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| rdfs:label | - Siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem
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| rdfs:comment | - The Siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem lasted from April 2 to May 10, 2002 in Bethlehem in the West Bank. As part of Operation Defensive Shield, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) occupied Bethlehem and tried to capture wanted Palestinian militants. Dozens of them fled into the Church of the Nativity and sought refuge. After thirty-nine days, an agreement was reached, according to which the militants turned themselves in to Israel and were exiled to Europe and the Gaza Strip.
- The IDF expected the operation in Bethlehem to be relatively simple, after the Paratroopers Brigade had raided the city several times in the previous months. The mission was given to a reserve infantry brigade, the Jerusalemite Brigade, under the command of Colonel Rami Tzur-Hacham. During previous IDF entries into the city, wanted persons found shelter in the Church of the Nativity. This time, a force from the Shaldag Unit was sent to block the entrance to the site. As confirmed by a senior Tanzim commander, Abdullah Abu-Hadid:
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| Caption | - Catholic section of the Church of Nativity, where the siege took place. Marks of Israeli bullets can be seen in the upper left corner
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| Result | - Negotiated Palestinian retreat
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| Conflict | - Siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem
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| abstract | - The Siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem lasted from April 2 to May 10, 2002 in Bethlehem in the West Bank. As part of Operation Defensive Shield, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) occupied Bethlehem and tried to capture wanted Palestinian militants. Dozens of them fled into the Church of the Nativity and sought refuge. After thirty-nine days, an agreement was reached, according to which the militants turned themselves in to Israel and were exiled to Europe and the Gaza Strip.
- The IDF expected the operation in Bethlehem to be relatively simple, after the Paratroopers Brigade had raided the city several times in the previous months. The mission was given to a reserve infantry brigade, the Jerusalemite Brigade, under the command of Colonel Rami Tzur-Hacham. During previous IDF entries into the city, wanted persons found shelter in the Church of the Nativity. This time, a force from the Shaldag Unit was sent to block the entrance to the site. The troops were airlifted into the city and met disorganized Palestinian resistance. Israeli Air Force helicopters landed the force half an hour too late. When the force arrived, the wanted persons were already there. Dozens of militants, Fatah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Palestinian Security Forces men fled into the church to fortify, along with some 200 monks and other Palestinians who arrived at the site for different reasons, and were held as hostages by the gunmen. Among them were the governor of Bethlehem, Muhammad al-Madani, and Abdullah Daoud, the Palestinian Authority intelligence chief in Bethlehem. As confirmed by a senior Tanzim commander, Abdullah Abu-Hadid: "The idea was to enter the church in order to create international pressure on Israel....We knew beforehand that there was two years' worth of food for 50 monks. Oil, beans, rice, olives. Good bathrooms and the largest wells in old Bethlehem. You didn't need electricity because there were candles. In the yard they planted vegetables. Everything was there.".
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