Israel on high alert at holy shrine

JERUSALEM, Middle East - Israel sent extra police into Jerusalem on Friday and said men under the age of 50 would be banned from the Old City's Al-Aqsa mosque for the day in anticipation of more mass protests.

Tensions have been high at the compound for two weeks, often erupting into clashes, after two Israeli police officers were killed there, prompting Israel to install metal detectors at the entrance to the site and a subsequent Muslim boycott.

Under immense diplomatic pressure, Israel removed the metal detectors on Thursday, a move welcomed by the Arab world, but violence quickly returned when thousands of Muslim worshippers surged into the mosque.