Protesters say their action will continue

"We didn't start the problem, they did," one man told the BBC.

"This uprising should have come a long time ago, and without it there will never be peace," added another.

Palestinian protesters are also angry over what they see as their misrepresentation in the eyes of the world's media, which they say has unfairly cast them as troublemakers and aggressors.

"Only three (of their) soldiers have been kidnapped, and all of the world is making such a big deal of it," a protester told our reporter.

Israeli scepticism

Jews living closest to the scenes of the protests in the West Bank are similarly sceptical about the long-term chances for peace.

Israeli troops remain in position

"They're not committed to peace, no they're not, because they're not reliable - we can't trust them," said a Jewish resident of Bethlehem.

One Jewish woman said she believes Palestinians and Jews will never live together in peace because of "too much deep-rooted hatred."

"Both [Jews and Palestinians] have deep convictions...they both believe they have historic rights to Jerusalem," she told our correspondent.

"Only one can have it; there will always be Palestinians hurling rocks on the Jews praying at the wall, regardless of the deals that they have," she added.