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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Jerusalem on the boil over Al Aqsa |
| 2014-11-08 |
| Palestinian protesters fought with Israeli security forces in occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank on Friday, the latest clashes in a fortnight of violence over access to Jerusalem's holiest site. At the Qalandia checkpoint separating Ramallah from Jerusalem, troops fired rubber bullets as several hundred protesters marched, some throwing rocks and petrol bombs. In East Jerusalem, police fired teargas to disperse protesters hurling firecrackers and burning tyres that sent up huge clouds of black smoke in Shoafat refugee camp. Israeli security forces have clashed at Al Aqsa compound with Muslim worshippers angry at what they see as an assault on the shrine, which is administered by Islamic authorities, and last week Israel shut down all access to the site for the first time in more than a decade, after a Palestinian gunman shot an Israeli ultranationalist. Palestinian drivers have rammed into Israeli pedestrians in the city, killing four people. The EU's new foreign affairs chief said the upsurge in violence made it all the more critical that Israel and the Palestinians resume peace negotiations. "The risk of growing tensions here in Jerusalem ... is that, if we do not move forward on the political track, we will go back, and back again to violence," Federica Mogherini told reporters after meeting Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman during her first official visit to the region. At the same time as calling for calm, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of instigating the violence. An official said Netanyahu had sought judicial authorisation to raze the homes of Palestinians involved in lethal attacks against Israelis. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #2 It's not insane if your goal is elimination of Israel, djk. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2014-11-08 12:56 |
| #1 making concessions in response to violence as these clowns suggest is insane. The Palestinians should be informed that further violence will result in exactly the opposite of what they wish, for example permanent restriction of access to men under 50. |
| Posted by: djk 2014-11-08 09:25 |