8-Mar-13: The rioters are in action again on Jerusalem's Temple Mount

Alahram carries this image of Israeli riot police on the Temple Mount, but
has no pictures of the Arab rioters. The caption misleadingly says it shows
the Israeli forces as they 'storm' the Aqsa mosque

Hundreds of Palestinian Arab men hurled rocks and firebombs (Ynet) at Israelis this morning on Jerusalem's Temple Mount. Several Israel Police officers are reported injured.

The Associated Press version of events says

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said Palestinian worshipers rioted after Friday Muslim prayers at the hilltop site in the Old City of Jerusalem. It's known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, where the Al-Aqsa Mosque stands. Rosenfeld said police dispersed the crowd with stun grenades. He said several officers were slightly injured by masked Palestinians who threw rocks and two firebombs, but police did not enter the mosque.

From Reuters

Dozens of officers entered the politically sensitive area, one of Islam's holiest sites to break up several hundred protesters. A number of policemen were lightly hurt, a police spokesman said, and Palestinian media said at least 15 protesters were injured. A surge in violence in the occupied West Bank over the past several weeks has raised concern in Israel that a new Palestinian uprising could erupt. Tension is rising before a visit by U.S. President Barack Obama to Jerusalem and Ramallah at the end of the month... Israel has called for resuming the talks without preconditions.

The incitement and steady escalation of tensions by figures within the Palestinian Arab world have been painfully noticeable these past few weeks. We posted about it ["22-Feb-13: Violence alert in force here", "25-Feb-13: Whipping up the flames to create a crisis atmosphere for when Obama arrives" and elsewhere] but in reality you only have to be looking to see it.

Already there are the first signs of the customary alibi journalism like this item from NBC News over the byline of Lawahez Jabari:

The latest clashes erupted in the wake of unconfirmed reports that an Israeli security guard  entered Al-Aqsa, beat a child and kicked the Muslim holy book, the Quran. Two days ago, right-wing politician Moshe Feiglin stopped at the compound’s doorway, further raising tensions.  

For a change, the Israeli denial is carried by AFP:

"That's completely incorrect," Rosenfeld said, adding that the Koran in question was being held by one of a group of women seeking to block a visit to the compound by Israelis when the book fell by accident. "They blocked them with a bench and one of the women who was sitting on the bench was reading a Koran," he said. "When the bench was removed from the area the Koran fell on the floor. The Koran was picked up and returned to the lady and there was no misconduct by any of the police."

And there's this Lebanese report, typical of many, from the past hour that says the rock- and firebomb-throwing thugs are

enraged by reports that an Israeli policeman mishandled a Koran

Enraged, they surely are. It's a constant with them.

Stay tuned.