A crowd of Palestinians has thrown firebombs at a holy site regarded as the tomb of biblical patriarch Joseph.

Footage on local media showed flames leaping from the small stone structure in the West Bank city of Nablus.

The blaze was extinguished by Palestinian security forces who dispersed the crowd.

The women's section at the compound was said to be badly damaged, but there were no reports of injuries.

The tomb is revered by Jews and Muslims as the burial place of Joseph, son of Jacob.

An Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) spokesman said every effort would be made to catch those responsible for the "despicable act".

"The burning and desecration of Joseph's Tomb... is a blatant violation and contradiction of the basic value of freedom of worship," Lt Col Peter Lerner said.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the attack, opened an investigation and ordered the damage to be repaired.

The attack came amid heightened tensions between Israel and the Palestinians.

In the past month, eight Israelis have been killed in attacks by Palestinians, most of them stabbings.

In that time, 31 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli security forces, 14 of them labelled attackers.

Security in Jerusalem was bolstered ahead of Friday prayers to prevent further violence.

Israeli police also said only Muslim men below the age of 40 would be allowed into the city's al Aqsa mosque, which has been a flashpoint of violence and is on a site regarded as holy by Muslims and Jews.

(Sky News)