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Naughty or nice? Palestinians in Santa Claus contemplate a poster of Yasser Arafat (AP)
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| By Associated Press December 24, 2004 |
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| A sign instructing people to stop sits atop a holiday message posted by Israeli tourism, as Israeli border police officers wait for vehicles at the main checkpoint leading into the West Bank town of Bethlehem Thursday Dec. 23, 2004. For the first Christmas season in five years, Israel and the Palestinians are cooperating to boost tourism to encourage Christian pilgrims to visit the Holy Land during the holiday. (AP Photo/Enric Marti) |
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Israeli soldiers, in coordination with the Tourism Ministry, sent candies and Christmas greetings to Palestinians in Bethlehem, the latest sign that relations between the sides have warmed since the death of Yasser Arafat.
During four years of Israeli-Palestinian fighting, Christmas in Bethlehem was marked by gloom, military curfews and violence. This year, visitors are flowing freely through the Israeli army checkpoint to celebrate in the traditional birthplace of Jesus.
At the heavily fortified Jerusalem-Bethlehem checkpoint, an Israeli Tourism Ministry sign decorated with bells and a red ribbon wished Christians "Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year."
Above it was the army's sign telling visitors in Hebrew, Arabic and English to "Stop and wait for instructions. 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 and restraint, said Lt. Col. Aviv Feigel, head of the Israeli military liaison office in the area. For the first time in nearly four years, the army also transferred to the Palestinians control of the town over the holiday season, he added.
"We certainly hope that these events are a positive sign for the future," Feigel told Israel Radio, emphasizing that there is a new feeling of optimism on both sides.
Israel is handing out baskets of candies to pilgrims crossing into Bethlehem from Jerusalem, said Rafi Ben-Hur, the Israeli Tourism Ministry's deputy director. The pilgrims are being asked to give the candies 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."
Four years of violence has 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 far from the glory days when thousands of people celebrated in Bethlehem's Manger Square well after Midnight mass had ended.
The Christmas cheer and attempt at coordination is the result of several meetings between Israeli and Palestinian tourism officials, including the ministers, in the wake of Arafat's death on Nov. 11 at a French hospital, Ben-Hur said.
On Friday in Manger Square -- the stone-paved courtyard outside the Church of the Nativity, which Christians believe is built on the grotto where Jesus was born -- dozens of armed, uniformed Palestinian policemen stood guard.
A few early birds milled around in the rain, waiting for a Christmas procession to begin later Friday. A sparsely decorated Christmas tree stood under gray skies, but other decorations were scarce.
In the square, Palestinian flags outnumbered Christmas lights and balls. But this year, only two Arafat posters hung in the square, compared to previous years when the late-Palestinian leader's picture was the most popular decoration.
Israel's West Bank security barrier -- which has effectively cut Bethlehem in half and dealt a further blow to the town's already listless economy -- has put a damper on this year's celebrations, said Bethlehem Mayor Hanna Nasser.
"This is the city of peace where we should have peace ... because the prince of peace was born here in the city, but unfortunately peace is missing still in this city," Bethlehem Mayor Hanna Nasser said.
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