Israeli police on high alert at holy site

The main prayer session at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque has ended more quietly than expected with Israel setting an age limit on who could attend after two weeks of violent protests over tougher Israeli security measures.

Extra police stood guard throughout the walled Old City, some wearing riot gear, some on horseback, in anticipation of mass protests. But aside from a few hotspots where Palestinian protestors briefly clashed with Israeli officers, serious violence did not recur.

Throughout Friday Israel limited entry to the mosque compound, a raised marble-and-stone plaza referred to by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and by Jews as the Temple Mount, to men over the age of 50. Women of all ages were allowed in.

Tensions soared at the venue, often erupting into fierce clashes, after two Israeli police officers were shot dead on July 14 by gunmen who had hidden weapons inside the Aqsa compound, prompting Israel to install metal detectors at the entrance to the site.