World Bulletin/News Desk

Israel's security cabinet on Tuesday approved a series of measures following a spate of attacks targeting settlers, including the deployment extra troops in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

"These steps include reinforcing forces across the country to increase the security of Israeli civilians, destruction of terrorists' homes and harsh responses to rioters throwing rocks, Molotov cocktails, and fireworks," Netanyahu said in a press conference.

The measures also include imposing fines of parents of minors involved in throwing stones on Israeli soldiers, according to Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot.

The new measures came following a spate of attacks targeting Israelis in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in recent weeks.

Netanyahu accused Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas of "fanning the flames".

"Abbas is not a partner in the efforts to curb extremism," he added.

"Instead of telling the truth, he is spreading lies as if we are attempting to change the status of holy sites. Instead of educating his people on peace, he is teaching them terror," Netanyahu said.

Tension has run high in East Jerusalem since late last month, when Israeli authorities temporarily closed the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex after an extremist Jewish rabbi was injured in a drive-by shooting in West Jerusalem.

Unrest mounted further after Israeli forces killed a young Palestinian man suspected of shooting the rabbi in a raid on his East Jerusalem home.

Further aggravating the situation, several Israeli parliamentarians have entered the Al-Aqsa complex in recent weeks, drawing the ire of Muslim worshippers and official condemnation from Arab and Muslim countries.

Groups of Jewish settlers, too, have recently forced their way into the religious site, triggering clashes between Muslim worshippers and Israeli forces.

For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world's third holiest site. Jews, for their part, refer to the area as the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Middle East War. It later annexed the holy city in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the self-proclaimed Jewish state – a move never recognized by the international community.

In September 2000, a visit to Al-Aqsa by controversial Israeli politician Ariel Sharon triggered what later became known as the "Second Intifada," a popular uprising against Israel's decades-long occupation in which thousands of Palestinians were killed.