Israel - The Jerusalem Basic Law - English

Jerusalem - the capital of Israel

The complete and united Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

The seat of the President, the Knesset, the Government and the Supreme Court

2. Jerusalem is the seat of the President of the State, the Knesset, the Government, and the Supreme Court.

Protection of the Holy Places

3. The Holy Places shall be protected against desecration, and any other violation, and against anything that is liable to violate the freedom of access of members of the various religions to the places sacred to them, or to their feelings towards those places.

The development of Jerusalem

4. (a) The Government shall pursue the development and prosperity of Jerusalem, and the welfare of its inhabitants, by allocating special resources, including a special annual grant to the Municipality of Jerusalem (Capital City Grant), with the approval of the Knesset Finance Committee.
(b) Jerusalem shall be granted special priorities in the activities of the State authorities for the development of Jerusalem in market and economic matters, and in other issues.
(c) The Government shall set up a special body or bodies to implement this article.

The limits of the Jerusalem area (Amendment No. 1 & 2)

5. Inter alia, the limits of Jerusalem includes, for the purpose of this Basic Law, the whole area described in the addendum to the declaration of the expansion of the limits of the Jerusalem municipality of 20 Sivan 5727 (June 28, 1967), that was issued under the Municipalities Ordinance.

Prohibition to delegate powers (Amendment No. 1 & 2)

6. No powers concerning the limits of the Jerusalem Municipality area, including the area described in the addendum on the expansion of the area of the municipality of Jerusalem on 20 Sivan 5767 (June 28, 1967) that was issued under the Municipalities Ordinance, and all as was in force on the day of the beginning of Basic Law: Jerusalem the Capital of Israel (Amendment No. 2), shall be transferred to a foreign political or governing power, or to another similar foreign authority, whether permanently or for a given period.

Entrenchment (Amendment No. 1)

7. The provisions of article 6 are not to be changed, save by a Basic law adopted by a majority of eighty Members of the Knesset. The provisions of this article are not to be changed except by means of a majority of the Members of the Knesset.