Israeli police have prevented right-wing Jewish extremists from staging a rally at a disputed holy site in Jerusalem.

Thousands of Israeli police encircled Jerusalem's Old City Sunday, stopping cars and setting up roadblocks to prevent an ultranationalist group from entering a disputed holy site.

Authorities say police arrested at least a dozen Israeli right-wing activists, including the leader of an ultranationalist group, Revava.

The group planned to lead thousands of activists into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound Sunday. The hilltop compound is the most hotly contested site in Jerusalem, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount.

Palestinian militants have warned of an uprising if the Jews try to enter the site.