Bethlehem celebrates Christmas amid sadness, besiege

The occupied city of Bethlehem in the West Bank has been witnessing an atmosphere overwhelmed by sadness while celebrating Christmas because of the continued Israeli occupation, the besiege and building the wall of separation.

In a message on Christmas, patriarchs and archbishops in the city said that the city where the Christ was born has been converted into a huge prison because of the wall built by Israel in the West Bank. But they added they also see new marks for the hope to achieve peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

A religious procession started yesterday from the holy city of Jerusalem to Bethlehem where the Palestinian started to gather. The midnight sermon for this year is to be attended by the chairman of the PLO executive committee Mahmoud Abbas after Israel has banned the late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat during the last three years from taking part in this religious occasion.

The celebrations coincided with the convening of the first municipal elections in the Palestinian territories since three decades.