Strata

Church of the Nativity Unscathed After Standoff

BAR Photographer Caught in Bethlehem Crossfire

Despite numerous gun battles, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem suffered remarkably little damage during a recent 39-day siege, in which Israeli troops surrounded the church complex hoping to capture about 40 Palestinian gunmen who had taken refuge inside. Fire did however damage two nearby buildings associated with the church.

At the height of the standoff, some 200 people—including about 60 priests, monks and nuns, armed Palestinian policemen, various civilians (including a BAR photographer) and the gunmen—were trapped inside the church, which Christian tradition says marks the birthplace of Jesus. Intense diplomatic negotiations finally led to a compromise: 13 Palestinians identified by Israel as terrorists were sent into exile in Europe and another 26 gunmen were deported to the Gaza Strip; the rest were released.

The standoff at the church occurred during a major Israeli military incursion into several West Bank Palestinian cities, following a wave of suicide bombings in March that left scores of Israelis dead and hundreds wounded.