Israeli police on high alert ahead of Jewish, Muslim holidays

Israel said Tuesday thousands of police were deployed across Jerusalem ahead of the Jewish Yom Kippur and Muslim Eid al-Adah holidays, after days of clashes shook the al-Aqsa mosque compound.

Tensions in the city were running high over the past week, as police clashed with rioting Palestinian youths in the flashpoint holy site.

Yom Kippur ("day of atonement") will begin on Tuesday evening and last 25 hours, during which Jews fast and pray for forgiveness from God.

During the 25-hour fast, the country will come to a halt; television and radio stations will go off-air, all commerce and public transportation stops and airports will be closed.

Thousands of Jews are expected to arrive at the Western Wall, just below the al-Aqsa compound, on Wednesday evening, as the Muslim Eid al-Adah will begin.

Al-Aqsa mosque will be opened for visits, but Palestinian men above the age of 40 will be denied entry during the four-day Eid, according to a police statement.

Israel's Ynet news site said that the Jerusalem police went on "high alert," with 2,100 special police forces and paramilitary border police spread throughout the city.

Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon has imposed a complete closure on Palestinians living in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which will remain in effect until midnight on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a 21-year-old Palestinian was found dead early Tuesday near the West Bank city of Hebron. Israel said he died by an improvised bomb he was preparing to throw at Israeli soldiers. However, Palestinian media reported he was shot to death.

A few hours later, a woman was shot and critically injured near a checkpoint in Hebron, after allegedly attempting to stab a soldier.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Mideast War, and later annexed it and claimed it as its capital in a move never recognized by the international community.

The al-Aqsa mosque compound is holy also for Jews, who revered it as the Temple Mount.

The current round of violence was triggered by increased visits by far-right Jewish activists to the site, as part of their struggle to cancel a long-held ban on Jewish prayers there.

Palestinians said Israel is violating a status quo agreement from 1967, which allow Jews to visit the site but prohibit them to pray.

Israel has objected such visits, fearing its potential to incite violence at the volatile site, but the government changed its mind recently, amidst pressure from right-wing leaders. Endit