Jerusalem City Wall
Throughout history, the city of Jerusalem has been surrounded by a defensive wall designed to protect it from enemies. These walls were demolished in wars and invasions and then rebuilt multiple times. The area covered by the new walls was sometimes different from the old area. The first wall dates back to the days of the Canaanites, more than four thousand years ago. The current wall and its gates were rebuilt in the early Ottoman period by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1538 AD.
Connected to these walls are several gates, some of which appear closed, especially on the eastern side of the wall of the Holy Mosque (al-Aqsa Mosque), such as the Golden Gate. On the southern side, there is the King David’s Gate , and some gates are built on previous foundations like the Damascus Gate. The number of currently open gates on the city wall is seven: Jaffa Gate, New Gate, Damascus Gate, Herod’s Gate, Lions Gate, Dung Gate and King David’s Gate.