Israel, Palestine, Jerusalem and the Green Line | DW Documentary

When Trump called Jerusalem Israel's capital the world was outraged. Land matters in the Arab-Israeli conflict - and to Palestine, so does the Green Line.
US President Donald Trump’s plan to move the US embassy to Jerusalem has sparked international uproar. While the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the decision as "historic”, many countries reacted to the announcement with sharp criticism, none more than Palestine. President Trump said the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is "long overdue”, but the announcement underscores a situation that has been in the making for decades. The 1949 armistice agreement drew the so-called Green Line between the new Jewish state of Israel and the predominantly Palestinian West Bank, which at that time still belonged to Jordan. Since Israeli occupied the West Bank during the Six Day War of 1967, it has become increasingly porous - always in the Israelis’ favor. In today’s Jerusalem, the Green Line has become nearly invisible. East Jerusalem has been under Israeli occupation since the Six Day War, and Jewish settlements have been built in the formerly Palestinian part of the city. For most Palestinians, however, the Green Line remains the basis for any future negotiations on the creation of a Palestinian state - of which East Jerusalem would be the capital. A journey along the 355-kilometer Green Line shows how little heed Israel pays to the border, and how difficult it is for many Palestinians to cross - and also why the city of Jerusalem remains such a bone of contention between the two peoples.
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