Do you know that Jerusalem has been occupied more than 20 times and ruined 18 times.

Do you know that:

1- Pagan Domination lasted 800 years

2- Jewish Domination lasted 543 years

3- Christian Domination lasted 427 years

4- Muslim Domination lasted 1193 years.

A- By pagan Domination 800 years: we mean the dominations of

Babylonians 50 years; Persians 204 years; Alexanre the Great 9 years; The Ptolemes 120; The Seleucides 33; Romans (Pompee) 23; Parthes 3; Romans 103; Romans ITitus) 62; Romans 14; all those make 800 years.

B- Jewish Domination, 543 years:

1- David 424 years: David and Hebrew dominations from 1010-586 Before Christ 2- Maccabees 107 years: Maccabees-Hasonians from 170-63 Before Christ 3- Jewish revolts 12 years: Parthes 40-37 Before Christ (some cosider this as Roman domination); Revolt-Jews 66-70 A.D.; Jewish Revolt - Bar-Kchba 132-614 A.D.

C- Christian Domination, 427 years:

Romans 300 years; Byzantines 8 years; Crusaders 88 yers; British mandate 31 years from 1917-1948

D- Muslim Domination 1193 years;

Khalifes-Fatimides 463; Ayoubites 57 years; Mameluks 273 years; Turks 400 years.

E- Palestine-Israel

1- Mixed domination 1948-1967 2-Jewish domination 1967-1996

N.B. For some dates, not all historians are in agreement. For certain dates, there is a five year gap ( at the maximum) among historians 2- The 33 years of Herod's role have been counted with the Roman domination 3- During some periods (under pagan domination), jews enjoyed a certain local autonomy (as during the British Mandate: authority of the Jewish Agency, competence of rabinical courts).

Comments: 1- By Patriarch Michel Sabbah, Roman Catholic (latin) Archbishop of Jerusalem

"Five components are essential to Jerusalem and have to be taken clearly and equally into consideration in any proposed solution:

Two peoples, Palestinains and Israelis, and

Three religions, Judaism, Christianism and Islam.

For the last two thousand years, Jerusalem was the sources of continuous wars, because it was always governed by one political authority corresponding to one religion, Christian, Muslim and today Jewish. If we want to give Jerusalem a permanent stability, so that it will remain no more source of war, it should have a special status which responds to the five essential components, two peoples and three religions. No one should remain outside Jerusalem.

All five components, Israelis and Palestinians, Jews, Christians and Muslims, all of them should feel themselves in Jerusalem equally at home, equally sharing the same rights and duties. Because if Jerusalem continues to be governed by only one political authority, this means that the one who remains outside will nourish in his soul and heart the desire to come back and to enter Jerusalem again by war and violence, as it happened until now through the long history of the Holy Land. Besides that, any political authority could be obe day or other in war with other countries, as it is until now between Israelis and palestinians and Arab Countries. In that case, Jerusalem will be of free access to all enemies, as it was in the past and as it is now. Today for security reason, it is not accessible to all Arabs, Christians or Muslims in Arab Countries, and even to inhabitants of surrounding and near Occupied Territories in the West Bank".