U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon warned Monday against "provocations" as clashes erupted at Jerusalem's holy sites, condemning Israeli settlement activity and calling for peace talks with the Palestinians. Ban was speaking in Ramallah and Jerusalem where he met with Palestinian and Israeli leaders, a day after a donor conference for Gaza and hours after clashes at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound between Israeli police and Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Palestinian extremists were to blame for the clashes, the second such violent outburst in less than a week.

Nearly 2,200 Palestinians, mainly civilians, were killed in the 50-day war in July and August, with 73 people killed on the Israeli side, mostly soldiers.

Netanyahu however maintained the occupation was not relevant to the Gaza conflict.

Netanyahu also urged Ban to prevent the Palestinians from taking unilateral diplomatic measures at the United Nations.

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