Israelis blast church with invisible weapon

The Israeli Army is broadcasting ear-splitting screeches and wails at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, traditional site of Jesus' birth, to force out 200 Palestinians besieged there.

Troops brought in a crane to hoist loudspeakers over the ancient basilica, one of the holiest shrines in Christendom, as part of what one person inside called "psycho terror". One of the noises sounds like a car alarm.

Camped outside the church, the army estimates there are about 50 wanted Palestinian militants inside, with clergy and civilians.

The Israeli Government offered a deal on Sunday under which the wanted men would be given a choice between permanent exile and trial before a military court. "If they leave, it's for good but, if they stay, then they will have to stand trial in Israel," said a spokesman for the Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon. The offer was put by the US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, to the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, during talks on Sunday.

Palestinian negotiators immediately rejected it, saying the men would not accept exile, and if they were to be judged it should be before a Palestinian court. But they would accept any deal that Mr Arafat approved.

In an appeal on Friday the trapped Palestinians called for United Nations intervention to save them from "a slow death".

They have been deprived of food for almost two weeks, and the army has shot at Palestinian youths lobbing bags of bread into the compound.

"We are hearing loud whistles and screeches in the daytime and now at night," said the Governor of Bethlehem, Mahmoud Madani, who is inside the church. "They want to destroy our morale, but the only solution is a negotiated settlement."

In a major blow to the Palestinian resistance, Israel last night arrested Marwan Barghouthi, a leader of Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction in the West Bank and regarded by Israel as the top militant in the area, Israeli security sources said.

Barghouthi, sought by Israel since it launched a West Bank offensive on March 29, was arrested in the city of Ramallah, the sources said.

It is a mistake to paint them as Muslim terrorists when many of these people are Palestinian Christians. Bethlehem still has a very large Palestinian Christian population some of whom are in that Church including the Palestinian Franciscan monk Father Ibrahim.

There may be innocent civilians who are Christian in the church, but keep in mind that the people who are there shot their way in. They shot locks off of the doors. When the priests said this was a holy site and guns were not permitted, they pushed the priests aside and forced their way in. If they are not terrorists they have no reason to stay. Israel has offered to let everyone out. The only people who have anything to fear are those who have committed terrorist acts against Israel. All others will be free. Further, if there are Christians in the church who were not part of the terrorist group - what are they doing there? The church was closed at the time this group of armed men forced their way in.

The Franciscans and the Greek Orthodox have made it clear that if it had been Israelis rushiing into the Church for sanctuary from an overwhelming Palestinian army outside, they would have done the same and remained to protect the Church and given sanctuary to those who sought it.

Not even for a minute did I question the motives of the clergy inside. What I said was that the Palestinians play the Western sentiment as a fiddle. It is they, by their choice that purposefully stayed away from the portion controlled by the Vatican.

I will let you be the judge as to what constitutes the proper Christian response to the situation. It is my understanding, however, that at no time did the Church suggest too hide criminals from the law. What typically happens is that the running fugitive is given a sanctuary if he asks for it, and when the passions subside and there is no threat to the fugitive's life, the clergy would try to persuade him to surrender (to the law, of course, not to some gang). As for the law, Israelis have documents backing up the criminality of the fighters inside. In my view, they made a generous offer: to leave the country, or stand trial (note that we never give such an option to those who violate our laws).

The problem is, of course, that the clergy are not in a position to do anything: they are, in fact, hostages. I sympathize with them, and prey for their safety. With several machine guns next to them, they say they are giving sanctuary. You and I know that no one asked for it: the Palestinians took the Church by force. The clergy is deprived of freedom to speak.

You and I, however, are not deprived of the freedom to think. Why are you not appalled that the Palestinians stormed the Church? If you are in doubt, dig up the facts; you will find that there is nothing new about that. A few months ago (I can find a thread here on FR), they were actually shooting from the church on Manger Square. Were you appalled then? I was: although I am not a Christian, I can see a desecration of a shrine when I face it, no matter whose holy place it is. A couple of weeks ago, the Palestinians lynched an alleged collaborator --- in front of a church on the Manger Square. Were you applied then? I was and spoke up. In addition to desecration, that was a clear (to me) case of intimidation: chances are the poor victim was a Christian. You want more? Just check on the statistics telling you about the disappearance of the Christian population in Bethlehem.

You are welcome to continue to believe that Palestinians "asked" for sanctuary. Selective attention and selective retention is a popular decease in the Western world. It appears, however, that I, a Jew, am more insulted by the desecration of Christian sites than you are.

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