The initial network of 60 cameras focuses on the Haram al-Sharif, Islam's third-holiest site. Extremist Jews have been trying to take it over, claiming that it is holy to Jews as the site of the last Jewish temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. Al-Aqsa has been the target of attempted attacks by religious extremists in the past.

A bank of television screens at the main police station in the Old City will enable officers to monitor the streets and supervise deployments.

"In the next few months a total of 200 cameras will be brought into service and eventually the number will rise to more than 300," a police spokesman said.

Public Security Minister Shlomo Ben Ami said the new security measure was a clear sign of Israel's intention to maintain control of Arab east Jerusalem in any peace agreement with the Palestinians. It "reinforces Israeli sovereignty in an effective way" and gives a "clear signal to Israelis and tourists alike that they will enjoy the highest level of protection in the Old City," he said.

The future of East Jerusalem, which Israel captured in 1967, is one of the thorniest issues at stake in so-called final status talks with the Palestinians which are due to produce a permanent peace settlement by September this year.

The Palestinians are demanding an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital but Israel insists the whole city is its "eternal undivided capital" even though its annexation of the eastern sector has never been recognized by the international community.



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