Israel sets up east Jerusalem checkpoints after violence spikes

Israel set up checkpoints Wednesday in Palestinian neighbourhoods of east Jerusalem and mobilised hundreds of soldiers as it struggled to stop attacks that have raised fears of a full-scale uprising.

 Hours after the first roadblocks were erected, two more stabbing incidents occurred in Jerusalem, one outside the Old City and another near the crowded central bus station during rush hour.

 Addressing Palestinians for the first time since the violence began, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said in a recorded televised speech he supported "peaceful and popular" struggle against Israel.

 In the first of Wednesday's attacks, police said a man tried to stab a security guard at an entrance to the Old City but was shot dead before harming anyone. Palestinian media said he was a 20-year-old from the West Bank city of Hebron.

 The other saw a 23-year-old Palestinian stab and moderately wound a woman of around 70 before being shot dead by police.

 The incident sparked panic among commuters as armed police rushed into the bus station amid rumours of a second attacker. Police later said there had been no second suspect.

 With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under immense pressure to halt the violence and frustrated Palestinian youths defying attempts to restore calm, police said 300 Israeli soldiers were joining their patrols.

 The government also announced further drastic measures, including easing firearms laws for Israelis and stripping alleged attackers from east Jerusalem of their residency permits.

 A wave of mainly stabbing attacks by Palestinians has spread fear in Israel, while a gun-and-knife attack on a Jerusalem bus on Tuesday killed two people and led to outrage among Israelis.

 A third Israeli was killed in Jerusalem on Tuesday when a Palestinian attacker rammed his car into pedestrians then exited with a knife, making it the city's bloodiest day in the current wave of unrest.

 All three attackers in the two incidents were from east Jerusalem, and two were shot dead.