MIDEAST CHRISTMAS

A Christian nun walks through the empty nave of the Church of the Nativity, believed to be the site of Jesus' birth in the West Bank town of Bethlehem December 24, 2001. Israel set a condition on Monday for lifting a ban on Yasser Arafat's annual pilgrimage to Bethlehem, in the first sign it might ease up on a Christmas Eve showdown with the Palestinian leader. Arafat would be able to go to the town revered as Jesus's birthplace "if he arrests people involved in the killing of an Israeli cabinet minister who are in Ramallah - and the Palestinians know who they are - by this evening," a senior Israeli political source said. NO RIGHTS CLEARANCES OR PERMISSIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR THIS IMAGE REUTERS/Natalie Behring-Chisholm NB MIDEAST CHRISTMAS