Some 90,000 people are expected to visit Bethlehem for the celebrations Thousands of people have been converging on the West Bank town of Bethlehem to mark Christmas.
The most senior Roman Catholic cleric in the Middle East is to celebrate midnight Mass at the Church of the Nativity – built at the site where Christians believe Jesus was born.
Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal is expected to offer a message of peace.
The number of tourists visiting Bethlehem has been rising in recent years as violence has decreased.
“This is where Jesus Christ was born and walked the earth,” Mary Healy, an American making her fourth visit to the town, told the associated Press news agency. “So I just want to walk the same earth.”
Some 90,000 visitors are expected in the town during the Christmas season – up from about 70,000 last year, according to Israeli government figures.
Later Pope Benedict will lead the traditional Christmas midnight Mass at St Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
Correspondents said heavy rain was keeping the crowd gathering in St Peters Square to a minimum.
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