BETHLEHEM, January 19, 2011 (WAFA) – President’s bureau chief Hussein Al Araj attended the midnight mass of the Armenian community in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem on behalf of President Mahmoud Abbas, on the occasion of Christmas and Epiphany according to the Armenian calendar.
The Armenian denomination is the last one to celebrate Christmas every year, after the Orthodox Christmas that falls two weeks behind it.
Armenian Patriarch Turkom Manogian II said: “We are honored to have the representative of President Mahmoud Abbas and senior officials of the Palestinian National Authority, who made great efforts in the success of our prayer ceremony.”
He praised the efforts of Abbas “who searched for peaceful means to achieve a just and lasting peace in our country,” and expressed his appreciation for the initiative of the National Authority to renovate the Church of the Nativity.
In addition to Al Araj, the mass was attended by the President's advisor on Christian Affairs Ziad Bandak, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khouloud Daibes, Governor of Bethlehem Abdul Fattah Hamayel, Bethlehem Mayor Victor Batarseh, Director of Bethlehem police Lt. Col. Khalid Al Tamimi and leaders of the security services.
F.J.
