Jerusalem: Why The Land Is So Controversial

Jerusalem: Why The Land Is So Controversial

By Alexandra Miller

By Alexandra Miller
December 7, 2017

December 7, 2017

President Trump named Jerusalem the capital of Israel, but not every other country is on board. We look at why this city is so controversial.

SHOW TRANSCRIPT

This is really something presidents have contemplated closely for the last 20 years but shied away from for issues relating to safety and promoting peace — until today.

Get a deeper understanding of the stories that matter with Newsy's "The Why" — weekdays 7-9 p.m. ET.

TRENDING IN World NEWS

A couple looks at multiple newspaper front pages of the 9/11 attacks

Germany Deports 9/11 Accomplice To His Home Country

A man takes a sip of beer

Climate Change Could Cause A Global Beer Shortage

Picture of an infant's feet taken in 2007 in the U.K.

UK's Infant Mortality Rate Could Lag Behind Other Countries By 2030

A man at a homeless shelter.

Government of Hungary

New Law Banning Rough Sleeping In Hungary Goes Into Effect

"Crazy Rich Asians" movie scene.

Warner Bros. Pictures

'Crazy Rich Asians' Secures Release Date In China

Saudi Arabia's King Salman

Saudi King Opens Investigation Into Missing Journalist

Syrian border crossing with Jordan

Syria Reopens 2 Border Crossings

A flooded street in southern France

Flooding In Southern France Kills 13

South Korean unification minister shakes hands with the head of the North Korean delegation.

Koreas Move Forward With Plans To Reconnect Roads and Rails

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex

The Duke And Duchess Of Sussex Are Expecting Their First Child

Himalaya Mountains

9 Climbers Dead After Snowstorm Hits Their Camp In Himalayas

Prime Minister Theresa May

Northern Irish Border Looms Large Over Upcoming Brexit Talks

Man holds poster of Jamal Khashoggi

European Officials Want Investigation Into Missing Saudi Journalist

Protesters in Berlin

Hundreds Of Thousands Of Germans Protest Far-Right Movement

American pastor Andrew Brunson, who's been detained in Turkey since October 2016.

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

Turkish Court Releases Detained American Pastor

Jamal Khashoggi

Project on Middle East Democracy / CC BY 2.0

Before He Vanished, Jamal Khashoggi Challenged His Country's Leaders

A girl in India who was recently married

How The American Wedding Industry Is Taking On Child Marriage

Mohammed bin Salman

Who Is Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman?

Mnuchin To Attend Saudi Conference As Media, Sponsors Drop Out

People hold posters of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi during a protest

Turkey Reportedly Has Proof Saudi Journalist Was Killed

Nuclear reactors at three mile island

Trump Administration To Limit Sales Of Nuclear Technology To China

A man holding up a Malaysian flag over his shoulders

Malaysia To Repeal Death Penalty

Mosquitos on a net

India Dealing With Large Zika Virus Outbreak

World Bank's Human Capital Index

The World Bank Wants Countries To Invest More In People

Former first lady Michelle Obama

Obama Foundation Launches Girls' Education Initiative

People hold pictures of Jamal Khashoggi

Senators Use Magnitsky Act To Trigger Probe Into Missing Journalist

China's western province of Xinjiang

China May Have Legalized Muslim 'Re-education Camps'

Flag of South Korea

S. Korea Walks Back Possibly Removing Sanctions Against N. Korea

U.S. production of oil and gas has skyrocketed in the last few years, but most of the increase is going abroad.

Newsy / Kevin Clancy

America's Oil And Gas Boom Is Creating A New Global Fossil Fuel Era

President Donald Trump

Trump: 'We're Going To Get To The Bottom' Of Khashoggi Case

Posters of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi

Getty Images / Chris McGrath

Journalist's Disappearance Straining Ties Between Saudi Arabia And US

A group of people at the Forced From Home exhibit

Médecins Sans Frontières / Elias Williams

This Interactive Exhibit Is Teaching Americans About Displacement

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visits island after flooding

Government of the Balearic Islands

Death Toll From Flooding On Spanish Island Rises

Residents walk in the village of Pushtay.

Civilian Deaths In Afghanistan Are At 'Extreme Levels,' UN Says

Man smokes a joint.

Canada Is About To Have Legal Recreational Marijuana

The U.K.'s newly appointed suicide prevention minister, Jackie Doyle-Price

The UK Now Has A Suicide Prevention Minister

The U.S. Capitol Building

Senators Demand Answers Over Alleged China Hacking

At least 55 died in a Kenya bus crash

CNN Newsource

Kenya Bus Crash Kills At Least 55 People

Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam

Hong Kong Leader Proposes A Ban On E-Cigarettes

Novichok poisoning suspects

London Metropolitan Police

New Report Claims To Identify 2nd Suspect In Novichok Poisoning

Fernando Alban's body lies at the National Assembly

Venezuelan Councilman Dies In Custody Under Unknown Circumstances

Boats line up on a canal in the Netherlands in 2017

Dutch Government Ordered To Take More Action On Climate Change

A poster of Jamal Khashoggi

After Reporter Disappears, Turkey Will Probe Inside Saudi Consulate

A look at the Milky Way from West Virginia.

Who Makes The Rules In Space?

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

Kim Jong Un Set To Invite Pope Francis To Visit North Korea

A poster of Jamal Khashoggi

Turkey Asks Saudi Arabia To Prove Missing Journalist Left Consulate

Meeting between U.S. and Chinese officials.

