The Israel Defense Forces strongly denied allegations that it had fired at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem in clashes with Palestinians over the weekend. As Palestinians displayed bullet-scarred windows in the church, Israeli security officials charged that Tanzim were purposely shooting from churches and holy sites to provoke Israeli responses and to invite harsh international criticism of Israeli military actions.

Channel Two television showed damage to the top of the Church of the Nativity, which Palestinians claimed was caused by Israeli gunfire. Yediot Aharonot reported that the church, traditional site of the birth of Jesus, was hit during a mass held there on Sunday.

"In the middle of mass we heard the shriek of bullets," said Ibrahim Peltas, a priest at the church. "In the church were some 100 worshipers who feared for their safety, but we decided to stay inside. 'It is better to die inside the church' they said."

The Washington Post reported that two bullets hit the high windows of the apse of the Church of St. Catherine, adjacent to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem's Manger Square. Worshipers gathered for mass were showered with glass shards, the paper said.

The IDF said it checked the reports and found them to be erroneous. "Neither field of view nor line of fire exists between the IDF forces in the area and the Church," a statement issued by the IDF spokesman said.

"According to the rules of engagement passed on to the soldiers, it is stressed that fire must not be opened towards holy sites, such as the Church of the Nativity, and this even if shots are fired towards the soldiers from these sites," the statement added.

Reuters reported that the bullet holes in the Church of the Nativity were actually from Palestinian gunfire. According to Reuters, Palestinians fired automatic weapons in the air outside the church during a funeral procession for a Palestinian killed Saturday. "Palestinians often fire in the air during funerals to vent their emotions. No one was hurt in the church," Reuters noted.

'Tanzim purposely shooting from churches'
Tanzim are purposely shooting from churches and holy sites in the Bethlehem area, an Israeli security official told the Jerusalem Post yesterday. The Tanzim, "militias composed of criminals who rob and rape Christian women and operate in mafia style," according to the official, were attempting to invite Israeli military responses that would result in strong criticism from the international and Christian communities.

Bethlehem has been on the periphery of most of the fighting until now, the Washington Post reported, because much of its Arab Christian population prefers a negotiated political solution to armed uprising. The unnamed security official cited by the Jerusalem Post claimed that residents of Bethlehem and the neighboring towns of Beit Jala and Beit Sahour are now paying a high price, not because of the IDF action, but because of the armed Palestinian militias.

In the IDF's incursion into the West Bank in recent days, it has met the fiercest resistance in Bethlehem, where eight Palestinians have reportedly been killed, including three yesterday. Despite the IDF's presence in Palestinian territories in the area, gunfire and mortar shells continue to be directed at the nearby Gilo neighborhood of Jerusalem. A number of Israeli soldiers have been injured by Palestinian gunfire at Rachel's Tomb, between Bethlehem and Jerusalem.

The international media gave extensive coverage to the death of Johnny Thaljieh, a 16-year-old Christian teenager shot and killed in Manger Square on Saturday. Palestinians said Thaljieh was hit by a large-caliber bullet, apparently fired from an Israeli position half a mile away with a clear line of site into the square.

"There were no armed people around us," Thaljieh's father said. "We thought the Manger Square was a safe place."

An Israeli Army spokesman said that Palestinians had been firing from the area. "We are not aware of anyone being hit in the cross-fire," the spokesman said, "but we can't say for certain."

At the Vatican on Sunday, Pope John Paul II expressed sorrow for Thaljieh's death. "War and death arrived even on the square of the Basilica of the Nativity of Our Lord,'' the pope said during his noon prayer. Urging Israelis and Palestinians to stop the violence, the pope said the Holy Land should be "a land of peace and fraternity once again."

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