Why was Jerusalem sacred to Muslims?

Answer 1

Because apparently their prophet Mohammad was born there.

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Another contributor added some potentially helpful info:

The prophet Muhammad was born in 570 in the Arabian city of Mecca.

Discontented with life in Mecca sometime after age 25, he retreated to

a cave in the surrounding mountains for meditation and reflection.

According to Islamic beliefs, it was there, at age 40, in the month of

Ramadan, that he received his first divine revelation. Three years after

this event, Muhammad started preaching these revelations publicly.

Muhammad gained few followers early on, and he and his followers

were met with hostility and harsh treatment from some Meccan tribes.

To escape persecution, Muhammad sent some of his followers to Abyssinia,

and he and his remaining followers in Mecca migrated to Medina (then known

as Yathrib) in the year 622. This event, the Hijra, marks the beginning of the

Islamic calendar.

In Medina, Muhammad united the conflicting tribes, and after eight years of

fighting with the Meccan tribes, his followers conquered Mecca.

In 632, a few months after returning to Medina from his Farewell pilgrimage,

Muhammad fell ill and died. By the time of his death, most of the Arabian

Peninsula had converted to Islam, and he united the tribes of Arabia into a

single Muslim religious entity.

Mecca is roughly 650 miles from the nearest point in modern Israel, and Medina

is roughly 460 miles distant.

Answer 2

Jerusalam is sacred to Muslims because of the Holy Mosque Al Aqsa, which was the 1st qibla, before the time of the last Prophet Muhammad(PBUH), which was then changed to the Holy Kaba in Makkah Saudi Arabia.

Answer 3

Jesus was born in Nazareth and lived his entire life in the land of Israel. The Israellites also believe that God promised the land to them, since they are his "chosen people".

Answer 4

Jesus is one of Allah's Prophets. Jesus is called Isa in arabic.