The paper consists on an excursus and introduction to the different communities, historically shaped and currently living in the city of Jerusalem, which bestow a collective identity and a specific narrative to the neighborhood they inhabit. The analysis of the way and understanding of the city by its various residents will show the complexity of the open problems and questions still facing the city. It will try to convey the main cleavages of the city which combine practical socio-economic aspects with community cultural and religious expectations, while at the same time interplaying with broader military and security aspects that go beyond the city and its management to point and reveal their connection to the yet unsolved Arab-Israeli conflict.
