According to MA'ARIV, a memorial ceremony for Ethiopian Jews, who died on their way to Israel, took place this morning at a monument near Kibbutz Ramat Rachel, southeast of Jerusalem. Another memorial ceremony to commemorate the soldiers who died in the Six-Day War took place at the Mt. Herzl military cemetery.

In addition, the traditional flag parade began at the Sacher Park and ended at the Western Wall, where prayers were held along with traditional Jewish dancing. The official state ceremony celebrating the liberation of the city will begin this evening at Ammunition Hill.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, Jerusalem is Israel's largest city, both in terms of population and area. The city covers an area of around 126,400 dunams. By the end of 2002, there were 681,300 people--10 percent of the Israeli population-- living in the capital. Today, 66 percent of the population is Jewish and 32 percent is Arab (94 percent Moslem, 6 percent Christian). The average size of the city's households is 3.9 people, and is the highest in the country. Jerusalem also has a relatively young population compared to the rest of the country. During 2002 the population of Jerusalem grew 1.7 percent.

The beautification plan is scheduled for completion in the next two months, with the major clean up of the accumulated filth on the city's streets to be completed before the Passover holiday in mid-April. In addition, roads, sidewalks and curbs will be repaired throughout the city. Trees and tens of thousands of flowers will be planted near the roadsides, and benches will be installed near the gardens. New playground equipment will be bought for city's parks.

In an attempt to improve services for city's residents, Mayor Lupoliansky has ordered municipal offices to provide a detailed response to every resident's query within 48 hours. He is also initiating a "worker of the month" award - the most outstanding worker will receive a NIS 5,000 ($1050) bonus.

WORKING ON THE TEMPLE MOUNT (12/31)
On December 31st, Jordanian workers began work on the southern wall of the Temple Mount, in which a dangerous buckling has been noticed for some months. Archaeologist Dr. Eilat Mazar, of the Committee for the Preservation of Temple Mount Antiquities, spoke with ARUTZ-7 about this matter:

"The way to save the southern wall is to take down much of it, in order to prevent it from collapsing on its own. The buckling spreads out over 200 square meters, (239 square yards) and they're planning to take down about 140 ... (167 square yards). It's nice that the Jordanians want to help preserve the Temple Mount compound, but we must not forget that what they are doing is very superficial. There needs to be organized supervision, and Israel's Antiquities Authority - the authorized body - must be involved, and we need to have an investigation into what type of work they're doing, what long-term effects it will have, how to work together to make sure it will be effective, how to have cooperation, etc. Unfortunately, what is going on there now, at our most important historic and cultural site, is simply wantonness - with buckling here, and buckling there, and cracks, and increasing corrosion, and the realistic prospect of collapse of underground rooms… "

Dr. Mazar said that the wanton and widespread illegal Waqf construction on the Temple Mount has been greatly reduced, but "we have no way of knowing what's really going on there. We do know that some construction materials have been brought there, in blatant violation of regulations - meaning that the police are turning a blind eye to illegal activities there."

ARAFAT DISMISSES PALESTINIAN MODERATE NUSSEIBEH (12/20)
Palestinian peace activist Prof. Sari Nusseibeh was relieved of his position as Jerusalem representative for the Palestinian Authority today, HA'ARETZ reported. Sources in Nusseibeh's office last night said PA Chairman Yasser Arafat proposed creating an executive council that would handle the daily management of the district of Jerusalem. Arafat named himself as head of the nine member committee, as well as chairman of a broader committee of more than 30 members that will serve as a quasi-city council.

Nusseibeh has yet to decide whether he will accept Arafat's offer to be part of the executive committee. His aides said he is considering leaving politics altogether.

A senior Palestinian official who asked to remain anonymous said that Nusseibeh's removal and the establishment of the two committees appear to be part of a pattern of eccentric behavior exhibited by Arafat. Recent visitors to Arafat's office in the Muqata said his behavior has become strange. They said he was not focused and spoke in a confused manner.

Nusseibeh was appointed the PA's representative in Eastern Jerusalem more than a year ago after the death of Faisal Husseini. In the past year, Nusseibeh has played a high-profile role as a leading Palestinian moderate, participating in countless meetings with Israeli peace activists. He openly called for an end to the attacks on Israeli civilians.

Nusseibeh, President of Al Quds University, developed a peace plan with former Israel Security Service Chief Maj. Gen. (res.) Ami Ayalon earlier this year, based on the 1967 borders without a right of return for Palestinian refugees. The paper was presented publicly a few months ago at a ceremony in Athens attended by former U.S. president Bill Clinton and the Greek Foreign Minister.

JORDANIANS TO REPAIR TEMPLE MOUNT (10/9)
A bulge in the southern wall of Jerusalem's Temple Mount will be repaired by a team of Jordanian engineers who inspected the protruding wall earlier this week, easing a year-long dispute between Israeli authorities and the Islamic Waqf, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. The decision to let the Jordanians perform the tests resulted from a top-level meeting headed by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon last week, and followed repeated warnings by Israeli archeologists that sections of the wall were in imminent danger of collapse. It also comes just a month before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in which hundreds of thousands of Muslims are expected to come to the site. Sharon met with Israel Antiquities Authority head Shuka Dorfman, Internal Minister of Security Uzi Landau, Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert, and Jerusalem police chief Commander Mickey Levy last week to discuss the issue. Facing a "Ramadan deadline," the group decided that it would be in Israel's best interests to allow the Jordanians to carry out the work, Ra'anan Gissin said. "It was in our interests that the Jordanians be involved in the work," Gissin said, noting that the Palestinian-appointed Wakf could not reject the compromise suggestion due to the Jordanians' past position as supervisors of the site.

Experts believe the bulge stems from unauthorized Wakf construction work at Solomon's Stables, located just above the site of the bulge. That expansion work was most intense in 1996, shortly after Palestinian violence erupted over Israel's opening of an emergency exit to the Western Wall tunnels. Fearing renewed Palestinian violence, police have barred non-Muslims, including archeologists, from entering the Mount since the violence began in September 2000, leaving the area without any archaeological supervision.

ARAFAT SAYS ENTIRE JERUSALEM WILL BE PALESTINIAN CAPITAL (10/6)
According to ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS, ARUTZ 7, on October 5, PLO leader Yasser Arafat signed into PA law a resolution proclaiming the entire city of Jerusalem the capital of a future Palestinian state. PA parliament chief Abu Ala said that the move comes in response to the recent US Congressional resolution calling on the US State Department to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.