Ramallah, West Bank • The Palestinian president on Tuesday accused Israel of provoking a "religious war" as new violence between the sides broke out in the West Bank, leaving a Palestinian man dead, amid mounting concerns that the long-running conflict is entering a new and dangerous phase.
Mahmoud Abbas blamed the latest tensions on a series of visits by Jewish worshippers to Jerusalem's most sensitive holy site. The visits to the contested site have helped fan strife in a region already on edge after last summer's bloody war in the Gaza Strip and the earlier failure of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's Mideast peace efforts.
Abbas' remarks — at a ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat — came as Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian demonstrator in clashes Tuesday in the West Bank.
The shooting happened a day after a Palestinian from the West Bank city of Nablus stabbed and killed a 20-year-old Israeli soldier at a crowded Tel Aviv train station and another Palestinian assailant stabbed three people at a bus stop next to a West Bank settlement, killing a 25-year-old Israeli woman and wounding two others.
Much of the recent violence has stemmed from tensions surrounding the holy site in Jerusalem's Old City, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. It is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the gold-topped Dome of the Rock, the third-holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. It is also revered as the location where the ancient Hebrew temples once stood and today is considered the most sacred place in Judaism.
Palestinians in east Jerusalem have carried out violent protests, alleging that Jewish zealots are secretly trying to gain control of the site. The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967, as their capital.
While Jews are permitted to visit the hilltop compound, they are not supposed to pray. Palestinian fears have been heightened by an increased number of visits by Jewish hard-liners and calls by members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition for an expanded Jewish presence there. They also object to Israeli restrictions on Muslims entering the compound. Israel says the restrictions are security measures.
In an address to thousands of people at his West Bank headquarters, Abbas accused Israel of trying to divide the mosque compound, comparing it to the experience of a holy site in the West Bank that was split between Jewish and Muslim sides after an Israeli settler gunned down 29 Muslim worshippers there 20 years ago.
"Leaders of Israel make a mistake if they think they can divide the Al-Aqsa Mosque as they have done in Ibrahimi Mosque, and they will retreat from this one, too," he said.
"By dividing the mosques, they are leading us to a religious war, and no one, Muslim or Christian, will accept that Jerusalem be theirs," Abbas said. "Jerusalem is our capital, and there will be no concessions."
After Monday's deadly attacks in the West Bank and Tel Aviv, Israel said it was stepping up security in an attempt to forestall further incidents.
Israeli relatives and friends gather around the body of Dalia Lemkus, during her funeral at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
Israelis attend the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
Israelis attend the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
A Jewish man prays prior to the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
An Israeli woman mourns during the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
Israeli soldiers stand guard on the main road near the West bank village of Bet Sahour during the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
Israelis attend the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
An Israeli woman mourns during the funeral of Dalia Lemkus, at the West Bank Jewish settlement of Tekoa, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014. Palestinian assailants carried out stabbing attacks Monday, Nov. 10 in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli woman and a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
Israeli Arab youths clash with Israeli police during a protest in the Arab village of Kfar Kana, northern Israel, Monday, Nov. 10, 2014. Arab youths clashed with Israeli police in the northern Israeli town of Kfar Kana, burning tires and hurling firecrackers at the security forces. It was the third straight day of unrest in the town following the shooting death of a local man by an Israeli police officer. Video of the incident indicate the man was walking away from the officer when he was shot. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
An Israeli soldier inspects a vehicle at the scene of an attack near the West Bank Jewish settlement of Alon Shvut Monday, Nov. 10, 2014. Palestinian assailants on Monday carried out a pair of stabbing attacks in Tel Aviv and the West Bank, police said, killing an Israeli teenage girl and gravely wounding a soldier as a wave of Arab unrest appeared to be gaining strength. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Israeli riot police officers arrest an Israeli Arab protester during a protest in the Arab village of Kfar Kana, northern Israel, Monday, Nov. 10, 2014. Arab youths clashed with Israeli police in the northern Israeli town of Kfar Kana, burning tires and hurling firecrackers at the security forces. It was the third straight day of unrest in the town following the shooting death of a local man by an Israeli police officer. Video of the incident indicate the man was walking away from the officer when he was shot. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Israeli riot police officers arrest an Israeli Arab protester during a protest in the Arab village of Kfar Kana, northern Israel, Monday, Nov. 10, 2014. Arab youths clashed with Israeli police in the northern Israeli town of Kfar Kana, burning tires and hurling firecrackers at the security forces. It was the third straight day of unrest in the town following the shooting death of a local man by an Israeli police officer. Video of the incident indicate the man was walking away from the officer when he was shot. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
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