Netanyahu pledges to 'uphold status quo' at Al Haram Al Sharif

Occupied Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday restated a pledge to retain intact the custom of not permitting non-Muslim prayer at Occupied Jerusalem's Al Haram Al Sharif, at the centre of a spike in unrest.

"Israel reaffirms its commitment to upholding unchanged the status quo of the Temple Mountin word and in practice," he said in a statement, using the Jewish term for the site, sacred to both faiths.

"Israel will continue to enforce its longstanding policy: Muslims pray on the Temple Mount; non-Muslims visit the Temple Mount," he said, following up on comments earlier by US Secretary of State John Kerry after meetings in Amman with Jordan's King Abdullah II and Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas.

Kerry said the Israeli regime had agreed on steps to calm tensions over the flashpoint site, including 24-hour security cameras, an idea not mentioned in Netanyahu's statement.

Tensions over Al Haram Al Sharif have sparked recent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli occupation soldiers and colonists.

On Friday, more than 80 people were wounded in clashes between Palestinians and Israeli occupation soldiers in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Since the start of this month, 52 Palestinians and one Palestinian living in a 1948 area have died in clashes or while carrying out attacks, including a Palestinian who died Saturday of his injuries.

Eight Israelis have been killed in attacks.