What comes to the rest of Jerusalem, it is true that UN resolution 181 proposed international administration for a rather extensive area, but it should be in no one’s interests that the United Nations permanently controls modern residential areas of independent nations. The rest of Jerusalem should be legal national territory of Jews and Arabs, according to the Green Line borders (Arab investors having the legal right to purchase any infrastructure and real estate east of the Green Line, in a reasonable geographical order).

Special treatment should be given to the large Jewish cemetery on Mount of Olives, however. The isolated Jewish zone on Mount Scopus (in pre-1967 borders) should be reshaped as a narrow half-circle from Sanhedriyyah to Mount Scopus, then to Mount of Olives, western Silwan, northern Abu Tor, and Giv’at Hananyah. (This half-circle is slightly larger than the Jewish Mount Scopus zone in Green Line borders. This can be compensated by increasing Arab territory elsewhere in Jerusalem, for example in Ramot, where the Green Line runs through the modern residential area.)

Three underground tunnels would be constructed for Arab traffic across this Jewish half-circle: one along Jericho Street past the Jewish cemetery, one along Sheikh Anbar Street past the top of Mount of Olives, and one from Sheikh Jarrah to Giv’at Mivtar.

It can also be arranged, if the two negotiating parties so agree, that the Jewish settlement in Eastern Talpiyyot is compensated by annexing Ramat Rachel into Arab territories. (The roads in this area are built in such a way that it is more comfortable to annex all of Ramat Rachel into Arab territories than to split Talpiyyot in two halves.)

Map: proposed final status for downtown Jerusalem (including some voluntary exchanges of land between Israel and Palestinians). High-resolution version is available at www.co-ground.com/city.