Why is Jerusalem such a focus of tension in the Middle East?

Violence at the holy site in 2000 ignited a five-year Palestinian uprising and a fierce Israeli military crackdown across the occupied territories

Israeli police escort Jewish visitors marking the holiday pf Passover to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount (Mahmoud Illean/AP)

The Holy Land, and in particular the ancient city of Jerusalem, finds itself once more at the centre of conflict.

Israeli police fire tear gas and rubber bullets at Palestinians stockpiling rocks and fireworks inside one of the most bitterly disputed holy sites on Earth.