About Jerusalem

No other city has the ability to inspire such passion as the Old City of Jerusalem. With claims on it by three of the major world religions, it is no wonder that the history of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim ‘city of peace’ in Hebrew, Al-Quds ‘the holy’ in Arabic) is marked by political and religious turmoil. The Dome of the Rock on Temple Mount is the third most important religious site of Islam (after Mecca and Medina). It is from the nearby silver dome (El Aksa mosque) that Muhammad is believed to have ascended to heaven. For Jews, the Western Wall is the most important praying sight. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is thought to contain the tomb where Jesus was laid to rest after The Crucifixion – the cross having been carried through the streets of the city along the route known as the Via Dolorosa – and remains sacrosanct to Christians.