Day of rage engulfs Jerusalem: Israel braces for violence over Al-Aqsa mosque

JERUSALEM was braced for a weekend of rioting following incidents which have drama­tically heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians.

Shades of intifada: a Palestinian youth readies his arm in clashes with Israeli security forces in East Jerusalem yesterday.

JERUSALEM was braced for a weekend of rioting following a serie­s of incidents which have drama­tically heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians.

Palestinians had declared yesterday a “day of rage” following Israel­’s decision to stop access for everyone to the complex that includes the Al-Aqsa mosque, the holiest Muslim site in Jerusalem.

The complex — referred to by Jews as the Temple Mount and Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary — had not been closed for 14 years.

It was last closed at the beginning of the second intifada, or uprising, raising concerns that growing hostilities were leading to a third intifada.

The closure in 2000 followed a visit by then opposition leader Ariel Sharon that Palestinians regarded as provocative — thousands of Israelis and Palestinians were killed in the intifada that followed.

The decision by Israel on Thursday to close the complex came after a Palestinian man attempted to assassinate a Jewish activist who wants Jews to pray at the complex.

At present, Israel allows Jews to visit the complex but not pray.

In an attempt to keep praying Muslims and Jews apart, Jews are required to pray below at the Kotel, or Western Wall.

But hardliners, led by Likud powerbroker Moshe Feiglin and US-born Rabbi Yehuda Glick, who was shot, often try to break this rule. Rabbi Glick was in a stable condition while the man alleged to have shot him, Moataz Hejazi, was shot dead by police several hours later.

Israeli reopened the complex for Friday prayers yesterday with restrictions — men younger than 50 were not permitted, as Israel regards that age group as most likely to engage in confrontations.

Tensions have been high since a Palestinian man drove a car into a light-rail stop in East Jerusalem two weeks ago, killing a three-month-old baby and a woman.

This followed an incident in the West Bank in which a Jewish settler hit two Palestinian children with his car then fled, killing a five-year-old girl.

Tensions were further exacerbated by a decision by Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon to prohibit Palestinians who travel to work from the West Bank into Israe­l from using Israeli public transport.

Mr Yaalon’s office said the decis­ion was made for security reasons but Israel’s influential Ha’aretz newspaper said this was not correct as these workers had already undergone security ­clearances.

Under the headline “Apartheid bus”, Ha’aretz said: “Yaalon’s decis­ion is purely a result of his having given in to the long-time pressure exerted on him by settlers demanding that Palestinians not be allowed to board ‘their’ bus. The minister’s decision reeks of apartheid, typical of the Israeli occupation regime in the territories.”

This week Israel’s media reported claims that, in a recent trip to the US, several key US officials refused to meet Mr Yaalon in protest at attacks he had made on US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Mr Yaalon had described Mr Kerry as “obsessive” and “messianic” in his efforts to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

“The only thing that can ‘save’ us is for John Kerry to win his Nobel prize and leave us alone,” Mr Yaalon said.

Several key US officials who Mr Yaalon wanted to meet were unavailable — a highly unusual situation for an Israeli defence minister.

The US has also condemned the recent series of announcements by Israel of new settlement housing. Following Mr Yaalon’s visit, Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid said: “There’s a crisis with the United States and we need to deal with it like a crisis.”