פרסומים – מכון ירושלים למחקרי מדיניות

Summary

Publication Year: 2018

Authors:

Prof. Yitzhak Reiter, Meir Kraus, Israel (Lulik) Kimhi, Dr. Lior Lehrs, Kobi Michael, Dr. Amnon Ramon

Four core issues lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Jerusalem, the refugees, borders, and security. This document deals with the issue of Jerusalem, which is the most complex and challenging issue on the path to any agreement. The resolution of the Jerusalem issue is vital to the achievement of any agreement.

The Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research seeks to present the Israeli negotiator with an extensive overview of negotiations concerning Jerusalem, and to make available the required knowledge to prepare for future negotiations. This document focuses on negotiation toward a permanent Israeli- Palestinian agreement, but also examines possibilities for interim measures in the absence of a comprehensive settlement.

Israel’s position over the years has been that its capital, Jerusalem, must remain undivided under Israeli rule, and that this is non-negotiable. However, in the Declaration of Principles signed during the Oslo process (1993), Israel committed to discuss the issue of Jerusalem in the framework of the negotiations about the final status agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. In fact, Israel held discussions about Jerusalem on two occasions: first, at the Camp David summit in 2000 and in subsequent meetings, and second, in negotiations held between then Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the Chairman of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas, in the framework of the Annapolis Process in 2007-2008. The issue of Jerusalem was also debated in the round of talks held by United States Secretary of State John Kerry with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Chairman of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas in 2013-2014.

This document is the Executive Summary of a comprehensive study published in Hebrew entitled Negotiating the Future of Jerusalem: An Introduction.

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