How Damascus Gate became the symbol of the intifada
Confrontations between Palestinians and Israelis at Damascus Gate have heightened the symbolic importance of the largest gate of Jerusalem's Old City.
When Washington Post Jerusalem bureau chief William Booth wanted to write a column about the recent violence in Jerusalem, he went to the most obvious location — Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate. There he found exactly whom he sought to interview, but he also found jittery Israeli security officers. What transpired Feb. 16 is detailed in a statement of protest by the Foreign Press Association (FPA) in Israel.
That day, Booth and his newspaper’s West Bank correspondent, Sufian Taha, were interviewing Palestinians and Israelis outside Damascus Gate. Israeli soldiers stationed there were not pleased about this.
