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Slain Palestinian laid to rest

July 4, 2014

Israeli police and crowds of Palestinians have clashed in East Jerusalem as a slain Arab teenager was laid to rest. Meanwhile, Egypt is reportedly mediating efforts to reach a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

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Jerusalem burial
Image: Reuters

As thousands of Palestinian mourners turned out on Friday to pay their respects to a slain 16-year-old boy, tensions boiled over into clashes with Israeli police.

An ambulance carried the body of Mohammed Abu Khdeir to a mosque in his neighborhood in East Jerusalem, where he was buried in a local cemetery. His body was wrapped in a Palestinian flag and traditional headscarf.

Palestinians reportedly threw rocks at Israeli police, who responded by firing tear gas and stun grenades. According to police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld, the clashes took place in Ras al-Amud and Wadi Joz in the eastern sectors of East Jerusalem.

Thousands of Israeli police have been deployed throughout Jerusalem in an effort to deter heightened tensions from boiling over into widespread violence in the aftermath of the murder.

Youth murders

Many Palestinians are convinced that Jewish nationalists kidnapped and murdered Khdeir in revenge for the deaths of three Israeli teenagers. The Israeli government has condemned Khdeir's murder and promised that the police are working to bring those responsible to justice.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused the Islamist group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, of being responsible for the murders of the three teenagers. Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied involvement.

The murders of the Israeli and Palestinian youngsters has sparked a new round violence between Hamas and Israel. Palestinian militants have fired rockets from Gaza into southern Israel, while Israel has pounded targets in Gaza with airstrikes.

Netanyahu has said that Israel would halt its airstrikes if militants in Gaza cease their rocket fire. Hamas has also said that it wants to avoid further escalation. Egypt is reportedly leading efforts to broker a ceasefire between the two sides.

"There are continuing Egyptian efforts to return calm to the Gaza Strip, but no agreement has been reached yet," a Hamas official told the AFP news agency on the condition of anonymity.

slk/mkg (AP, AFP, Reuters)