The President of the United States trump promised to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, while the Palestinian authority wants to make this city their future capital. Jerusalem is increasingly becoming the centre of history and the fulfillment of the prophecies.
Old city Jerusalem, temple mount and mount of olives have something in common in addition to biblical values. They are in that part of the city, which the Palestinians want to see their future capital. The Scripture says that Jerusalem is a city on the hill.
Haim Silverstein — founder and President of Keep Jerusalem believes that the city must remain United. We spent a whole day trying different angles to consider Jerusalem and to understand the complexity of the situation.
“This is a city that is included in geopolitics claimed by both the Jewish people and the Arab nation,” explains Haim Silverstein — founder and President of “Keep Jerusalem”.
Jerusalem conquered more than any other city in history. And he was the only capital known to the Jewish people. However, the world refused to recognize it as the capital of Israel, although it is mentioned in the old Testament more than 640 times, and repeatedly in the Quran.
“Jerusalem is the capital of Israel — continues Silverstein. — We know that more than three thousand years ago king David came here. He conquered Jerusalem and established his capital here. And for thousands of years, Israel was a sovereign state and Jerusalem was sovereign in the land of Israel. Place of residence of the Jews who remained in Palestine and Israel for centuries”.
We observe the actual return of the Jewish people to their land only during the last 150 years. Today, when we look at Jerusalem, we see it completely rebuilt.
Why the Arabs and Palestinians decided that this place was their capital?
“When the Israelis liberated Jerusalem in ’67, they decided to banish us. They had this idea of creating a Palestinian state with its capital in Jerusalem,” continues Silverstein.
On the world stage in Jerusalem is usually divided into West and East. The new Western part of the city is mostly Jewish. The ancient, Eastern part, stretching from North to South. Most Arabs of the city live here. But not only the Arabs, but almost the same number of Jewish Israelis.
There has been talk about dividing Jerusalem. Is it real?
“I think it would be a disaster of historic proportions, and a huge mistake, because the partition of Jerusalem will lead to the opposite effect in establishing peace,” — said Silverstein.
From 1949 to 1967, Jerusalem was divided with Jordan controlling the Eastern part. During the six day war of 1967, Israel took her under his control.
“It is one of the most serious battles 6 day war. Between the West and the mountain were the supplies. It was very important to capture these hills,” continues Silverstein.
The Bible calls Jerusalem the city of the great king, and he had seen many kings.
In 1964 it was Jordan’s king Hussein, who began to build a Palace on a hill on the Northern outskirts of Jerusalem. The six-day war interrupted his plans.The height is easy to understand why both the original and the new rulers wanted to take this hill.
“Now we are looking on the East towards the Judean desert, which is a mountain of Moab, where today is Jordan. We can see all the way from the Dead sea to the Jordan valley, says Silverstein. Under us you can see the Jewish quarter and to the North another area, and these two settlements are mainly located near the surrounding Arab neighbors. If we were to divide Jerusalem and said, all that is left of 90,000 Jews, belongs to Palestinians living in these two blocks would be in Palestine.”
Looking North, we can see the biblical Judea and Samaria known as the West Bank. In the distance, just five kilometers from Jerusalem, is Ramala, the current seat of the government of the Palestinian authority.
“An important question that you need to understand if you want to understand the strategic challenges facing Jerusalem, what is the purpose of the Arabs? They understand that Jerusalem is the heart of the Jewish people, and if they will be able to liberate Jerusalem, that, in their opinion, they will be able to release and all Israel,” continues Silverstein.
Silverstein believes that Arabs use three main ways to liberate Jerusalem: power, propaganda and diplomacy, as well as demographics.
“What they do is build and build and build inside Jerusalem, large illegal structure. And they have successfully created a continuous series that stretches from Ramallah in the North, around Jerusalem, the old city, to Bethlehem in the South. And in doing so, they received a demographic Trojan horse inside Jerusalem,” — says Silverstein.
“You have hope that this city will ultimately be one piece? You can see a better future ahead or not?”
“In the book of Zechariah, 14th Chapter says that will happen on the mount of olives. There will be an earthquake. There will be war. Sverhestestvennoe different phenomena. This is going to happen in the future, but Zechariah’s prophecy ends by saying that Jerusalem will live safely. The question is how it will happen. A guarantee of peace in Jerusalem is its Association in sovereign Israel. And this is the promising beginning of incredible events, which we hope and pray will happen then, and will lead to unconditional peace in Jerusalem and around the world,” says Haim Silverstein.