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ALL OVER THE WORLD, WE PRAY FOR PEACE

People from all over the world gathered in the
holy city of Bethlehem in the West Bank on
Christmas Eve, praying for peace on the special occasion.

The birthplace of Jesus Christ was crowded and
festive as people flooded the usually quiet half-
empty Palestinian city. Palestinian Muslims and
Christians, foreigners and even Jews arrived in
succession to join in the Christmas celebrations.

With better security in the West Bank this year,
Bethlehem is expecting the biggest number of Christmas tourists.

"The number of tourists and pilgrims is expected
to be 50,000 in these two days, compared with
last year's 30,000," says Bethlehem Mayor Victor Batarseh.

Bethlehem lies 10 km south of Jerusalem. A wall
and a number of checkpoints separate the two cities.

A lot of Palestinians could not make it to the
celebrations because of Israeli checkpoints
that surround the city.

The journey to Bethlehem is quite time-consuming
as Palestinians have to go around the big settlement
of Ma'aleh Adumim that almost cuts the West Bank into two halves.

Daher, a Jerusalemite, said he spent about an
hour and a half at a checkpoint on his way to Bethlehem.

This year, only 400 Palestinian Christians from Gaza,
which has been under Israeli siege for three years,
were granted permits among 750 people who applied for them.

The Gaza Strip is home to around 4,000 Christians,
most of whom belong to the Greek Orthodox Church,
but a few follow the Latin Church and celebrate
Christmas on Dec. 24-25.

Last year, Gaza Latin Church pastor Manuel Musalam
announced that the Palestinian Christians living
in Gaza would not celebrate Christmas in 2008
to protest at the Israeli blockade imposed on
Gaza and the Israeli threats of invasion.

Nearly one year has passed since the start of the
three-week Israeli military offensive Operation Cast Lead.

The operation killed more than 1,400 people and
injured 5,000 others, reducing homes, schools,
hospitals and marketplaces to rubble.

Shafiq Haddad, a Palestinian poet:

"I am like any other simple Palestinian,
I pray for peace, I hope there will be peace in the world.
We are witnessing wars and bloodshed,
we hope this comes to an end."

As darkness fell, tourists and pilgrims gathered
at the Manger Square near the Church of Nativity
to listen to Christmas carols and wait for
the Christmas Eve mass to start.

At midnight, the church bells went off and a mass
went on with the participation of pilgrims and
religious and political figures including
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

They were all praying in the place which
Christians believe is the birthplace of Jesus,
and many of them were praying for world peace.

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Bethlehem's Christmas mass to be broadcast worldwide

The Custodians of the Holy Land and Palestine TV
signed an agreement Friday, that will see the
Nativity Church Midnight Mass at Christmas broadcast
made available without charge for any satellite station
or individual wishing to take part in the celebration.

Palestine TV will upload a live feed on 24th December,
and the mass can be re-broadcast without charge
anywhere in the world.

The initiative is the largest among several churches in Bethlehem
who hope to share their worship services
and the special character of Christmas in the holy city
with congregations in North America and around the world.

The Nativity Church service on 24-25 December is a Catholic Mass,
and will be conducted primarily in English.

On 19th December Bethlehem's Lutheran Church
will conduct a joint service with the
Washington (DC) National Cathedral.
The service will also be broadcast over the website.

Speaking about the Nativity Church broadcast,
PLO leader Yasser Abed Rabbo says the initiative
speaks to the importance of Christmas celebrations
within the Palestinian leadership,
noting the status of Christmas as a national holiday,
and the participation of dozens of Palestinian leaders,
both Muslim and Christian, in the celebrations.

"Our efforts show that the nation, of Muslims and Christians,
clings to the message of tolerance, love and peace."