AMMAN, March 31 (Xinhua) -- King Abdullah II of Jordan and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday agreed to exert joint efforts to protect sacred sites in Jerusalem.

The two leaders reached a consensus to defend Jerusalem, the holy city facing challenges of being judaized, according to the state-run Petra news agency.

For his part, the Jordanian king renewed his support to the Palestinians in their struggle for statehood.

Israel occupied the east part of Jerusalem in 1967. The Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of their future Palestinian state, while Israel says that Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jews.