The Holy Land reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Holy Land

The phrase The Holy Land (Hebrew ארץ הקודש; ’Éreş haqQādhēš, Éretz haKodesh; Latin Terram Sanctam) generally refers to the Land of Israel, also known as Palestine. Specifically, it includes those areas of Israel which hold specific, significant religious importance to three monotheistic traditions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. These areas include, but are not limited to, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Bethlehem, the Wailing Wall, and the Dome of the Rock.

These areas have been the hotbeds of conflict since around 500 CE. The Crusades were started on the pretext of recovering the Holy Land. More recently, the region is at the centre of the religious arguments of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

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For Muslims the term Holy Land (Arabic ارض القدس Arḍ ul-Quds) refers to the Hejaz, site of the Holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

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