The question of who Jerusalem belongs to is highly complex and contentious. There are competing claims to the city from multiple parties:

Israel considers Jerusalem its capital and maintains primary governmental institutions there1. Israel annexed East Jerusalem after capturing it in 1967, though this annexation is not internationally recognized3.

Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state13. The Palestinian National Authority views East Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian territory3.

The international community, including the United Nations, generally does not recognize exclusive Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem13. The UN considers East Jerusalem to be part of Israeli-occupied territories and envisions Jerusalem eventually becoming the capital of both Israel and Palestine3.

Many countries support West Jerusalem being allocated to Israel and East Jerusalem to Palestinians as their respective capitals3. Russia, for example, recognizes West Jerusalem as Israel's capital and East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital3.

Some religious perspectives view Jerusalem as belonging to God or all monotheistic faiths, rather than any single nation256.

Historically, Jerusalem has been ruled by many different powers over thousands of years1. Its status remains one of the core unresolved issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict1.

Currently, Israel maintains de facto control over the entire city, though its claim to East Jerusalem is disputed internationally13. The final status of Jerusalem remains subject to negotiation between Israelis and Palestinians.