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East Jerusalem: Clashes erupt amid holy site tensions | |
(about 3 hours later) | |
Israeli forces and Palestinians have clashed in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank amid friction over a Jerusalem holy site. | |
Water canon and tear gas were fired after rioters threw stones and other objects outside the walls of the Old City, police said. | |
A Palestinian youth was also reportedly shot dead nearby, but the circumstances of the killing are not yet clear. | |
Tensions have soared since two Israeli policemen were killed last Friday. | |
Three Israeli Arab gunmen killed the officers near the holy site know to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif and to Jews as the Temple mount. The gunmen were shot dead after being pursued into the sacred compound. | |
Palestinian factions had called for a "day of rage" on Friday in protest at the installation by Israel of metal detectors at the entrance to the site. | |
Palestinian and Islamic leaders have fiercely objected to the measure, saying it is a violation of the status quo. | |
Israel says it is a necessary for security after the weapons used to kill the policemen were smuggled into the holy site. | |
The area, in East Jerusalem, has been under Israeli occupation since the 1967 Middle East war. | The area, in East Jerusalem, has been under Israeli occupation since the 1967 Middle East war. |
Israel has repeatedly pledged to maintain the status quo - a delicate set of arrangements in place at the site for the past 50 years. Any changes there are often regarded by Palestinians, who claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a sought-after state, as a violation of these arrangements. | Israel has repeatedly pledged to maintain the status quo - a delicate set of arrangements in place at the site for the past 50 years. Any changes there are often regarded by Palestinians, who claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a sought-after state, as a violation of these arrangements. |
Thousands of police were deployed around the compound on Friday morning, and Palestinian men under the age of 50 were barred from entering the Old City - a measure which is sometimes taken to try to prevent violent protests at the holy site. | |
Police said they fired tear gas to disperse Palestinians who threw stones and tried to break through a police barricade in the street outside. | |
The Palestinian health ministry said a 17-year-old Palestinian man had been shot dead in an East Jerusalem neighbourhood near the Old City. However, it did not specify who was behind the shooting in the Ras al-Amud area. | |
Clashes also erupted at the Qalandia checkpoint between Ramallah and Jerusalem, and at the northern entrance of Bethlehem. | |
The Red Crescent said more the 60 Palestinians had been hurt in the violence across Jerusalem, with 31 taken to hospital. | |
There have been nightly clashes in the city since the metal detectors were introduced last weekend. | |
Palestinians had refused to enter the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount - home to the al-Aqsa mosque and Dome of the Rock - unless they were removed, holding prayers outside instead. | |
On Friday though, a number of worshippers went into the site to pray. |