Saddam Hussein today met a special envoy of Pope John Paul II as part of international efforts to resolve the Iraq crisis peacefully.

Surrounded by black-robed priests, armed guards and journalists, Yasser Arafat today ducked into the candlelit grotto marking the traditional birthplace of Jesus.

Italy threw a spanner in the works today just as Israel and the Palestinians agreed to terms for ending the 36 day siege of Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity.

Israeli troops surrounding Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity exchanged fire today with armed Palestinians holed up in one of Christianity’s holiest shrines, and smoke was seen rising from the compound.

Ariel Sharon was under increasing international pressure tonight to call off his West Bank siege of Yasser Arafat even as the Israeli army stepped up its campaign.