Deal agreed to end Church of Nativity siege: Reports

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have reportedly agreed a deal to end the month-old siege at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.

Palestinian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that of the more than 100 people still in the church, six to eight senior Palestinian militants will be deported to Italy, around 30 others will be escorted to the Gaza Strip and the rest will be freed.

The Israeli military would not confirm the report and said talks are still ongoing. The Palestinian officials said the accord was negotiated by the Vatican and the European Union, with no input from the United States.

Around 200 people, including gunmen, policemen, civilians, monks and nuns, have been under siege in the Church of the Nativity since the Israeli army invaded Bethlehem on April 2.

The Palestinians had taken refuge in the church, which was quickly surrounded by Israeli soldiers, who demanded that the gunmen surrender.

On Wednesday, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was freed from his shattered compound in the West Bank city of Ramallah after 34 days of captivity when Israel and the Palestinians accepted a compromise worked out by the US.