What Is The ‘Status Quo’ That Governs Some Of Jerusalem’s Holiest Sites? – Analysis

By Marinella Bandini

In 1852, the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Majid II issued a decree ordering the governor of Jerusalem and his council, as well as all the churches, to make no changes in the holy places of the city. The decree became known as the Status Quo.

Since that decree, members of the Christian communities with rights...