The complete idiot's guide to Jerusalem - H. Paul Jeffers

It is a city that is constantly in the news; a city that has been fought over by religious and ethnic groups for almost a thousand years. A city of mystery, a city rich with history, tradition, and bloody conflict. No, it's not the Bronx. It's Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is like no other city on earth. It is holy to the world's three major monotheistic religions, and has been fought over for three millennia by a variety of peoples and nations. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and of the Jewish people, but, in a special sense, Jerusalem belongs to the whole world. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Jerusalem traces the political and religious forces that have shaped it, from Biblical times to the creation of the state of Israel, the Arab-Israeli wars (1948, 1967, 1973), continuing resistance of the Palestinians against Israeli rule (political and armed), terrorism and retaliation, and the vital role of the United States in seeking to attain a lasting peace between Muslims and Jews.