Among the most religiously significant and disputed pieces of land in Jerusalem is the Temple Mount / Haram al-Sharif. It is the place where Jews believe their patriarch Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac during the second millenium B.C. It is also the place where Muslims believe that their prophet Mohammad rose to heaven in the seventh century.

After the January 2006 legislative elections, the 24-member Palestinian Authority cabinet was made up by a Hamas' member majority, including one woman and one Christian.

Jerusalem is mentioned in the Old Testament over 650 times. Although not mentioned by name in the Koran, Islamic tradition holds Jerusalem to be the location of the Prophet Mohammed's night journey to the "furthest mosque."

The 1967 War (a.k.a. the Six Day War) between Israel and the neighboring countries of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria resulted in Israeli control of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Golan Heights, and Sinai Peninsula.

In the decade following the first Arab-Israeli war in 1948, over half a million Jewish refugees from Arab countries settled in Israel.

Approximately 606 square miles, or 16.6% of the entire West Bank (including East Jerusalem), will lie on the Israeli side of the West Bank fence/wall, when Israel completes its construction. This area is home to approximately 17,000 Palestinians in the West Bank and 220,000 in East Jerusalem.

The Israel-Palestine region’s largest source of water comes from natural aquifers that supply 21.19 billion cubic feet (bcf) of groundwater per year. They provide 17.48 bcf/year to Israel (35% of its annual water consumption) compared to 3.71 bcf/year to Palestinians in the West Bank (90% of their annual consumption).

Since 1985, the United States has provided an annual amount of $3 billion in grants to Israel. Since 1993, the United States has provided an annual amount of $95 million to the Palestinians in addition to an average annual amount of $90 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees.