Netanyahu under pressure of security

JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to restore security "on all fronts" amid surging violence in the region.

Netanyahu also reinstated the defense minister whose firing he announced last month.

Heavy clashes, shootings and rocket strikes have marred a period when the Muslim holy month of Ramadan coincides with the Jewish Passover and Christian Easter.

The day after Israeli police stormed the prayer hall of Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque — Islam's third-holiest site — in a predawn raid on Wednesday, more than 30 rockets were fired from Lebanese soil. Israel then bombarded the Gaza Strip and southern Lebanon.

Israeli-Palestinian violence had already intensified since Netanyahu's government took power in December, a coalition with far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties.

The latest surge came after he announced a "pause" for dialogue on judicial reform legislation late last month, which split the nation and caused divisions in his government.

Among the casualties was Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, whom Netanyahu dismissed on March 26 after he cited national security concerns and threats by reserve military personnel not to report for duty, in calling for a halt to the legislative process.

Netanyahu is currently battling very low levels of domestic popularity. A recent survey showed him likely to lose if an election was held now.

'Difficult disputes'

At a news conference, Netanyahu said he and Gallant had "difficult disputes", but he has decided to put them in the past.

"Gallant remains in his post and we will continue to work together for the safety of the citizens of Israel," Netanyahu said.

Deadly violence continued on Monday prior to his comments.

In the latest shooting, Israeli forces killed 15-year-old Palestinian teenager Mohammed Fayez Balhan and wounded two other people, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

The Israeli army confirmed its forces were operating in the Aqbat Jaber camp, the site of previous deadly Israeli raids this year, where soldiers were seeking "to apprehend a terror suspect".

The army said troops responded with live fire after "suspects opened fire toward (soldiers), hurled explosive devices and Molotov cocktails".

Clashes erupted when the army entered the camp and surrounded several houses, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. A Palestinian security official told Agence France-Presse that five individuals had been arrested during the raid.

At the same time, hundreds of Israelis marched on Monday in the north of the West Bank, pushing for state approval of an Israeli settler outpost.

Several government ministers, including Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, appeared at the march. Demonstrators of all ages waved Israeli flags as they rallied along closed-off roads.

Agencies Via Xinhua