Once upon a time in Jerusalem,
Especially for Jerusalem Day this week.
In the photo – the buffer zone on King David Street in the mid-1950s. In the background is the YMCA tower, and in front of it is the building on the corner of Hess Street.
On the left and not in the picture – today’s Citadel of David hotel.
Today’s Jerusalem, a vibrant and developing city, the capital city and the largest city in Israel, a governmental, cultural, and religious center, has come a long way from the days of the buffer zone and the division of the city to the revival and renewal of today.
Between the War of Independence and the liberation of Jerusalem in the Six Day War, Jerusalem was divided in two on the border of the Green Line in the city, which was drawn as a temporary border line in the armistice agreement with Jordan at the end of the War of Independence.
The green line passed from the north of the city on today’s Chaim Bar-Lev Road,
When the scout compound remains an enclave,
From the outskirts of the Musrara neighborhood to the border of the old city,
Continue on the Hebron road towards the Beqaa neighborhood and the German settlement, to the east of which is the demilitarized area of the Allenby camp complex.
Obstacles and fortifications were erected on both sides of the barricade, and various buildings were converted into military positions for observation and defense.
At the end of the War of Independence, about 83,000 Jews lived in Jerusalem, and on the eve of the Six-Day War, there were already close to 200,000 residents living in the city.
The increase was mainly due to new immigrants who arrived in the city and the immigration of officials and civil servants who worked in the Government quarters, the Jewish Agency, the Jewish Foundation, the Hebrew University, Israel Television and the Broadcasting Authority, and more.
The limitation of the development of the city to the east due to its division caused the development of the city to be performed only on its western side –
New residential neighborhoods were built, businesses and shops were opened, and factories and industrial buildings were built in the area of today’s Romema neighborhood, at the same time as the development of other industries in the city such as pharmaceuticals, shoe manufacturing, diamonds, printing, plastics and more.
The income of the tourism industry in the city and the number of visitors was very low mainly due to the small number of historical sites.
The religious sites of the three religions and points of interest were mostly on the eastern side of the city.
Residents of the seam line between the western and eastern cities suffered regularly from the snipers of the Jordanian Legion, and concrete walls were erected on the western side to prevent injuries to civilians who lived along the line.
Arab countries continued to harass the country’s borders with acts of terrorism and on the eve of the Six-Day War there was an atmosphere of oppression in the country.
On Independence Day 1967, Egyptian ground forces succeeded in crossing the Suez Canal, and the other armies of the Arab countries waited for a moment of strength to attack the State of Israel along all its borders and the region entered a period of tense waiting.
Reserve soldiers were recruited in the country, and the country’s leadership showed signs of hesitation and moderation.
The ruler of Iraq said in those days – “The existence of Israel is a mistake that must be corrected, and our clear goal is the erasure of the State of Israel. We will meet in Tel Aviv and Haifa.”
During the waiting period, Israel made an effort to convey to King Hussein of Jordan, who ruled the eastern part of the city, messages that Israel is not interested in war with Jordan, neither in Jerusalem nor in the West Bank, and secret meetings with senior government officials were held with the king to clarify the message.
On June 5, 1967, Israel launched a surprise air attack with the participation of 185 air force planes on the airfields of Arab army soldiers, thus achieving air superiority.
The war has begun.
In the morning when the war broke out, King Hussein and the Jordanian Chief of Staff received erroneous messages from the Egyptian Chief of Staff that the Egyptian forces were succeeding in Sinai against the IDF.
Hussein forgot the agreements reached with the senior officials of the Israeli government and was tempted to listen to Egypt.
The Jordanian forces began heavy shelling along the entire length of the sector, including the President’s residence in Jerusalem, the Knesset building, and all the way to Tel Aviv.
Israel initially reacted with restraint, and a ceasefire was reached through the mediation of the UN, which did not last and was violated by the Jordanians within hours.
The Jordanians took action and captured the Commissioner’s Palace, which was recaptured in a quick counterattack by IDF forces.
The military initiative passed to Israel on the same day, and in a number of military operations, the forces took over the Jordanian outposts in southern Jerusalem at Ramat Rachel, the radar outposts (today’s Har Hader settlement, near the top of the five), and a severe and bloody night attack to capture Ammunition Hill and break through to Sheik Jarach.
Already on the third day of the war, June 7, the troops entered from the Ashpot gate and occupied the Jewish and Armenian quarters, another force broke through the Lions Gate and occupied the Muslim quarter, the Christian quarter,
and the source of the Jewish heart and soul, which has not stopped beating for more than 3000 years – the Temple Mount and the Western Wall.
In the hard battles for the liberation of the city, 182 IDF soldiers were killed, about a quarter of all the soldiers who fell in the entire country in the war.
may they rest in peace.
All this happened only 56 years ago.
The wire fences of the buffer zone were replaced by wide streets and luxurious hotels, which house millions of tourists and visitors a year,
The Western Wall, which was neglected for hundreds of years, is being restored, the plaza in front of it was expanded immediately after the liberation of the city, and the symbol and testimony to the Temple stand majestically and lovingly welcomes Jews from the four corners of the world, and visitors from all over the world.
The residents of Mosrara and Mamilla no longer need to fear the legion snipers and hide behind concrete walls,
The residents of Beqaa and the German colony will no longer be residents of the borderline, as delusional as it sounds.
The narrow roads and dirt roads are being replaced by the light rail that will inherit the city in the coming years,
The immigrant housing that was built hastily and cheaply in the newly established state is being replaced by residential towers and new neighborhoods.
and the population of the Jewish city that numbered on the eve of the war
About 200,000 people, today there are almost a million people, of them
About 600,000 Jews.
I, too, and everyone who was born after the liberation of the city, see the connected city as an existing fact and is unable to imagine the days before the liberation, but nothing should be taken for granted.
A lot of blood, dead and wounded soldiers paid with their bodies, and visible miracles in three days had to happen for us to live in the most fascinating city in the world, which grows and grows every day.
And also one Jordanian king, who was tempted to listen to the battered Egyptian general, and by choosing to join the war and attack, allowed all this to happen.
Happy Jerusalem Day to all of us.
If I’ll forget you, Jerusalem
May my right hand be forgotten. May my tongue be stuck, if I do not remember you, if I do not raise Jerusalem at the head of my joy.
Shabbat Shalom to all, far and near, from Jerusalem.
