your home tonight. that is it for this special report, quite a special report it was. merry christmas from washington, good night and thanks for watching. this is bethlehem. the birthplace of jesus. the site of the very first christmas. millions come here every year to worship. it remains contested. under palestinian control. rolled off from jeweler -- jerusalem. you see this. a massive wall of guard towers. separating area a and c on the

other side. for palestinians and israelis, this wall is at the heart of the battle in bethlehem. there is a story here. we will bring it to you right here. the battle of bethlehem starts right now. ♪ to truly understand the battle of bethlehem, you first have to understand the significance of this holy city. ♪ >> at christmas time the thoughts of people everywhere go back to the little town of bethlehem where jesus was born. glad tidings were heard and the

shepherds watched their flocks. >> the virgin mary and joseph arrived here. there was no room for them in the end so they went to the manger behind me where the baby jesus was born here in bethlehem beginning of christianity here in the state of israel. the manger was actually in the cave which became a shrine and in the year of 330 a.d. the first christian emperor built a church above it. we were invited in for an exclusive look. >> k. hello. >> welcome to bethlehem. good to have you here. let's walk by the main entrance of the church. going back, it was made smaller during the 12th century. afterwards made much smaller at this level going back to the

16th century. >> the door of humility in the year 1500 during the ottoman empire. those entering the basilica first dismounted their horses. the small passageway has ensured humility by forcing visitors to bow before entering the site where god became man. let's check it out. ♪ >> this is the main part of the church. the nativity. ♪ the first time built in the fourth century. the second section, the one you see today, -- years old. >> open that entire time. >> yes. >> one of the longest churches in the world. >> yes. >> eventually it was enlarged

and a silver manger was installed. most of the design was destroyed in 529 a.d. during the samarian rebellion. armenians, greeks and the catholics. each day for the catholic church at 12 noon there is a procession down to the cave, the manger scene, the birthplace of jesus so you can see day by day, every single day, at the same time, catholics, armenians and greeks are honoring this place. the birthplace of jesus christ. ♪ right now we are going into the main entrance of the manger in the cave.

>> this is amazing. it dates back to the sixth century. on the right side there is an altar. this is the point to mark the very spot where jesus was born. it has a star which marks the 14th generations of jesus in the bible from abraham to david. >> king david also having been born in bethlehem. if you take this away you would see a humble manger scene, mary and joseph and the animals. >> correct. it turned into the chapel. the greek orthodox, roman catholics and everything. >> it has been controlled over the years by many different christians and muslims,

crusaders. >> exactly. >> universally known as the birthplace of jesus. >> yes. >> is it okay for me to say a prayer? >> yes. ♪ >> the church of the nativity in bethlehem where the story of christmas began. when behold there came wiseman from the east to jerusalem and mary brought forth her first on and wrapped him in swaddling clothing and laid him in a manger. >> this is a place where the baby was laid into the manger. >> that is where she gave birth. >> this is where the manger was. >> exactly. >> the church of the nativity, for the celebration of

christmas. ♪ >> at christmas, there is no more significant display. every year at the 24th at midnight, midnight mass is held where christians from around the world come here. ♪ two day this site, bethlehem, is controlled by the palestinian authority. the number of christians here is dwindling. ♪ every day of the year including

christmas eve and christmas day, here in manger square, the shadow of the church of the nativity, calling prayer five times a day with two speakers at the churches nativity. ♪ friday afternoon prayers. no question whether this is a christian or muslim city. majority population here in bethlehem by far. in many ways, this square in the center of bethlehem in one of its top tourist destinations is a defining symbol for the historic divide between

christianity and islam. the fourth century church of the nativity and the adjoining church of saint catherine housing a franciscan monastery. at the end is the mosque of omar ♪ it is the formation of the modern state of israel in 1948. manger square has often been the stage where key conflicts played out. defining key moments in its history. the six day war to a five-week siege by palestinian islamists in 2002 which began in manger square. ♪ as a violent second and launches a defensive shield and entered bethlehem to capture suspected palestinian terrorists, dozens of them fled to manger square and entered the church. the israeli government claimed that they were held hostage by

the gunmen. the siege lasted 39 days until a deal was eventually reached allowing the hostages to be released in the islamists to surrender. ♪ the square is best known, however, for the manger that it is named after and the christian celebrations that continue to make it a magnet for pilgrims even as the number continues to dwindle. >> kati's future was waiting for her in the big apple. [♪]

