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Three Israelis killed as violence escalates

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A spate of violent incidents in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv has led to new casualties, following weeks of protests sparked by tensions over the al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

Violent clashes have increased in frequency since Israeli security forces began to crackdown on Palestinian worshippers at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem last month.

Two Palestinians shot and stabbed passengers on a bus in Jerusalem, killing two people and wounding at least five others, amid tit-for-tat stabbing attacks between Israelis and Palestinians.

One of the assailants was killed, an ambulance service spokesman said, and the other was admitted to hospital with injuries.

Minutes later, another Palestinian drove his car into a bus stop in the centre of Jerusalem, then got out and began stabbing pedestrians, killing at least one and wounding several, police said.

The attacks followed another stabbing incident in Tel Aviv suburb that wounded an Israeli man.

The alleged assailant was then kicked and beaten by passers-by, amateur video distributed by police showed. The attacker was injured and brought to hospital, Israeli police said.

“The feeling is becoming increasingly prevalent that no place is safe,” Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna, reporting from West Jerusalem, said.

The spell of violence has been stirred by Palestinian anger over increasing Jewish visits to al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem.

The unrest began last month with clashes at Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site and quickly spread across Israel and into the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The stabbing attacks have stoked concern of a new Palestinian uprising and though Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israel’s Netanyahu have appealed for calm, the violence shows no signs of abating.

Palestinian groups have declared a Day of Rage on Tuesday across the occupied West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem.

The leaders of Israel’s Palestinian community have called for a commercial strike in their towns and villages.

Heavy clashes erupted on Sunday in cities and villages across the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Frustration has boiled over into violence as Israel continues to build Jewish-only settlements throughout the West Bank in defiance of international law.

At least 1,990 Palestinians have been injured, according to the Palestinian Authority’s health ministry, and rights groups have accused Israeli forces of using excessive force. Al Jazeera


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