http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/mideast_dcIsraeli police stormed the square outside the al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islam's holiest sites, to confront stone-throwing Palestinians on Friday amid heightened tensions over Israel's West Bank barrier.
The clash at the shrine, often a flashpoint, coincided with another spate of protests in the West Bank against the barrier, now under World Court review for cutting into occupied territory that Palestinians want for a state.
Police spokesman Gil Kleiman said officers had fired rubber bullets and tossed stun grenades after hundreds of Muslim worshippers "started rioting" at the end of Friday prayers within the shrine, which Muslims call al-Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary) and Jews revere as the Temple Mount.
He said police had mobilized to stop Palestinians in the sanctuary -- which covers a plateau in the Old City -- trying to stone worshippers standing below the compound at the Western Wall, which buttresses the hillside and is the most sacred site of Jewish prayer. Palestinians said police acted without provocation during the 30-minute clash.
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