I recently did a report on Israel so I figured I might as well type a short description of the history of Israel and the Jewish people.
Israel was founded by Jacob, who was renamed Israel after successfully wrestling with an angel of God. This comes from the Bible, Genesis 32:28. The land that Jacob's descendants resided in was called the land of the Israelites. The Israelites were also referred to as the “Children of Israel”.
King David of the Jewish people established the United Kingdom of Israel. King David's son King Solomon built Herod's Temple. This temple was later destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar and the Jews were exiled to Babylon.
Many years later the Second Temple was built by Zarubbabel. This temple was constructed on the same spot as the original temple. This temple was then destroyed by the Romans under the order of Emperor Titus. Since then the Jewish temple has not been attempted to be rebuilt.
Currently, the Dome of the Rock Mosque is built upon the ruin of the temple, which is a very sacred Moslem site.
The western (wailing) wall of the ruin was part of the temple. It is a Jewish holy site where the Jews go to pray.
The conflict over this holy city may never come to an end. The war in Israel has been going constantly over nearly 60 years and shows no sign of coming to peace.
