The Communication Trench – More Than a Secret Passage:
A Symbol of Heroism, Dedication, and Resourcefulness
Why Was the Trench Dug?
May 18, 1948 — just days after Israel’s Declaration of Independence: Palmach fighters seized the summit of Mount Zion to reach the besieged Jewish Quarter of the Old City. The following day, the fighters broke through to the Quarter, but around ten days later, on May 28th, it fell to the hands of the Jordanian Arab Legion.
Mount Zion remained partly in Israeli hands, but as an isolated enclave: it was surrounded to the north, east, and south by Jordanian-held territory, while the route from the west was extremely dangerous. Anyone attempting to reach Mount Zion from the west, through the Valley of Hinnom and up the hillside, was exposed to fire from Jordanian Legion soldiers positioned on the walls of the Old City.
Digging the Trench
As early as June 1948, fortifications officer Boaz Winkler ordered the digging of a trench to connect Mount Zion to the Israeli rear — the neighborhoods of Yemin Moshe and Mishkenot Sha’ananim. On June 26, 1948, Winkler fell in battle while returning to evacuate wounded soldiers from Mount Zion, and never lived to see the trench completed, as the work was carried out in the autumn of that year. It is possible that the section of the trench passing through Mishkenot Sha’ananim and at the foot of the hill had already been dug before then.
The Trench’s Route and Structure
The trench connected the military position at the former Bishop Gobat School — today the Jerusalem University College on Mount Zion, to the Mishkenot Sha’ananim neighborhood. It ran along the northern side of the road, above the “Sultan’s Pool “. The section of the trench visible today is the one ascending Mount Zion.
The trench was only 1.5 meters wide. The section climbing up Mount Zion, roughly 50 meters long, was particularly steep. It was dug to a depth of 3 meters, its walls were lined with concrete, and its tin roof was camouflaged with soil and leaves. The tin roofing was pierced by bullets fired by Jordanian soldiers from the city walls.
At the trench entrance within Jerusalem University College, carvings of soldiers’ and visitors’ names from the period of the position’s activity have remained visible to this day.
What Was the Trench Used For?
The trench was designed to ensure supplies reached Mount Zion: food, medical equipment, weapons, and fighters, all concealed from the eyes of the Jordanian Legion. However, passage through it was far from easy: the trench was narrow and steep, transit took many hours, and Jordanian soldiers fired upon it.
The Secret Cable Car
In December 1948, to boost supplies and evacuate the wounded, a secret cable car was established connecting the position at Gobat School on Mount Zion to the position at St. John’s Hospital (today the Mount Zion Hotel). The cable car operated under cover of darkness, and during daylight hours was lowered to the bottom of the valley to avoid detection. Its secret was kept until 1972, when a “Cable Car Museum” was established in the original operations room, commemorating this rare and creative technological solution.
How Long Was the Trench in Use?
The trench was carried out to serve as a vital route even after the state of Israel was established. Access to Mount Zion, including for visitors and pilgrims to the holy sites on the hill, remained challenging. Only in 1964, before Pope Paul VI’s historic visit, was a road paved — with Jordanian and Israeli agreement — reaching Mount Zion from the west and passing beneath the city walls. The road was called the “Pope’s Road,” and is known today as “Ma’ale HaShalom” (Ascent of Peace). After the reunification of Jerusalem under Israeli rule in June 1967, at the end of the Six-Day War, the trench became entirely obsolete and was filled up over the years.
Restoration of the Trench
As part of the events marking 50 years for the reunification of Jerusalem, restoration of the trench was carried out by the East Jerusalem Development Company, which inaugurated it five years later, in 2021. As part of the restoration, the trench was covered with steel designed to evoke the original tin cladding. Instead of bullet holes, the many Hebrew names of Jerusalem were cut into the roof, through which sunlight passes and adorns the trench walls with the city’s names. At night, the internal lighting shines outward through those same names — like “a new light shall shine upon Zion.”
The restoration was funded by the Ministry of Jerusalem and Tradition, in partnership with the Jerusalem Municipality, the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, and the Council for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites.
