Arab residents of East Jerusalem have announced their intention to form a separate city council, calling their half of the city an independent municipality. The Jerusalem Association for Civil Institutions, led by Hazem al-Gharabli, claims to have more than 130 Arab institutions backing its cause.

The announcement represents a strong move in the battle for control of Jerusalem.

In a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Al-Gharabli said that the United Nations recognizes Jerusalem as occupied territory; he is therefore asking the UN to recognize the group as a legitimate ruling body. Al-Gharabli wrote in the letter:

All UN resolutions since 1948 are based on the fact that Jerusalem is occupied territory, and that the occupation has no right to change its legal status, its geographical character or demographic makeup, and it is the right of its residents to take the necessary steps to organize and maintain their civilian lives. …Therefore … the Jerusalem Association for Civil Institutions demands that the UN defend the residents of Arab Jerusalem and allow them to form a special municipality which will operate on their behalf in a manner that will serve the interests of its residents in accordance with UN resolutions.

There is increasing momentum for the Arabs to take East Jerusalem away from the Jews. Already, one third of the population there is Arab. Pressure on Jewish leaders to give up portions of the city in a peace deal is mounting; a majority of Israelis say they would be willing to make such a deal.

The issue that promises to provoke the greatest trouble, however, is whether Arabs will control the Temple Mount. Bible prophecy tells us that half of Jerusalem will fall (Zechariah 14:2). Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry wrote in March 2006 that the Arabs will insist on controlling the Temple Mount, which the Arabs consider their second- or third-holiest site. He wrote:

But will the Jews willingly give up the Temple Mount, their holiest site? I don’t think so—especially now with Hamas in control! It seems the Palestinians could get East Jerusalem, minus the Temple Mount, without a fight. Zechariah’s prophecy implies that there will be an impasse over the Temple Mount—which the Palestinians “resolve” by taking East Jerusalem by force.

The impasse guarantees that the fall of half of Jerusalem will be a violent, bloody business. In the meantime, the Arabs are taking every step possible to assure their future control of Jerusalem. Read “Jerusalem Is About to Be Cut in Half” for more.