Palestinians observing a moment of silence for the victims of the terrorist attacks.
Middle East Tensions
Middle East Tensions rise after Sharon visit
September 28th, 2000 - We thought all is well in the land of Israel and the Palestinian territories, until the visit by hardliner Ariel Sharon along with roughly 1500 well armed Israeli soldiers to the site known to Muslims around the world as al-Haram as-Sharif in Jerusalem.
This is the same site where Jews call it the Temple Mount. Sharon is the same man who viciously ordered the murders of thousands of Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon.
Likud Party Leader Ariel Sharon speaking to the press regarding his visit to al-Haram al-Sharif.
As Palestinian demonstrators gathered for protests because of Sharon's visit, Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) opened fire at civilians with rubber-coated steel bullets and tear gas causing protestors to respond with stones. Demonstrations grew dramatically in Palestinian controlled territories causing IDF to surround towns and villages with heavy artillery such as tanks and Apache helicopters, causing an escalation of violence. Major parts of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem hasn't seen the most fighting since 1996, when the Israeli government decided that they were going to build an archeological tunnel just underneath the Dome of the Rock that can cause it to demolish. Israel continues to push itself further into Palestinian controlled territories with live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, and missiles to try to salvage the 'peace process'. -Nehad M. Associated Press
Palestinians protest the Israeli occupation peacefully while Israeli Defense Force (IDF) takes aim to disperse crowds within the Palestinian territories.