Israel eases Jerusalem mosque restrictions after Kerry talks

JERUSALEM: Israel eased restrictions at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque on Friday after US Secretary of State John Kerry announced agreement on steps to reduce tensions at the flashpoint compound. The site, which is holy to Jews as well as Muslims, has been the focus of months of unrest in annexed Arab east Jerusalem, that has spread to the occupied West Bank and Arab communities across Israel, raising fears of a new Palestinian uprising. The Palestinians have been infuriated by a far-right Jewish campaign for prayer rights at Al-Aqsa that threatens an ultra-sensitive, decades-old status quo. The violence prompted Kerry to hold a flurry of meetings with the two sides in neighboring Jordan on Thursday, after which he announced unspecified confidence-building measures to ease the underlying tensions. Men of all ages were allowed entry for the main weekly Muslim prayers at Al-Aqsa for the first time in “months,” Israeli police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld told AFP.   AFP