Israel's right-wing leader Ariel Sharon, whose visit to Jerusalem's mosque compound Thursday set off riots that have so far killed more than 30 Palestinians, said Sunday that the Palestinians were to blame for the bloodshed.
"Erupting in violence is a means for (Palestinian leader Yasser) Arafat to put pressure on Israel and the Americans to get what he wants," Sharon, the head of the Likud opposition party, said in a statement.
It was Sharon's first comment on the violence for which the Palestinians have held him responsible by treading on their religious sensibilities -- JERUSALEM (AFP)
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