Ring Neighborhoods, Jerusalem
Encyclopedia
The Ring neighborhoods of Jerusalem are seven suburban neighborhoods in East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem or Eastern Jerusalem refer to the parts of Jerusalem captured and annexed by Jordan in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and then captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War...

. The neighborhoods (more or less clockwise from north to east to south) are Ramot
Ramot
Ramot , also known as Ramot Alon , is a large housing development in northwestern Jerusalem. Because part of Ramot lies north of the Green Line in East Jerusalem, the international community considers Ramot an Israeli settlement that is illegal under international law. Israel disputes this and...

, Ramat Shlomo
Ramat Shlomo
Ramat Shlomo Heights) is a large Jewish housing development in northern East Jerusalem. The population, mostly ultra-Orthodox, is 18,000-20,000....

, Neve Yaakov
Neve Yaakov
Neve Yaakov also Neve Ya'aqov, , is a neighborhood located in northeastern Jerusalem, north of Pisgat Ze'ev and south of al-Ram. Established in 1924 during the period of the British Mandate, it was abandoned during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War...

, Pisgat Ze'ev
Pisgat Ze'ev
Pisgat Ze'ev , is an Israeli settlement and a residential neighborhood with a population of 50,000 located in northern East Jerusalem. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, although the Israeli government disputes this...

, East Talpiot
East Talpiot
East Talpiot is a neighborhood in southeastern Jerusalem, established in 1973 in the upswing of building that followed the Six-Day War. The neighborhood is located in East Jerusalem, unilaterally annexed to Israel but internationally recognized as being a part of the West Bank...

, Har Homa
Har Homa
Har Homa is a neighborhood in southern East Jerusalem, near Beit Sahour. Built on land annexed to the Jerusalem municipality by Israel after the 1967 Six-Day War, it is considered by much of the world an illegal Israeli settlement, although Israel disputes this.The neighborhood was officially...

 and Gilo
Gilo
Gilo is a neighborhood in southern East Jerusalem with a population of 40,000, mostly Jewish. It is one of the five ring neighborhoods of Jerusalem and is built on land in the West Bank that was annexed to Israel in 1980 under the Jerusalem Law. The international community regards it as an...

. The international community does not recognize Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem and considers the neighborhoods illegal settlements
International law and Israeli settlements
The international community considers the establishment of Israeli settlements in the Israeli-occupied territories illegal under international law, but Israel maintains that they are consistent with international law because it does not agree that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the...

, but the Israeli government disputes this.

History and legal status

In 1967, following the Six Day War, the makeup of Jerusalem was altered. Plans were drawn up to establish new residential neighborhoods on undeveloped land around Jerusalem as a housing solution for young couples, new immigrants
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...

, and middle class families seeking a better quality of life. The city's territory was increased to 108km² when Israel unilaterally annexed areas north, east and south of the city to Israel, totaling an area three times the size of pre-war West Jerusalem
West Jerusalem
West Jerusalem refers to:*The section of Jerusalem captured by Israel following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.*The western neighborhoods of Jerusalem today.-Division in 1948:...

. Today, as many as 165,000 people reside in these communities. According to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 and European Union, due to their having been built beyond the Green Line
Green Line (Israel)
Green Line refers to the demarcation lines set out in the 1949 Armistice Agreements between Israel and its neighbours after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War...

, the neighborhoods Israel subsequently built on these annexed grounds are considered to be Israeli settlements, leading them to be to considered illegal under international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...

 based on the Fourth Geneva Convention
Fourth Geneva Convention
The Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, commonly referred to as the Fourth Geneva Convention and abbreviated as GCIV, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. It was adopted in August 1949, and defines humanitarian protections for civilians...

 and United Nations Security Council Resolution 476
United Nations Security Council Resolution 476
United Nations Security Council Resolution 476, adopted on June 30, 1980, declared that "all legislative and administrative measures and actions taken by Israel, the occupying Power, which purport to alter the character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem have no legal validity and constitute...

. However, Israel disputes this, maintaining that these neighborhoods are part of the municipality of Jerusalem, and therefore under Israel's sovereignty. The United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 position has been inconsistent. The United States abstained from voting on Resolution 476 and the US Congress has declared that "Jerusalem should remain an undivided city... the capital of the State of Israel" in the Jerusalem Embassy Act
Jerusalem Embassy Act
The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 is a public law of the United States passed by the 104th Congress on October 23, 1995. It was passed for the purposes of initiating and funding the relocation of the Embassy of the United States in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, no later than May 31, 1999, and...

