Heavy security blankets the capital Tuesday to protect thousands of marchers and onlookers taking part in the annual Jerusalem March and related public festivities. More generally, the city is filled with tourists from around the world this Early estimates indicated that about 70,000 people had joined in the day's events. week, in Israel for the week-long Sukkot holiday. Approximately 20,000 police officers and Border Guardsmen have been deployed throughout the city, all along the parade route as well as in potential trouble spots. Recent organized rioting and attacks by Arabs in Jerusalem and its environs have led to a heightened alert level in the city, as well as measures intended to curtail potential violence incited during Muslim prayers in the Temple Mount mosques. Several tens of thousands of people are taking part in the Jerusalem March, sponsored and organized by City Hall, with thousands of others joining the festivities at the capital's Sacher Park. Early estimates indicated that about 70,000 people will join in the day's events. The marchers included groups representing public bodies, large trade organizations, soldiers from various IDF battalions, representatives of other security forces and first-responders. The event included flag performers and dance troupes, as well. Jerusalemites with no organizational affiliation also took part, as did a large delegation of Christian Zionists. A performance competition was also held at points along the march route among many of the organized groups, divided into three divisions - men's teams, women's teams and mixed teams. In addition, the municipality arranged for guides from the Parks and Nature Authority to be stationed along the march routes. The guides provided detailed explanations of the areas the marchers passed through, as well as stories for children. The Jerusalem marchers converged on Sacher Park from two directions. One group, taking a 12-kilometer route, came from Ammunition Hill and passed through the eastern Jerusalem village of Silwan (Shiloach), with its Biblical-era archaeology revealing the ruins of what appears to be Jerusalem of King David's era. No unusual incidents were reported under the heavy security. A second group took a route that was half as long and passed through the neighborhood of Abu Tor. A second parade will set out from the park through downtown Jerusalem at around 3:00 p.m. The second half of the Jerusalem March will be officially initiated by Mayor Nir Barkat. That parade will include dance troupes and performers, as well as stands and activities for children all along the route. The Jerusalem march has been heavily promoted among Christian Zionists as the high-point of a week-long event sponsored by the International Christian Embassy of Jerusalem, self-described as the world's largest Christian Zionist organization, since 1980. The ICEJ calls its celebration "the vanguard event within Israel for the worldwide Christian Zionist movement." Regularly attended by tens of thousands of Christians from around the world, it is said to be "Israel's largest annual tourism event."
