Three die in ‘day of rage’ clashes with Israeli army

At least two Palestinians were killed and almost 100 wounded in clashes with Israeli troops along the Gaza border fence as Palestinians marked a "Day of Rage" following Friday prayers.

There were also clashes throughout the West Bank resulting in at least one Palestinian fatality with scores wounded. Israel deployed thousands of extra troops in an effort to prevent almost two weeks of violence from developing into a new Palestinian uprising.

Close to Hebron a Palestinian carrying a camera and wearing a fluorescent jacket marked “Press” stabbed and wounded a soldier before being shot and killed by troops.

In the early hours of Friday Palestinian rioters set fire to Joseph's Tomb, a Jewish holy site in Nablus, the West Bank's largest city. The compound sustained significant damage.

Eight Israelis have been killed and dozens wounded in 30 stabbing attacks over the past two weeks. At least 34 Palestinians, including several of the attackers, have been killed in the same period.

The violence, triggered by Palestinian fears that Israel was attempting to change the status quo on the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, the Jerusalem site sacred to both Jews and Muslims, has left many Israelis afraid to leave their homes, particularly in Jerusalem, the site of many attacks.

Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu accused Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas of incitement and denied any attempt to change the delicate arrangements for Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount, the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, revered by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas condemned the arson at Joseph's Tomb and promised to form a commission of inquiry and renovate the site, which has been under the control of the Palestinian Authority since Israeli forces withdrew from Nablus in 1995 under the terms of the Oslo peace agreement.

‘Unforgivable’

Israel’s agriculture minister Uri Ariel, from the right-wing Jewish Home party, called on Mr Netanyahu to restore Israeli control over the site: “The Palestinians tell outright lies about Israel infringing on the status quo on the Temple Mount while desecrating and torching a Jewish holy site. This is unforgivable.”

The Foreign Press Association condemned the fact that the man who carried out the stabbing near Hebron identified himself as a journalist, describing it as a “worrying development”. The group, which has often criticised the attitude of Israeli troops towards the foreign press, called on Palestinian media organisations to verify media credentials.

US secretary of state John Kerry said he planned to travel to the region in a mediation effort and there were reports that Jordan may host a summit involving the Israeli and Palestinian leaders.