Palestinian leader back in Bethlehem for Christmas

Interim Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas arrived in Bethlehem under heavy security this evening for Christmas celebrations.

It was the first time in four years that a Palestinian leader has spent the holiday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus.

Beginning in 2001, Israel barred Yasser Arafat from celebrating Christmas in Bethlehem, accusing him of supporting violence.

But since Arafat’s death on November 11, there has been a warming in relations between Israel and the Palestinians.

Israel eased travel restrictions around Bethlehem this year in an attempt to boost tourism to the biblical town.

Arafat enjoyed attending the celebrations, both to strengthen the Palestinian claim to the West Bank and as a gesture to Palestinian Christians.

Israel allowed free travel into Bethlehem on Christmas Eve and handed out sweets at roadblocks, the latest sign that Israeli-Palestinian relations have warmed since the death of Yasser Arafat.

During more than four years of fighting, Christmas in Bethlehem was marked by gloom, military curfews and violence. The town is ringed by Israeli checkpoints and a massive separation barrier.

But for Christmas Eve, troops allowed pilgrims to pass freely through the roadblocks and military officials said they expected about 5,000 visitors for the two-day holiday.

Israeli troops also handed security responsibility for Bethlehem to the Palestinian security forces for the duration of Christmas, officials said.

Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah led a procession of about 1,000 Christians through Bethlehem to begin the celebrations. A Palestinian scout group band accompanied them, playing bagpipes and clashing cymbals as the crowd slowly marched through the town.

By early evening, much of Manger Square – the stone-paved courtyard outside the Church of the Nativity, which Christians believe is built on the grotto where Jesus was born – had cleared out.

Several hundred people, most of them Palestinian teenagers, walked through the streets. With a cold rain coming down, vendors sold nuts and other snacks, and people drank coffee to keep warm.

At the heavily fortified main crossing from Jerusalem into Bethlehem, an Israeli Tourism Ministry sign decorated with bells and a red ribbon read: “Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year.”

It was hung below the army’s permanent sign asking visitors in Hebrew, Arabic and English to prepare documents for inspection.

“A call to all people of faith: Visit the Holy Land now,” declared other Tourism Ministry signs hanging on the concrete slabs near the checkpoint.

Soldiers were instructed to treat visitors to Bethlehem with the utmost respect, said Lt Col Aviv Feigel, head of the Israeli military liaison office in the area.

“We certainly hope that these events are a positive sign for the future,” Feigel told Israel Radio, emphasising that there was a new feeling of optimism on both sides.

Baskets of sweets were handed to pilgrims crossing into Bethlehem, said Rafi Ben-Hur, the Israeli Tourism Ministry’s deputy director. The pilgrims were asked to give the sweets to Palestinians in Bethlehem, he added.

“This is our personal greetings for a happy holiday from Israel,” Ben-Hur said. “We see the pilgrims as a bridge for peace.”

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Mahmoud Abbas sent separate Christmas greetings. Abbas said that “we ask God and wish that all the religions in this country will live in peace and security.

“I hope next year will be much better than the previous ones”.

Four years of violence dealt a severe blow to Bethlehem’s economy, which heavily relies on tourism. Dozens of souvenir shops and restaurants have shut down. Hotel rooms have remained mostly barren, and Christians have been moving abroad.

But this year, Israeli and Palestinian officials predicted a merrier Christmas, though still far from the glory days when thousands of people celebrated in Bethlehem’s Manger Square well after Midnight mass had ended.

In the square, Palestinian flags outnumbered Christmas lights and festive balls, but there were only two Arafat posters, compared with dozens in previous years.