Jerusalem Over 40 Years

Zion Karasanti, 64, Yitzhak Yifat, 63, and Haim Oshri, 62 at the Western Wall on June 7, 1967 and today (Hat tip:  Lynn-B, who has the story behind the picture).

On June 5, 2007, H. Con. Res. 152 passed the House of Representatives by a voice vote.  It congratulates Israel on the 40th anniversary of the Six Day War and the reunification of Jerusalem, commends Israel for “its administration of the undivided city of Jerusalem” for 40 years “during which Israel has respected the rights of all religious groups,” and calls on the President to abide by the policy of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 that Jerusalem should “remain the undivided capital of Israel.” 

The full text of the resolution is a useful historical summary:

Whereas June 2007 marks the 40th anniversary of the Six Day War and the reunification of the city of Jerusalem;

Whereas Israel has, since its founding, sought peace with its Arab neighbors;

Whereas in the weeks leading up to the Six Day War, Israel’s neighbors, without provocation, called for and implemented a blockade of Israel’s critical outlet to the Red Sea, ordered United Nations peace-keeping forces out of the Sinai desert, massed their forces with apparent hostile intent in the Sinai and in the Golan Heights, and publicly threatened to destroy Israel;

Whereas in six days of war, Israel defeated those forces seeking its destruction and reunited the city of Jerusalem which had been artificially divided for 19 years;

Whereas Jerusalem has been the focal point of Jewish religious devotion and the site of a continuous Jewish presence for over three millennia, with a Jewish majority since at least 1896;

Whereas Jerusalem is a holy city for the Christian and Muslim faiths;

Whereas the vibrant Jewish population of the historic Old City of Jerusalem was driven out by force during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War;

Whereas from 1948 to 1967 Jerusalem was a divided city, and Israeli citizens of all faiths as well as Jews of all nationalities were denied access to holy sites in eastern Jerusalem, including the Old City, in which the Western Wall and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre are located;

Whereas this year marks the 40th year that Jerusalem has been administered as a unified city in which the rights of all faiths have been respected;

Whereas the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-45), which became law on November 8, 1995, states as a matter of United States policy that Jerusalem should remain the undivided capital of Israel in which the rights of every ethnic and religious group are protected; and

Whereas it is the policy of the United States to support a peaceful, two-state solution to end the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That Congress–

(1) congratulates the citizens of Israel on the 40th anniversary of the Six Day War in which Israel defeated enemies aiming to destroy the Jewish State;

(2) congratulates the residents of Jerusalem and the people of Israel on the 40th anniversary of the reunification of that historic city;

(3) commends those former combatant states of the Six Day War, Egypt and Jordan, who in subsequent years had the wisdom and courage to embrace a vision of peace and coexistence with Israel;

(4) commends Israel for its administration of the undivided city of Jerusalem for the past 40 years, during which Israel has respected the rights of all religious groups;

(5) reiterates its commitment to the provisions of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 and calls upon the President and all United States officials to abide by its provisions; and

(6) urges the Palestinians and Arab countries to join with Israel in peace negotiations to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, including realization of the vision of two democratic states, Israeli and Palestinian, living side-by-side in peace and security.