Israeli troops cordoned off the square around Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity, preventing worshipers from attending Sunday services. The army sealed off all access to the church to prevent a repeat of the standoff last spring, when more than 100 Palestinian gunmen took refuge in the holy site, which Christian tradition considers the spot where Jesus was born.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.