BETHLEHEM (CWNews.com) - Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat opened special millennium Christmas celebrations on Saturday in the town where Jesus was born.
Arafat was due to open a new peace center in Manger Square on the site of a former Israeli police station demolished after Palestinians gained self-rule in 1995. Thirteen clergy from different denominations were also expected to hold a joint prayer service in the square in front of the Church of the Nativity before the lighting of a Christmas tree.
The Bethlehem celebrations were aimed to showcase the Palestinian Authority's progress in self-rule in a bid for an independent Palestinian state and to bring in much-need tourism dollars. More than $180 million was spent on Bethlehem's road, utilities, and tourist facilities to prepare for an estimated two million visitors in 2000.
Catholic World News Service - Daily News Briefs