and its social, economic and religious implications, multiple attempts at negotiations have stalled over the question of Jerusalem, and there is little sign of change on the horizon. The Israeli policy of severing political, economic and social links between the West Bank and East Jerusalem has caused a serious deterioration in Palestinian living conditions. The EU should take effective action on this issue by promoting its policy of Jerusalem as the open capital of two coexisting and peaceful States.