3 Review(s)

This behind-the-scenes account of Israeli rule in Jerusalem details the Jewish state's attempt to lay claim to all of Jerusalem, even when that meant implementing harsh policies toward the city's Arab population. The authors, Jerusalemites form the sphers of politics, journalism and the military, have themselves been players in the drama that has unfolded in east Jerusalem towards the end to the 20th century. They have also had access to a wide range of official documents that reveal the making and implementation of Israeli policy towards Jerusalem. This text discloses the details of Israel's discriminatory policies towards Jerusalem Arabs and shows how Israeli leaders mishandled everything form security and housing to schools and sanitation services, to the detriment of not only the Palestinian residents but also Israel's own agenda. It is a history of lost opportunities to unite the peoples of Jerusalem. A central focus of the book is Teddy Kollek, the city's outspoken major for nearly three decades, whose failures have gone largely unreported.But Kollek is only one character in a cast that includes prime ministers, generals, terrorists, European and American leaders, Arab shopkeepers, Israeli policemen, and Palistinian schoolchildren.