The holy sites in Jerusalem exist as objects of international veneration and sites of nationalist contest. They stand at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, yet surprisingly, the many efforts to promote peace, mostly by those outside the Middle East, have ignored the problem. This book seeks to address this omission by focusing upon proposals of development of a legal regime to protect the holy sites separable from the final peace negotiations to not only protect the holy sites but promote peace by removing these particularly volatile icons from the field of conflict. Peace and the protection of the holy sites cannot occur without the consent and cooperation of those on the ground. This book supports local involvement by developing a comprehensive plan for how to negotiate: outlining the relevant history, highlighting issues of import, and identifying effective strategies for promoting negotiation.
Contents
1. Introduction; Part I. A Troubled History: 2. Historical perspectives: recognition of the holy sites and the emergence of the status quo-70 CE to the 1967 War; 3. Israeli policy on the issue of the holy sites, 1967–2002; 4. Solutions offered for the issue of the holy sites; Part II. Points of Contention - Opportunities for Change: 5. The multi-dimensional problem; 6. Principles to praxis; 7. Collaborative structures/confidence-building measures; 8. Defining the holy sites; 9. Politics and administration - the mechanics; Part III. Addressing Change: Negotiating Peace: 10. Structuring the negotiation - a plan of action; 11. Conclusion; Appendices; Annexes.
Review
"...intention of the book is sound...rich potential..."
--Michael Dumper, Department of Politics, University of Exeter, International of Middle East Studies
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