Temple Mount unrest triggered by incitement, Herzog tells Kerry

The current round of violence in Jerusalem has been caused by Islamic figures urging on young Muslim protesters to clash with Israeli security forces, opposition leader Isaac Herzog told US Secretary of State John Kerry during a meeting Friday in London.

Kerry expressed “grave concern” about the clashes, which Friday left three Border Policemen and a rioter wounded and resulted in multiple arrests in various locations around the capital, the Haaretz daily reported.

The violence spread Friday night, with terrorists in the Gaza Strip firing at least two rockets into southern Israel communities. Israel responded by striking terrorist targets in Gaza overnight. Hamas, which rules the coastal strip, had declared Friday a “Day of Rage” over the fighting in Jerusalem that has centered primarily around the Temple Mount.

The Zionist Union party, which Herzog heads, on Friday rapped Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for failing to prevent the violence in Jerusalem or protect its residents.

Herzog also told Kerry that despite his opposition to the Iran nuclear agreement, Netanyahu was overdue in beginning discussions with the US over security considerations once the deal — which lifts sanctions on the Islamic Republic in return for strict limits on its nuclear program – is implemented.

He also touted a “regional alliance” to tackle Iranian aggression, one which includes both Israel and the predominantly Sunni Muslim nations opposed to Shiite Iran, Haaretz reported.

Iran is a key supporter of Syrian leader Bashar Assad, currently in the fifth year of a battle against opposition forces and Islamist extremists in his country, a conflict that has left hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced. It also provides support for Lebanese-based terror group Hezbollah, a long-avowed enemy of Israel that has also sent militants into Syria to fight alongside Assad’s forces.