Agencies, United Nations :
The UN Security Council is set to hold a special meeting to discuss the spate of violence between Israelis and Palestinians in which 39 people have been killed over the past two weeks.
The meeting, which diplomats said was called at the request of council member Jordan, will include a briefing from the UN secretariat on the situation on the ground and will take place at 15:00 GMT, the UN said on Thursday.
The UN meeting comes as Israel deploys more troops to the border with Gaza, where the ruling Palestinian group Hamas has called for Day of Rage demonstrations on Friday.
Al Jazeera’s correspondent reported that Israeli forces have prevented men under the age of 40 from praying in al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem as part of a bid to preclude Palestinian protests.
Diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said no resolution was planned at the moment but there might be an attempt to get the council to issue a statement aimed at urging the two sides to curb the violence.
The unrest began last month following incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound – the third holiest site for Muslims – by right-wing Israeli groups. Besides the mosque, the compound in occupied East Jerusalem is home to the Islamic icon, the Dome of the Rock.
Jews perform religious rites at the Western Wall of the compound, known as the Temple Mount in Judaism.
Protests against Israel’s ongoing occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip have grown in frequency.
Israeli forces have responded with increasing force, using tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition against demonstrators.
Speaking to local radio on Thursday, Ayelet Shaked, the Israeli justice minister and a member of the ultra-nationalist Jewish Home party, said alleged attackers and their “supportive” family members would be stripped of their Jerusalem residency rights and social security.
Most Palestinians who live in occupied East Jerusalem do not have Israeli or Palestinian Authority citizenship and instead carry an Israeli-issued residency permit.
The UN Security Council is set to hold a special meeting to discuss the spate of violence between Israelis and Palestinians in which 39 people have been killed over the past two weeks.
The meeting, which diplomats said was called at the request of council member Jordan, will include a briefing from the UN secretariat on the situation on the ground and will take place at 15:00 GMT, the UN said on Thursday.
The UN meeting comes as Israel deploys more troops to the border with Gaza, where the ruling Palestinian group Hamas has called for Day of Rage demonstrations on Friday.
Al Jazeera’s correspondent reported that Israeli forces have prevented men under the age of 40 from praying in al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem as part of a bid to preclude Palestinian protests.
Diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said no resolution was planned at the moment but there might be an attempt to get the council to issue a statement aimed at urging the two sides to curb the violence.
The unrest began last month following incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque compound – the third holiest site for Muslims – by right-wing Israeli groups. Besides the mosque, the compound in occupied East Jerusalem is home to the Islamic icon, the Dome of the Rock.
Jews perform religious rites at the Western Wall of the compound, known as the Temple Mount in Judaism.
Protests against Israel’s ongoing occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip have grown in frequency.
Israeli forces have responded with increasing force, using tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition against demonstrators.
Speaking to local radio on Thursday, Ayelet Shaked, the Israeli justice minister and a member of the ultra-nationalist Jewish Home party, said alleged attackers and their “supportive” family members would be stripped of their Jerusalem residency rights and social security.
Most Palestinians who live in occupied East Jerusalem do not have Israeli or Palestinian Authority citizenship and instead carry an Israeli-issued residency permit.
