Joyous pilgrims join Pope for Bethlehem mass

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https://s.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/e71R.S0UuYRir6vLJ6o9KQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9NzU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en-AE_XE/News/AFPMideastEN/e0b3ab91418d13226bce54c23c0ff8c8d594f018.jpg (https://en-maktoob.news.yahoo.com/joyous-pilgrims-join-pope-bethlehem-mass-103225307.html)Thousands of cheering Roman Catholic pilgrims welcomed Pope Francis to Manger Square in the West Bank city of Bethlehem Sunday, where the pontiff celebrated mass. The main stage set up for the pontiff, who arrived early Sunday by helicopter from Jordan, was flanked by huge Palestinian and Vatican flags, and adorned with a giant tableau depicting Jesus' birth in Bethlehem. From dawn, wave upon wave of pilgrims shuffled into the buzzing square, through barriers and metal detectors set up by Palestinian security forces as part of a massive security operation. Francis insisted his three-day visit to the Holy Land, which began in Jordan and ends in Israel on Monday, would be "purely religious," and observers said he would attempt to avoid the pitfalls of the intractable Palestinian-Israeli conflict.




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