The Geneva Accord - Draft
Permanent Status Agreement
Source: The following is the text of the Geneva
Accord, obtained exclusively by Haaretz. (Annex X
referred to in the document is yet to be completed)
Article 6 - Jerusalem
1. Religious and Cultural Significance:
(a) The Parties recognize the universal historic,
religious, spiritual, and cultural significance of
Jerusalem and its holiness enshrined in Judaism, Christianity,
and Islam. In recognition of this status, the Parties
reaffirm their commitment to safeguard the character,
holiness, and freedom of worship in the city and to
respect the existing division of administrative functions
and traditional practices between different denominations.
(b) The Parties shall establish an inter-faith body
consisting of representatives of the three monotheistic
faiths, to act as a consultative body to the Parties
on matters related to the city's religious significance
and to promote inter-religious understanding and dialogue.
The composition, procedures, and modalities for this
body are set forth in Annex X.
2. Capital of Two States
The Parties shall have their mutually recognized capitals
in the areas of Jerusalem under their respective sovereignty.
3. Sovereignty
Sovereignty in Jerusalem shall be in accordance with
attached Map 2. This shall not prejudice nor be prejudiced
by the arrangements set forth below.
4. Border Regime
The border regime shall be designed according to the
provisions of Article 11, and taking into account
the specific needs of Jerusalem (e.g., movement of
tourists and intensity of border crossing use including
provisions for Jerusalemites) and the provisions of
this Article.
5. al-Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount (Compound)
(a) International Group
- An International Group, composed of the IVG
and other parties to be agreed upon by the Parties,
including members of the Organization of the Islamic
Conference (OIC), shall hereby be established to
monitor, verify, and assist in the implementation
of this clause.
- For this purpose, the International Group
shall establish a Multinational Presence on the
Compound, the composition, structure, mandate and
functions of which are set forth in Annex X.
- The Multinational Presence shall have specialized
detachments dealing with security and conservation.
The Multinational Presence shall make periodic conservation
and security reports to the International Group.
These reports shall be made public.
- The Multinational Presence shall strive to
immediately resolve any problems arising and may
refer any unresolved disputes to the International
Group that will function in accordance with Article
16.
- The Parties may at any time request clarifications
or submit complaints to the International Group
which shall be promptly investigated and acted upon.
- The International Group shall draw up rules
and regulations to maintain security on and conservation
of the Compound. These shall include lists of the
weapons and equipment permitted on the site.
(b) Regulations Regarding the Compound
- In view of the sanctity of the Compound, and in
light of the unique religious and cultural significance
of the site to the Jewish people, there shall be
no digging, excavation, or construction on the Compound,
unless approved by the two Parties. Procedures for
regular maintenance and emergency repairs on the
Compound shall be established by the IG after consultation
with the Parties.
- The state of Palestine shall be responsible for
maintaining the security of the Compound and for
ensuring that it will not be used for any hostile
acts against Israelis or Israeli areas. The only
arms permitted on the Compound shall be those carried
by the Palestinian security personnel and the security
detachment of the Multinational Presence.
- In light of the universal significance of the
Compound, and subject to security considerations
and to the need not to disrupt religious worship
or decorum on the site as determined by the Waqf,
visitors shall be allowed access to the site. This
shall be without any discrimination and generally
be in accordance with past practice.
(c) Transfer of Authority
- At the end of the withdrawal period stipulated
in Article 5/7, the state of Palestine shall assert
sovereignty over the Compound.
- The International Group and its subsidiary organs
shall continue to exist and fulfill all the functions
stipulated in this Article unless otherwise agreed
by the two Parties.
6. The Wailing Wall
The Wailing Wall shall be under Israeli sovereignty.
7. The Old City
(a) Significance of the Old City
- The Parties view the Old City as one whole enjoying
a unique character. The Parties agree that the preservation
of this unique character together with safeguarding
and promoting the welfare of the inhabitants should
guide the administration of the Old City.
- The Parties shall act in accordance with the UNESCO
World Cultural Heritage List regulations, in which
the Old City is a registered site.
(b)IVG Role in the Old City
i. Cultural Heritage
1. The IVG shall monitor and verify the preservation
of cultural heritage in the Old City in accordance
with the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List rules.
For this purpose, the IVG shall have free and unimpeded
access to sites, documents, and information related
to the performance of this function.
2. The IVG shall work in close coordination with the
Old City Committee of the Jerusalem Coordination and
Development Committee (JCDC), including in devising
a restoration and preservation plan for the Old City.
ii. Policing
1. The IVG shall establish an Old City Policing Unit
(PU) to liaise with, coordinate between, and assist
the Palestinian and Israeli police forces in the Old
City, to defuse localized tensions and help resolve
disputes, and to perform policing duties in locations
specified in and according to operational procedures
detailed in Annex X.
2. The PU shall periodically report to the IVG.
iii. Either Party may submit complaints in relation
to this clause to the IVG, which shall promptly act
upon them in accordance with Article 16.
(c) Free Movement within the Old City
Movement within the Old City shall be free and unimpeded
subject to the provisions of this article and rules
and regulations pertaining to the various holy sites.
(d) Entry into and Exit from the Old City
- Entry and exit points into and from the Old City
will be staffed by the authorities of the state
under whose sovereignty the point falls, with the
presence of PU members, unless otherwise specified.
- With a view to facilitating movement into the
Old City, each Party shall take such measures at
the entry points in its territory as to ensure the
preservation of security in the Old City. The PU
shall monitor the operation of the entry points.
- Citizens of either Party may not exit the Old
City into the territory of the other Party unless
they are in possession of the relevant documentation
that entitles them to. Tourists may only exit the
Old City into the territory of the Party which they
posses valid authorization to enter.
