Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs (JCFA)

Strategic Alliances for a Secure, Connected, and Prosperous Region

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The Influence of Christian Interests in Setting the Route of the Security Fence in Jerusalem

November 1, 2008 | Col. (Res.) Danny Tirza

In March 2002, at the height of a terror campaign in which 1,804 Israelis were killed in Palestinian suicide bombings, the government of Israel decided to take a defensive measure to block terrorists from reaching Israeli population centers by establishing a physical obstacle. Even Israel's worst enemies confessed that the security fence saved Israeli lives. In building the fence, great efforts were invested and solutions were provided to meet the unique needs of the Christian churches.

The Palestinian Authority and the Jewish Holy Sites in the West Bank:
Rachel’s Tomb as a Test Case

December 2, 2007 | Nadav Shragai

Rachel’s Tomb lies on the northern outskirts of Bethlehem, about 460 meters (about 500 yards) south of the Jerusalem municipal border, and for more than 1,700 years has been identified as the tomb of the matriarch Rachel. In 2000, after hundreds of years of recognizing the site as Rachel’s Tomb, Muslims began calling it the “Bilal ibn Rabah mosque” – a claim that ignored Ottoman decrees that gave Jews the right of access to the site at the beginning of the nineteenth century.