. On the other hand, the Obama administration has stated that East Jerusalem settlements must halt construction and expansion permanently. Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 has also shown wavering stances regarding the neighborhoods, by using ambiguous wording or refusing to outwardly classify the neighborhoods as illegal West Bank settlements.

Neighborhoods

  • Ramot
    Ramot
    Ramot , also known as Ramot Alon , is a large housing development in northwestern Jerusalem. Because part of Ramot lies north of the Green Line in East Jerusalem, the international community considers Ramot an Israeli settlement that is illegal under international law. Israel disputes this and...

     is located at north-west, north of Highway 1
    Highway 1 (Israel)
    Highway 1 , is the main highway connecting Tel Aviv with Jerusalem.-History:The section between Latrun and Jerusalem roughly follows an ancient path connecting Jaffa and Jerusalem...

    . Established in 1974, it has about 50,000 residents as of 2010.
  • Ramat Shlomo
    Ramat Shlomo
    Ramat Shlomo Heights) is a large Jewish housing development in northern East Jerusalem. The population, mostly ultra-Orthodox, is 18,000-20,000....

    , due north of downtown was established in 1995. It has an almost entirely Haredi population of 20,000.
  • Neve Yaakov
    Neve Yaakov
    Neve Yaakov also Neve Ya'aqov, , is a neighborhood located in northeastern Jerusalem, north of Pisgat Ze'ev and south of al-Ram. Established in 1924 during the period of the British Mandate, it was abandoned during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War...

     is the northernmost neighborhood in Jerusalem. Established in 1970, it has about 30,000 residents.
  • Pisgat Ze'ev
    Pisgat Ze'ev
    Pisgat Ze'ev , is an Israeli settlement and a residential neighborhood with a population of 50,000 located in northern East Jerusalem. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, although the Israeli government disputes this...

     in the north is the largest neighborhood in Jerusalem. Established in 1982, it has about 50,000 residents.
  • East Talpiot
    East Talpiot
    East Talpiot is a neighborhood in southeastern Jerusalem, established in 1973 in the upswing of building that followed the Six-Day War. The neighborhood is located in East Jerusalem, unilaterally annexed to Israel but internationally recognized as being a part of the West Bank...

     (East of Talpiot
    Talpiot
    Talpiot , is a neighborhood in southeast Jerusalem, Israel, established in 1922 by Zionist pioneers.-Etymology:The name Talpiot derives from a verse in Song of Songs 4:4 – "Thy neck is like the tower of David, built with turrets." According to rabbinic sources, Talpiot refers to the Temple...

    ) is located on the eastern edge of the city, situated near the Commissioner's Palace. Established in 1973, it has about 15,000 residents.
  • Har Homa
    Har Homa
    Har Homa is a neighborhood in southern East Jerusalem, near Beit Sahour. Built on land annexed to the Jerusalem municipality by Israel after the 1967 Six-Day War, it is considered by much of the world an illegal Israeli settlement, although Israel disputes this.The neighborhood was officially...

     in the far south-east was established in 1997. It has about 20,000 residents.
  • Gilo
    Gilo
    Gilo is a neighborhood in southern East Jerusalem with a population of 40,000, mostly Jewish. It is one of the five ring neighborhoods of Jerusalem and is built on land in the West Bank that was annexed to Israel in 1980 under the Jerusalem Law. The international community regards it as an...

     at the south-west of the city, is the highest neighborhood. Established in 1971, it has about 40,000 residents.


Other Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem that were built over the Green Line, such as Ramat Eshkol
Ramat Eshkol
Ramat Eshkol is a neighborhood in north-eastern Jerusalem. It was built on land captured from Jordan in the Six-Day War and was the first neighborhood built in East Jerusalem after the Six-Day War in 1967...

 (the first to be built) and French Hill
French Hill
French Hill , also Giv'at Shapira is a neighborhood in northeastern Jerusalem. It is located on territory occupied during the Six-Day War in 1967, later annexed to Israel under the Jerusalem Law in 1980...

, are not considered to be part of the Ring neighborhoods.
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