The Israeli army has reimposed the curfew which had been lifted in the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem to allow Christmas celebrations, security sources on both sides said.
According to Palestinian security sources, troops patrolling the area slapped a curfew on Bethlehem and the adjacent towns of Beit Jala and Beit Sahur using loudspeakers to tell people to return to their homes.
Minor clashes erupted in a popular area of Bethlehem between unarmed Palestinians and Israeli troops who threw tear gas grenades, the sources said.
The army had agreed to ease the noose on Jesus' reputed birthplace to allow Christian pilgrims to attend midnight mass in the Saint-Catherine basilica Tuesday night and other celebrations on Wednesday.
Israeli troops, which have reoccupied most of the West Bank since June, had redeployed around Bethlehem in August under a joint security deal, but went back into the town last month following a Jerusalem bus bombing which claimed the lives of 11 people.
AFP