(e) Suspension, Termination, and Expansion
- Either Party may suspend the arrangements set
forth in Article 6.7.iii in cases of emergency for
one week. The extension of such suspension for longer
than a week shall be pursuant to consultation with
the other Party and the IVG at the Trilateral Committee
established in Article 3/3.
- This clause shall not apply to the arrangements
set forth in Article 6/7/vi.
- Three years after the transfer of authority over
the Old City, the Parties shall review these arrangements.
These arrangements may only be terminated by agreement
of the Parties.
- The Parties shall examine the possibility of expanding
these arrangements beyond the Old City and may agree
to such an expansion.
(f) Special Arrangements
1 . Along the way outlined in Map X (from the Jaffa
Gate to the Zion Gate) there will be permanent and
guaranteed arrangements for Israelis regarding access,
freedom of movement, and security, as set forth in
Annex X.
- The IVG shall be responsible for the implementation
of these arrangements.
2. Without prejudice to Palestinian sovereignty,
Israeli administration of the Citadel will be as outlined
in Annex X.
(g) Color-Coding of the Old City
A visible color-coding scheme shall be used in the
Old City to denote the sovereign areas of the respective
Parties.
(h) Policing
- An agreed number of Israeli police shall constitute
the Israeli Old City police detachment and shall
exercise responsibility for maintaining order and
day-to-day policing functions in the area under
Israeli sovereignty.
- An agreed number of Palestinian police shall constitute
the Palestinian Old City police detachment and shall
exercise responsibility for maintaining order and
day-to-day policing functions in the area under
Palestinian sovereignty.
- All members of the respective Israeli and Palestinian
Old City police detachments shall undergo special
training, including joint training exercises, to
be administered by the PU.
- A special Joint Situation Room, under the direction
of the PU and incorporating members of the Israeli
and Palestinian Old City police detachments, shall
facilitate liaison on all relevant matters of policing
and security in the Old City.
(i) Arms
No person shall be allowed to carry or possess arms
in the Old City, with the exception of the Police
Forces provided for in this agreement. In addition,
each Party may grant special written permission to
carry or possess arms in areas under its sovereignty.
(j) Intelligence and Security
- The Parties shall establish intensive intelligence
cooperation regarding the Old City, including the
immediate sharing of threat information.
- A trilateral committee composed of the two Parties
and representatives of the United States shall be
established to facilitate this cooperation.
8. Mount of Olives Cemetery
(a) The area outlined in Map X (the Jewish Cemetery
on the Mount of Olives) shall be under Israeli administration;
Israeli law shall apply to persons using and procedures
appertaining to this area in accordance with Annex
X.
- There shall be a designated road to provide free,
unlimited, and unimpeded access to the Cemetery.
- The IVG shall monitor the implementation of this
clause.
- This arrangement may only be terminated by the
agreement of both Parties.
9. Special Cemetery Arrangements
Arrangements shall be established in the two cemeteries
designated in Map X (Mount Zion Cemetery and the German
Colony Cemetery), to facilitate and ensure the continuation
of the current burial and visitation practices, including
the facilitation of access.
10. The Western Wall Tunnel
(a) The Western Wall Tunnel designated in Map X shall
be under Israeli administration, including:
- Unrestricted Israeli access and right to worship
and conduct religious practices.
- Responsibility for the preservation and maintenance
of the site in accordance with this
- Agreement and without damaging structures above,
under IVG supervision.
Israeli policing.
- IVG monitoring
- The Northern Exit of the Tunnel shall only be
used for exit and may only be closed in case of
emergency as stipulated in Article 6/7.
(b) This arrangement may only be terminated by the
agreement of both Parties.
11. Municipal Coordination
(a) The two Jerusalem municipalities shall form a
Jerusalem Co-ordination and Development Committee
("JCDC") to oversee the cooperation and
coordination between the Palestinian Jerusalem municipality
and the Israeli Jerusalem municipality. The JCDC and
its sub-committees shall be composed of an equal number
of representatives from Palestine and Israel. Each
side will appoint members of the JCDC and its subcommittees
in accordance with its own modalities.
(b) The JCDC shall ensure that the coordination
of infrastructure and services best serves the residents
of Jerusalem, and shall promote the economic development
of the city to the benefit of all. The JCDC will act
to encourage cross-community dialogue and reconciliation.
(c) The JCDC shall have the following subcommittees:
- A Planning and Zoning Committee: to ensure agreed
planning and zoning regulations in areas designated
in Annex X.
- A Hydro Infrastructure Committee: to handle matters
relating to drinking water delivery, drainage, and
wastewater collection and treatment.
- A Transport Committee: to coordinate relevant
connectedness and compatibility of the two road
systems and other issues pertaining to transport.
- An Environmental Committee: to deal with environmental
issues affecting the quality of life in the city,
including solid waste management.
- An Economic and Development Committee: to formulate
plans for economic development in areas of joint
interest, including in the areas of transportation,
seam line commercial cooperation, and tourism.
- A Police and Emergency Services Committee: to
coordinate measures for the maintenance of public
order and crime prevention and the provision of
emergency services;
- An Old City Committee: to plan and closely coordinate
the joint provision of the relevant municipal services,
and other functions stipulated in Article 6/7.
- Other Committees as agreed in the JCDC.
12. Israeli Residency of Palestinian Jerusalemites
Palestinian Jerusalemites who currently are permanent
residents of Israel shall lose this status upon the
transfer of authority to Palestine of those areas
in which they reside.
13. Transfer of authority
The Parties will apply in certain socio-economic spheres
interim measures to ensure the agreed, expeditious,
and orderly transfer of powers and obligations from
Israel to Palestine. This shall be done in a manner
that preserves the accumulated socio-economic rights
of the residents of East Jerusalem. |