East Jerusalem or Eastern Jerusalem refer to the parts of Jerusalem captured and annexed by Jordan after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and then captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. It includes Jerusalem's Old City and some of the holiest sites of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, such as the Temple Mount, Western Wall, Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The term "East Jerusalem" may refer to either the area under Jordanian rule between 1949 and 1967 which was incorporated into the municipality of Jerusalem after 1967, covering some 70 km² (27 sq mi) (much of which is geographically north and south of the city center as well as east), or the territory of the pre-1967 Jordanian controlled part of the Jerusalem municipality, covering 6.4 km² (2.5 sq mi) (only geographically east of the city center, mainly the predominantly Arab business district, the Old City and surrounding neighborhoods). East Jerusalem is the proclaimed capital of the proposed Palestine although Ramallah serves as the administrative capital. Israel has declared all of Jerusalem, both East and West sections, as its undivided eternal capital.

Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Jerusalem was divided into two parts—the western portion, populated primarily by Jews, came under Israeli rule, while the eastern portion, populated mainly by Muslim and Christian Palestinians, came under Jordanian rule. Arabs living in such western Jerusalem neighbourhoods as Katamon or Malha were forced to leave; the same fate befell Jews in the eastern areas, including the Old City and Silwan. The only eastern area of the city that remained in Israeli hands throughout the 19 years of Jordanian rule was Mount Scopus, where the Hebrew University is located, which formed an enclave during that period and therefore is not considered part of East Jerusalem.