In this informed and enlightening book, Colin Chapman assesses the centrality of Jerusalem in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, tracing its history through the ages and showing how the issues of the past are relevant today.

Since 1967, the Israelis have controlled the city and the areas around it, creating new settlements and roads to transform its geography and demography, and provoking intense opposition from the Palestinians. The situation today appears hopeless as the conflict continues violently with Jerusalem at its centre. How, Colin Chapman asks, can the two sides reach agreement over this most holy of cities?