Restoration and development of the city
After the Six-Day War, a restoration and construction boom of unprecedented scope began in Jerusalem and its environs. The expansion of the city’s boundaries from the outskirts of Bethlehem in the south to the outskirts of Ramallah in the north made it possible to build institutions and establish new neighborhoods. A cordon of Jewish neighborhoods was built around the city, to ensure contiguous Jewish residence in the unified city. The accelerated construction enabled an increase in Jerusalem’s population and the absorption of tens of thousands of new immigrants. The following neighborhoods were built: Ramat Eshkol, Givat Shapira (French Hill), Ma’alot Dafna, Neve Ya’akov, Ramot, East Talpiot (Armon Hanatziv) and Gilo, and new roads were paved. An upscale residential neighborhood was built instead of the ruined Jewish Quarter in the Old City, and the old synagogues in the Jewish Quarter were restored and rebuilt. Parks, new buildings and hotels were built, and the new part of the city became modernized. In the 1980s, the Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhood was built, and the local councils of Givat Ze’ev and Ma’ale Adumim were established near Jerusalem (the latter subsequently became a city in its own right). East Jerusalem also expanded and grew, and Arab neighborhoods were added to the city’s area of jurisdiction. Industrial zones were set up in Talpiot and Atarot, and in Har Hotzvim and Malha knowledge-intensive and high-tech industry was developed.
Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, is expanding, and additional neighborhoods have been built and continue to be built in it. Today it is the largest city in the State of Israel. As of December 2018, the city’s population stood at 919,400 – constituting 10% of Israel’s population – including 569,900 Jews and 349,600 Arabs.
Jerusalem serves as a source of inspiration and an object of yearning for the residents of the State of Israel, the Jewish people in the Diaspora and the entire world. It draws tourists from across the globe, who come to admire its beauty, learn of its past and make pilgrimages to the holy places, which are sacred to members of the three major monotheistic religions