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By Ana and Angela Barrios, Special to The
Manila Times
Israel and holy sites in the West Bank are
experiencing a renewed surge of tourism this year—a lot them
Christian pilgrims braving the terrorist threats that always hover
above Bethlehem.
Some of the pilgrims are OFWs from Europe and
the Arab countries.
Bethlehem is where the Church of Nativity is
located and the place where, Christians believe, Jesus was born,
prepared for the Christmas influx. The town’s mayor, Victor
Batarseh, expects the total of tourists this Christmas to reach
65,000. This is approximately four times the number that came in
Christmas 2005.
On Tuesday (December 18) in Jerusalem, the
Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism Shaul Tzemach,
said 500,000 Christian tourists have so far in 2007 made a
pilgrimage to Israel and 340,000 tourists traveled to Bethlehem.
Israel proudly claims that since its creation, Israel has provided
freedom of religion for Christians, as well as for Muslims, Jews and
other faiths that have holy sites in the country.
For the 2007 Christmas season, the Ministry of
Tourism along with the Israeli Police and the Israel Defense Forces
(IDF) have coordinated their efforts with the Palestinian Ministry
for Tourism as well as Palestinian organizations in the private
sector to ensure the safe passage of Christian pilgrims from
Jerusalem into Bethlehem.
Israel Ministry of Tourism staff will man the
Rachel crossing into Bethlehem on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day,
twenty-four hours a day with staff from the IDF’s District
Coordination Office (DCO) in the Palestinian Territories. The
Ministry will also provide a bus shuttle every 30 minutes from the
Mar Elias Monastery just south of Jerusalem to the Church of the
Nativity on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Israeli Tourism Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch
said, “Tourism cooperation is in the joint economic interests of
both Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The many pilgrims who are
currently visiting create a bridge for cooperation, understanding
and peace between the peoples. We will work together in order to
assure full freedom of religion.”
Lt. Col. Kamil Wahabee of the IDF’s DCO Unit
said a number of restrictions inside the West Bank have been eased
for the holiday season. He also said that the government has lifted
a general prohibition on Israeli civilians visiting the West Bank
without a permit; a gesture intended to allow Israeli Arabs to visit
family in the West Bank over the holiday season.
Thousands of entry permits have also been
granted to Palestinian Christians wishing to visit family in Israel
over Christmas. Eight thousand permits have been granted to
residents of Bethlehem alone, with four hundred permits granted to
its Muslim residents. Hundreds of permits were distributed in other
cities for the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, or “Sacrifice
Feast,” which was celebrated on Wednesday (December 19). Five
hundred permits were requested by Christians from Gaza to visit
Israel, Bethlehem and the West Bank, all of which were granted.
Aharonovitch and Nazareth Mayor Ramez Jaraisy
will host the traditional reception for leaders of Israel’s
Christian communities on Christmas Eve at the Basilica of the
Annunciation in Nazareth. Local Jewish, Christian and Muslim mayors
will also be in attendance.
Former British Prime Minister and International
Quartet envoy, Tony Blair, spent the night in Bethlehem on Tuesday
(December 11) to help revive tourism in the town and demonstrate
that it is a secure travel destination. Said Blair, “I’m trying
to illustrate that … It [Bethlehem] is a safe and good place to
come and visit.”
In addition to al the Christmas preparations,
the Jerusalem municipality distributed Christmas trees on December
20, as it does every year.
This Christmas will also witness the largest
event in Manger Square, in Bethlehem, since 1999. A choir comprised
of three church groups from the US, together with Israeli and
Palestinian musicians, will give performances in Amman, Jordan;
Nazareth; and Jerusalem. The 160-voice choir will then give a
climactic performance on Christmas Eve in Manger Square. One of the
organizers of the tour, Rev. Sam Morris, senior pastor of the First
United Methodist Church in Columbus, Mississippi said, “While the
music is the traditional Christmas music of Handel and John Rutter,
the presence of the singers, orchestra and soloists transcends the
differences existing among peoples of the world, and unites us in
friendship and hope in this deeply symbolic season.”
Unfortunately, terrorist activity in the
Bethlehem district is still a serious problem, accounting for the
IDF’s ongoing operations in the area. In 2007 alone, there have
been numerous incidents involving terrorists in the Bethlehem
region.
On October 11, the IDF detained Issa Muhammad
Jawarish in Bethlehem, a high-ranking Hamas member active in the
West Bank.
On September 9, Israeli security forces detained
a high-ranking operative of the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic
Jihad terrorist group and his collaborator in the village of Al-Shawawra,
east of Bethlehem. The two belonged to a terrorist squad active in
the area.
On August 8, an improvised explosive device was
detonated against IDF forces operating in Beit Omar, a village near
Bethlehem, and two Molotov cocktails were thrown at them.
On April 12, shots were fired at Israeli
civilians in a car, close to the settlement of Tekoa, south of
Bethlehem, by members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist
group. [28]
On January 4, Israeli security forces detained
Tawfiq Abu Zaid in Bethlehem. During 2006, Abu Zaid had been
involved in many shooting attacks directed against IDF forces and
enlisted operatives to carry out shooting attacks and plant
explosive devices for ambushes against IDF soldiers. He also
manufactured weapons, specializing in explosive devices.
The authors are executives of ANA Tours, an
agency that handles travel to Israel.
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