Quote Originally Posted by Aracnid
Jerusalem was under the Egyptian Caliphate not the Turks.
Are you sure? I think the Fataimids recaptured Jerusalem from the Seljuks only a few years before the First Crusade arrived there.

I would personally like to see a strong Muslim power in the game, controlling the Holy Lands. Otherwise crusades will be dull. Maybe this is why the Seljuks and the Egyptians have a relatively easier starting position.