Bethlehem in Crisis -
The Open Bethlehem Initiative

The Mayor of Bethlehem has declared Bethlehem an open city and announced that his city will issue a Bethlehem passport, open to anyone in the world.

The initiative is designed to transcend the imprisonment of his city by a combination of the illegal wall and militarised fences, with only two gates to the outside world.

The first Bethlehem passport was granted by President Mahmoud Abbas to Pope Benedict VI at the Vatican in 2005.

The Pope was followed by the leaders of the English churches, as they became honorary Bethlehemites during their pilgrimage to Bethlehem in December 2006.

The current situation is grim - see page 2 here.