Pompeo And Chinese Foreign Minister Trade Jabs During Meeting

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongynag in October 2018

Pompeo: N. Korea Ready To Let Inspectors Into Nuclear Testing Site

The Romanian flag

Same-Sex Marriage Ban Referendum Fails In Romania

Afghanistan polling place.

Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan

Taliban Vows To Disrupt Upcoming Afghanistan Election

Air pollution and fog in Wuhan, China

UN Warns Of Consequences If Global Warming Continues The Way It Is Now

Protest against Brazil's far-right presidential candidate.

Brazil's Far-Right Candidate Leads Presidential Election

China Says It's Investigating Ex-Interpol Chief For Corruption

Destruction after earthquake and tsunami on Indonesian island of Sulawesi

Death Toll After Indonesia Earthquake, Tsunami Reaches Almost 2,000

Sara and Benjamin Netanyahu

Sara Netanyahu's Fraud Trial Begins

Kim Jong-un and Mike Pompeo

U.S. Department of State

The US And North Korea Have Agreed To Another Trump-Kim Summit

Mike Pompeo and Shinzo Abe

U.S. Department of State

Pompeo Starts East Asia Trip In Japan

Chinese soldiers with the Chinese flag

Pentagon Report Calls China's Trade Policies A Threat To US Military

Japan's rising sun flag

Japan Pulls Out Of Korean Naval Event Over Flag Concerns

People wave Venezuelan flag

Venezuela's Crisis Is Rooted In Oil Prices — And Authoritarianism

Another Former South Korean President Convicted Of Corruption

Bartender pours a glass of prosecco during the Food Network's New York City Food and Wine Festival in 2014

Ireland Passes Landmark Bill To Curb Alcohol Consumption

U.S. soldier sits out the back of a helicopter overlooking Kabul, Afghanistan

Afghanistan Rejects Proposal To Privatize The War

Guy takes a selfie while rock climbing

From 2011 To 2017, More Than 250 People Died While Taking Selfies

Illustration of Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad

2 Share Nobel Peace Prize For Work To End Wartime Sexual Violence

Tampon with plastic applicator

Australia To Get Rid Of Its So-Called 'Tampon Tax'

Vice President Mike Pence

Pence Says Russian Meddling Threat 'Pales In Comparison' To China

Code on computer screen

Russia Faces Accusations, Charges Related To Multiple Cyber Attacks

Phone password screen

Ervins Strauhmanis / CC BY 2.0

Travelers Might Have To Give Up Phone Passwords At New Zealand Border

Melania Trump Visits Former Slave Holding Facility In Ghana

North Korean military cadets

Report: North Korean Hackers Tried To Steal Over $1B

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo Denies Rape Allegations

Mount Soputan eruption

Twitter / @Sutopo_PN

Amid Earthquake And Tsunami Recovery, Indonesian Volcano Erupts

UN Relief Agency Pulls Officials Out Of Gaza Amid Security Threats

Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi

Canada Strips Myanmar Leader Aung San Suu Kyi Of Honorary Citizenship

Iraqi parliament meets to elect new president

Iraqi Parliament

Iraq Takes Steps Toward Finally Setting Up New Government

International Court of Justice during U.S.-Iran proceedings

International Court of Justice

UN's Highest Court Orders US To Ease Up Some Sanctions On Iran

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo shaking hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un

Pompeo To Travel To North Korea For Meeting With Kim Jong-Un

British Prime Minister Theresa May outside of 10 Downing Street in London, England, in September 2018

England, Wales To Allow Civil Partnerships For All Couples

Canadian physicist Donna Strickland won the Nobel Prize in Physics

A Woman Wins Nobel Prize In Physics For The First Time In 55 Years

TV screen shows North Korean missile launch.

South Korean Official Says North Korea Might Have Up To 60 Nukes

Same-sex marriage supporter holds a rainbow pride flag in front of the Supreme Court

Trump Administration To Deny Visas To Same-Sex Partners Of UN Staff

Destruction on Sulawesi

Indonesian National Disaster Management Agency

Death Toll From Indonesia Earthquake And Tsunami Continues To Rise

A woman near a barbed wired fence at the DMZ

North, South Korea Begin Removing Land Mines From Demilitarized Zone

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis speaks during a Pentagon press briefing in Arlington, Virginia, in August 2018

Mattis' Beijing Trip Reportedly Canceled Amid US/China Tension

Melania Trump Heads To Africa On Her First Major Solo Trip Abroad

Protestors block streets in Spain

Catalan Separatists Protest To Mark Independence Vote Anniversary

The Facebook app displayed on the home screen of an iPhone

EU Regulators Could Slap Facebook With $1.6B Fine After Data Breach

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani

Iran Launches Missile Attack Against Syrian Militants

Macedonians vote on name change

Macedonia's Name-Change Referendum Failed — What's Next?

People protest Jair Bolsonaro

Women Lead Protests Against Far-Right Candidate In Brazil

Myanmar's union minister addresses U.N. General Assembly

United Nations

Myanmar: UN Rohingya Report Based On Stories, 'Not Hard Evidence'

Kurds line up to vote

Iraqi Kurds Vote In Region's Parliamentary Elections

State Department Closes Consulate In Iraq, Citing Iranian Threats

U.S. President Donald Trump holds up a memorandum that reinstates sanctions on Iran.

Getty Images / Chip Somodevilla

Europe's Plan To Dodge US Iran Sanctions Shows Growing Gap In Policy

President Trump

'Mr. Kurd' Explains Why He's Embracing Trump's Nickname For Him