Let's start with a conclusion: this is a good book. It is filled with useful facts, revealing anecdotes, and insightful nuance. It is rich in detail, with excerpts from historical documents and discussions of significant events in the struggle for Jerusalem and its “sacred space.” Both undergraduates and professors could learn from it.

The central theme is that of a “holy site.” This concept has popular and religious meanings but is in fact a technical term that originated in the 1700s as the Ottomans attempted to stabilize the Christian communities of Jerusalem and fend off European countries claiming to defend them. The Turks defined certain sites as protected and placed them under the authority of local religious leaders. These accumulated agreements (called collectively the “Status Quo”) were written into treaties and international conventions. In the 20th century, the list grew to include Islamic and Jewish sites as well as additional Christian ones. Central to the agreements were the four quarters of the Old City: Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim.

Dumper's emphasis is on events after 1967, when the Israelis took over the Old City and threatened the Status Quo as they tried to consolidate their control and expand their space. The first attacks came from the government itself: the destruction of the 135-home Magharib neighborhood to create open space around the Western Wall and the expropriation of twenty-nine acres of the Muslim Quarter to double the size of the Jewish Quarter. A second type of attack was from settler groups, some of which look forward to the destruction of the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa mosque and the construction of the Third Temple. Their typical modus operandi is to seize a piece of property in one of the non-Jewish quarters, often using a front group for a questionable purchase. They then occupy the site, with a force of chanting, armed settlers expelling the residents. According to a 1993 Israeli commission that was not happy with what it had discovered, takeovers often have covert government encouragement and funding. Once the takeover occurs, government security forces step in to secure order. The settlers stay in possession while the courts try to determine the facts. Typically, they never get around to making a determination. Palestinians and Jordanians have made sales to Israelis a capital offense.

One valuable aspect of the book is its thorough discussions of specific incidents and the groups involved in them. Readers who have heard of these events but are not sure of the details will appreciate this. Examples include the takeovers of the Dayr al-Sultan (1970) and St. John's Hospice (1990), the shootings in the Haram (1990), the opening of the Hasmonean Tunnel (1996), and the massacre in Hebron's Ibrahimi Mosque (1994). Each incident shows a pattern of encroachment that threatens a community and puts it on edge so that future incidents are read in ominous ways.

Dumper examines these issues from three levels: the international, the religious establishments, and intracommunal relations. Innovation and evolution are constant themes. Consider the case of the Muslim authorities who were cut off from their administrative supervisors in Jordan after 1967. Seeing the danger of falling under the control of the Israeli Ministry of Religion, the chief qadi issued a fatwa saying that in the absence of Islamic rulers, Muslims were obligated to create a regulatory authority to manage their affairs. They established a twenty-five–person council of shaykhs, family leaders, and notables with an executive council. The existence of this council and its ability to draw money and support from benefactors in other lands strengthened the ability of Muslim authorities to resist encroachment. Similarly, the Christian denominations have sometimes moved beyond traditional rivalries to defend their rights. Christian leaders were stunned to learn during the Camp David negotiations of a proposal to transfer the Armenian Quarter to Israel. Their joint statement reflected a united front among denominations that more frequently compete than cooperate. For their part, Jewish settlers have been very successful at mobilizing political and financial support from evangelical and Jewish supporters overseas (often with U.S. tax subsidies).

Regarding possible solutions, Dumper worries that he might “run the risk of affirming and contributing” to an Israeli position when he says that internationalization, extraterritoriality, and shared administration by a religious council are no longer viable options (p. 7). “It would take enormous political will on the part of an Israeli government to reverse the gains made by the settlers in taking over properties throughout the Old City.” He summarizes various positions and then suggests a complex plan of phased agreements and leasebacks in which “sovereignty or jurisdictions will be ceded in stages to one party over an agreed period of time,” but “the land is retained by lease for a given period” (p. 167). This would be hard to arrange and would be fraught with danger.

There is creative speculation in the book regarding the waves of Muslim pilgrims who would make Jerusalem a haj stop after a settlement. This would be a windfall for the economy but would put exceptional demands on tourist and religious facilities. It would probably require limits both on numbers (such as Saudi Arabia has) and on access to sites (such as Jerusalem had during the celebrations of 2000).

The book is filled with references, informative footnotes, hard-to-find data, citations from primary documents, and personal communications. There are nine tables and four maps. A map that included all mentioned sites would have been helpful.