Negotiations set over Bethlehem church standoff

Israeli and Palestinian officials were today meeting in a bid to end a standoff at Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity where 200 gunmen are besieged by Israeli forces, the town’s mayor said.

In Jenin yesterday, Israeli troops pulled back from parts of the city, allowing residents access to the hospital for the first time in a week. Palestinians claim a massacre took place in the refugee camp, while Israel insists that most of the casualties were armed.