Walking Tall Atop The Walls Of Jerusalem

There’s no better way to see the city — old and new — than from the ramparts that date back 500 years to Suleiman the Magnificent’s restoration.

In 1967, Israel began preparing for the Six-Day War. At the time, Jerusalem was a divided city, and the country’s leaders realized that they lacked information about Jordanian positions on the ramparts atop the Old City walls. But how to lure the Jordanian soldiers out of hiding so the IDF could see where they were stationed?

Officers came up with a creative solution: they arranged for a shapely Israeli girl to stand on a balcony in the Mamilla neighborhood, across from the Old City walls, and to provocatively remove her clothing. As Jordanian soldiers emerged in a rush to get a good view, Israeli forces were able to photograph their positions.

Assuming that this was but one of a multitude of Israeli legends, a guide told the story during a tour. To his astonishment, a woman in the group declared that every word of the tale was true. She should know, she said, because she was the girl whose job it had been to lure the soldiers out of hiding.

Soldiers are no longer stationed on the ramparts (fortified walkways) patrolling the walls. In fact, today tourists and native Jerusalemites stroll freely atop the Old City walls for a first-hand view of both Old and New Jerusalem.

 

 

Read the full article over at The Times of Israel