Yeshiva student stabbed in East Jerusalem

A Palestinian man stabbed a 25-year-old Yeshiva student in occupied East Jerusalem on Thursday — the latest in a spate of knife attacks amid rising tensions between Israelis and Palestinians.

The man was stabbed in his upper body at Ammunition Hill, according to local media reports. Police said the victim was in serious condition. The alleged attacker is a 19-year-old Palestinian from East Jerusalem and has been detained by police.

At least four knife attacks have occurred in Jerusalem, and six overall, since Saturday.

Rioting in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank has seen youths throwing stones and firebombs at Israeli security forces firing rubber bullets, tear gas and stun grenades. Further clashes broke out at the Bet El checkpoint outside the West Bank city of Ramallah on Thursday.

Over the past week, four Israelis and five Palestinians have been killed — three of them after alleged attacks against Israelis. The unrest has sparked fears of a broader uprising.

Israeli authorities have wrestled with how to respond, with far-right politicians calling for forceful action and some security officials seeking to avoid an escalation.

An incident on Wednesday seemed to offer a rare glimpse of an Israeli undercover operation, when masked infiltrators among a group of Palestinian stone-throwers suddenly pulled out pistols and opened fire as rocks flew towards them.

The incident, captured on video by an Agence France-Presse journalist, saw three Palestinians wounded, including one critically from a gunshot wound to the back of the head. Some Israeli mayors, including the mayor of Jerusalem, went as far as to encourage residents who own guns to carry them around with them. 

Israeli and Palestinian officials reportedly met for security talks in the West Bank on Tuesday evening, and there have been international calls for calm.

The recent surge in violence was sparked by increased restrictions on Palestinian access to Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and spread after two attacks allegedly perpetrated by Palestinians killed two Israelis in East Jerusalem and two Israeli settlers in the West Bank. Israeli settlers rioted after those killings, assaulting Palestinians and destroying their property.

Palestinian protesters are calling for unrestricted access to worship at Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam. Jews revere the site as the location of two ancient temples. Demonstrators also want Israel to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories and cease settlement building, both of which are illegal under international law.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has barred members of parliament and ministers from visiting the Al-Aqsa compound.

Provocative visits by Israeli Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel as well as by Israel lawmakers of Palestinian origin have added to the volatility. Palestinian lawmakers in Israel have vowed to defy the order and visit the compound on Friday, when many Muslims attend prayers at Al-Aqsa.

Al Jazeera and wire services