Vilnius Its Jewish influence has led to it being described as the "Jerusalem of Lithuania" and Napoleon named it "the Jerusalem of the North" as he was passing through in 1812. In 2009, Vilnius was the European Capital of Culture, together with the Austrian city of Linz. The name of the city originates from the Vilnia River. The city has also been known by many derivate spellings in various languages throughout its history: "Vilna" was once common in English. The most notable non-Lithuanian names for the city include: , , , , , , ("Vilne"). A Russian name from the time
United States recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Protests were held in many places across the world during the weekend of December 16 and 17. Crowds in the United States, Pakistan, Netherlands, Germany, Lebanon, Jordan, Australia, Montenegro, Iran, Morocco, Poland, United Kingdom, Greece and Indonesia gathered to protest against the decision. In Bethlehem, religious leaders turned off Christmas tree lights outside the Church of the Nativity for three days to protest Trump's announcement. Nazareth scaled back Christmas celebrations, cancelling singing and dancing performances in protest. There were demonstrations throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip. nine Palestinians had been killed in