Since Israel began its work outside the Moroccan Gate of the al-Aqsa compound nearly two weeks ago, there have been widely diverging accounts about the nature and aim of the Israeli construction work.

Initially it was reported Israeli authorities were carrying out repair works to the walkway leading to the Moroccan Gate of the al-Aqsa sanctuary. However, it soon transpired they were also carrying out excavation work beneath the walkway.

After Palestinian protest resulted in over 50 arrests, the Jerusalem mayor, Uri Lupolianski, suspended the work and said late on Sunday that the building work on a new walkway to replace a damaged bridge would be subjected to a full planning review.

This had the impact of calming the tensions at an international level but Palestinians, who from the beginning were concerned about the excavations, have remained deeply suspicious. Clashes between young men and the Israeli occupation forces, usually reserved for the occupied territories, erupted close to the walls of the old city on Salahedin Street within the illegally annexed city of Jerusalem.

Israel has denied any ulterior motive, to the extent that it is now carrying out the excavations with a live camera recording every second, which can be viewed by a live feed on the Israeli Antiquities Authority website. It has also welcomed a suggestion by its ally, Turkey, to send a team of experts to assess the excavation work in a bid to appease the Muslim world.

With such transparency from the Israelis, one is forced to ask why there is so much Arab and Muslim suspicion about Israel's motives. The construction work has drawn criticism from many quarters and seems to reflect the entire conflict in terms of propaganda peddling and distrust. Is it an over-reaction?

To understand the response, one must look at it in its correct context. The Palestinians have very little reason to trust the Israelis and even less grounds to respect them. With a backdrop of oppression and repression, this is nothing less than can be expected. However, where al-Aqsa is concerned, there are greater forces at play.

For some Israeli Jews, the Muslim presence on the sacred Temple Mount is a travesty that they must endure on a daily basis. Yet many Israeli rabbis have re-iterated that the Torah does not allow Jewish presence on the land until the coming of the Messiah, and to enter the site would violate its sanctity according to Judaic law. The Palestinians, on the other hand, have spent 40 years defending the al-Aqsa compound, Islam's most holy place in Jerusalem, from the threat of demolition by Israel to pave the way for the building of the third Temple. This task has cost many Palestinians their lives.

Attacks against the mosques based in the compound and the Palestinian worshippers within started during the 1967 war, and have lasted to this day. In 1969 an entire wing of the al-Aqsa mosque building closest to the Moroccan corner was burnt down by an arson attack. A precious pulpit dating back to Saladin over 700 years ago was completely destroyed. The culprit was allowed to walk free after receiving minimal psychiatric counselling.

In 1970, the Temple Mount Faithful, a group of extremist Jews forcibly entered the compound leading to the eruption of Israeli troop gun-fire against Palestinians. Fundamentalist Israelis have attempted to scale the walls of the sanctuary, laid explosives at its entrances, and blocked access using guns.

The compound has on innumerable occasions been stormed by Israeli troops firing tear gas and live machine guns. Such activities against the sanctuary and worshippers within have continued unabated since 1967.

In addition to these attacks, there have been unreserved calls from some quarters of Israeli society for the demolition of the Islamic site in favour of a new Jewish Temple. In 1983, the Temple Mount Fund was established in Israel, Europe and America to raise money for rebuilding the Jewish Temple on the al-Aqsa sanctuary.

When this is coupled with the excavation works that have been carried out beneath the compound by the Israeli authorities, first coming to light in 1981, which compromised the structural integrity of the entire complex and the buildings within it, it is easy to understand the seemingly disproportionate response of Palestinians and Muslims in general to the latest excavations and repair.

The fact is that the Israeli/Palestinian conflict has a worldwide audience with differing vested interests. For the Muslims, any possible threat to al-Aqsa, however innocent the real intent may be, will draw a relentless and passionate response, which has been witnessed over the past two weeks.

This article first eppeared on the Guardian blog site 'comment is free'.