Israeli forces, Palestinians clash amid escalating violence in West Bank

BETHLEHEM, West Bank  — Palestinians and Israeli soldiers clashed across the West Bank on Tuesday as the Israeli military demolished the homes of two alleged Palestinian militants amid escalating violence that is threatening to turn into a full-scale uprising in the region.

Dozens of Palestinians were injured in the latest clashes as Israeli soldiers used live ammunition, stun grenades and tear gas to disperse a crowd of about 500 Palestinians who threw stones and shouted "Allahu Akbar!" (God is great), according to the Palestinian Red Crescent.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon voiced "profound alarm" Tuesday over the growing tensions. "The last few days of clashes ... are yet another worrisome sign of violence potentially spiraling out of control," he said in a statement.

The protests came as the  Israeli military demolished two East Jerusalem homes that the Israeli government said belonged to families of two militants  — one who killed five Israelis at a Jerusalem synagogue last year, and the other who bulldozed an Israeli man to death in August. Both Palestinians were shot and killed during the attacks.

Israeli troops also sealed off a room in a home of another Palestinian militant who tried to killed prominent Orthodox Jewish activist Yehuda Glick last year, the Associated Press reported.

That move prompted a sharp response from the militant's brother. “If (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu thinks that this will create deterrence, then he is wrong. This will not deter anybody,” Odai Hijazi told the AP. Hijazi's brother, Motaz, shot and seriously wounded Glick, a Jewish nationalist.

Palestinian kills 2 Israelis, wounds toddler in Jerusalem

The clashes in Bethlehem followed the funeral for Abed al-Rahman Obdeillah, a 13-year-old Palestinian youth killed Monday during clashes with Israeli soldiers. Other demonstrations took place in Ramallah and Hebron.

The death of the teenager — the second to be killed in protests in as many days — moved Palestinian residents of Bethlehem to declare Tuesday a day of mourning, closing all shops, schools and public service offices in the town. Three other Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in recent days amid the violent demonstrations.

Ban condemned the Palestinian deaths Tuesday, and called for an investigation into the incidents. “(Ban) does not believe that the demolition of Palestinian houses or the construction of new Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land will do anything other than inflame tensions still further,” said a statement issued by Ban's spokesperson in New York.

Yusef, a 14-year-old Palestinian from Bethlehem who refused to give his full name out of fear of retribution by Israeli soldiers said an uprising, or intifada, was already underway. When asked about the dangers of demonstrating — especially in light of a new policy that allows Israeli soldiers to use live ammunition against protesters — Yusef said he hoped to become a martyr.

The latest rash of violence began during a long Jewish holiday weekend, when an Israeli couple were ambushed and shot dead at point-blank range in their car with their four children in the backseat. The children were not harmed.

On Saturday, a Palestinian stabbed two Israelis to death and wounded two others, including a toddler, in the Old City of Jerusalem. The move spurred the Israeli government take the unprecedented step of barring Palestinians who do not live, work or study there from entering the Old City.

Israel bars Palestinians from Jerusalem's Old City

Tensions have been rising in the region in recent weeks, mainly around the religious site known to Jews as Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The outer wall of the temple compound is the Jewish holy site known as the Western Wall.

The prospect that Israel is trying to expand the Jewish presence at the hilltop compound has led to ongoing clashes, including Palestinians barricading themselves inside the mosque and throwing stones and firebombs at Israeli forces.

Netanyahu convened an emergency security meeting late Monday and announced he would use a "strong hand" to quell the violence. Given the severity of the situation, Netanyahu said that Israel was prepared to loosen restrictions on security forces in regards to "any rioter, inciter or terrorist anywhere."

"Just as we have defeated waves of terrorism in the past, we will defeat this one," he said Monday evening in a statement that also praised the Israeli military, police and Shin Bet on its arrest of a five-member terror cell believed to be behind Thursday's attack.

Netanyahu also said he would increase the use of the controversial administrative detention practice, where suspected terrorists are detained without the right to a fair trial or the knowledge of the evidence charged against them.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday that he does not want security escalations.  “All our instructions to our (security) agencies, our factions and our youth have been that we do not want escalation,” Abbas said.

“At the same time, we will protect ourselves," he added.