Jerusalem Encompassed

The Armistice Agreement with Jordan left Israeli Jerusalem encompassed on three sides by hostile Arab districts. The Israeli and Jordanian parts of the city were divided by barbed wire, minefields, and stretches of no-man's land.

No Man's Land: Barbed Wire and Warnings

No Access to Western Wall

Jewish Jerusalem was cut off from the holiest of sites for the Jews, the Western Wall, and Mt. Scopus remained a separate zone under Israeli sovereignty to which a minimal military presence was allowed. Non-Jewish tourists were permitted access to Israel from Jordan, but not vice-versa.

Jerusalem's Capital Develops

On February 2, 1949, the Israeli government proclaimed Jerusalem the capital of the State of Israel.

The city developed largely towards the west, and waves of new immigrants were settled in transit camps in the early fifties, largely in abandoned Arab neighborhoods and in areas along the line that divided the city. Government offices expanded next to the Knesset, a new hospital and university were established, and the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Center was set up.

Perhaps in keeping with Jerusalem's spiritual character, or because of the logistical problems of the city's population, industry was kept light and restricted to the Romema and Givat Shaul neighborhoods. While the number of residents grew, Jerusalem dropped to third place among Israel's cities in terms of population size.

Broken Jewish Tombstones on the Mount of Olives

Old City Desecrated

During these years, Jewish property in the abandoned Old City of Jerusalem was desecrated. Synagogues were now used for refuse and tombstones in the Jewish cemetery were uprooted and used as building blocs. Jews in the New City could but look through cracks in the concrete walls dividing the City, or peer down from Mt. Zion, to catch a glimpse of the ruins that not long before had recalled visions of the ancient Jewish Temple.