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How did Ariel Sharon’s 2000 visit to the Temple Mount contribute to the second intifada?

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The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, Israel, features a large gold dome and ornate blue and gold exterior, set against a backdrop of densely packed stone buildings. — Dome of the Rock Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem.

In September 2000, Israeli opposition leader Ariel Sharon visited the Temple Mount—a site sacred to both Jews and Muslims and home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock—to assert Israeli sovereignty over the compound.123

At the time, the Israeli-Palestinian peace process had already stalled, and the status of Jerusalem remained a highly contentious issue. Palestinians viewed Sharon’s visit as a deliberate provocation, as they expected the site to be under Palestinian or international control in a future two-state solution.13

The visit outraged Palestinians and triggered widespread demonstrations the following day. When Israeli police responded with lethal force, the unrest rapidly spread throughout the occupied territories, marking the beginning of the second ("Al-Aqsa") intifada, which lasted until 2005.2415