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♪ located about 6 miles south of jerusalem, bethlehem is best known as being the birthplace of jesus christ. the history goes back much further than that. first inhabited more than 3000 years ago by the canaanites, it sits on the land that comes to be known as judea. it is where david was born and eventually crowned king of the israelites. >> when israel was divided among various -- the united nation of israel as its capital. >> over the centuries, bethlehem was ruled by the romans, muslims

and crusading christian army. the city was destroyed and rebuilt many times with the jewish people always seeking to return. it was under arab rule from the muslim conquest in the year 637 until the christian crusades of 1099. again this part of the ottoman empire from the 16th century until the end of world war i. after the ottoman surrender of 1920, bethlehem became part of the british mandate of palestine. >> menaced by the rights of the -- to a place of safety under military perfection. >> the british were tasked with establishing a jewish national home while granting the jewish and arab communities the right to run their own internal affairs. it did not go well. >> judea, kingdom of the jews, islam has held palestine for more than 1000 years. an arab reign of terror follows

to divide palestine between the arabs and the jews. >> the british mandate government was not able to succeed in the 1947 the un general assembly adopted a resolution to permanently partition the area. >> on may 14, 1948, the state of israel was established. >> history was made as israel was born. the jewish people have a nation of their own. >> it did not last long. immediately, its arab neighbors attacked. >> the moment the british mandate happens. >> the arab israeli war left bethlehem under jordanian control. >> invading israel at the moments of its independence. they had a stated goal to

prevent any jewish country in this area. they failed, but they succeeded in part. they managed to occupy some of the territory that had been set aside by the league of nations for the jewish state. they occupied that for 19 years. it went by historic name. >> it was not a unofficial border. the mark between israel and the large area controlled by the jordanians. >> west bank is named under the occupation. for 19 years the jordanians controlled it. israel managed to liberate it and take it back. in june of 1967, israel fought the six-day war against egypt, jordan and syria. the brief but bloodied battle was one of the consequential wars in middle east history. judeo and samaria, including bethlehem was back under israeli control.

in the mid- 1990s, israeli prime minister and palestinian leader signed a series of agreements calls the oslo accords. withdrawal of israeli troops from six cities and 450 towns and the establish of a palestinian government and police force. >> creating the government or the palestinians. divided into three sections. area c, all of the jews in a small percentage of palestinians. that is where they give complete civil jurisdiction. amd under palestinian jurisdictions. in area c, you have all of the jewish community. a small area palestinians. a and d, not a single jew. >> where does bethlehem fall? area a. huge signs warn them that

entering is forbidden. dangerous to their lives and illegal under israeli law. crossing from one area to another site crossing from one country to another and many palestinians are unable to do it at all. >> we are going into a check point. inspection of vehicles. >> checkpoints are inspections that happen when a palestinian wants to go from palestinian territory into israel often to have a job. just as any foreign national entering into any other place. >> the security situation intensified after september of 2000 when israeli prime minister -- a hotly contested holy site claimed by both muslims and jews. the visit marked palestinian

riots. violence and terror attacks increase. israel began building a massive security barrier. this wall separates israeli control territory in the city of bethlehem. this is area a where the palestinians control and the other side is c. a point of great controversy. palestinians here believe it has put them in a prison. ruled them off without occupation and not enough to become part of the country. >> checkpoints are only imposed on the security basis. [inaudible] you can go from one place to another without interruption. >> the wall is crucial. major general is israel's former national security advisor. >> before we retook, we had 122

casualties in israel that had been murdered from those that came from the west bank in one month. >> 1500 yearly. that is because we lost control of those areas. we understood we had to do this for palestinians to come into israel. >> before the wall, they were coming in. the wall saves lives. >> not surprisingly, palestinians see it differently. >> i don't understand how you can say that checkpoints are not for security. if there was no threat, then there would not be checkpoints. but there are checkpoints.

>> there is no security checkpoint in the country. >> there is no more security threatening in the country because there is a wall. >> no. the wall did not give security to israelis. >> suicide bombings almost immediately stopped -- [inaudible] it is easy to do. hundreds and thousands sneak in every day. it is not any security. >> just on the bethlehem side of the wall sits a walled off hotel. it was billed as a protest of the wall and palestinians consider occupation. the hotel manager belted in 2017 with the secretive street artist bank c. >> it is to highlight some

issues. built in 2002. occupation. palestinian under occupation. the visitors, the pilgrims that come to bethlehem. telling them about our life. >> i will have to check it out. >> this is amazing. >> designed by bank c. that painting above, the broken heart, as well as this. this water tank. the whole set up. having such a beautiful room

facing one of the worst views in the world. >> that is your tagline. >> yeah. the hotel with the worst view in the world. >> you have made the best with the worst view in the world. ♪ most of israelis do not know anything about art. just exactly what you americans here in the news about us which is not fair. we are trying to change the reality through art. in a very positive way. >> what do you say to israelis who say, well, without this, terrorism would come to where we live. >> i don't think it has anything to do with security. controlling the people of palestine. >> we open and -- we live in an open air prison. this is how we live.

we make no israel at all? >> where most people can live together. >> learning how to live together >> if you look at the results, today we have 1% of what we had

♪ down the ancient alleyways of the old city is a coffee shop. let's call it starbucks inspired. after making my iced coffee, the owner wanted to chat about life in bethlehem. >> we live in big jail. now just talking. nothing change. >> when you say jail, what do you mean? >> we don't have freedom. we live in big jail.

[inaudible] we don't have war here. we are human beings. for what. for why? we want peace. we want real peace. not just talking. >> neighboring bethlehem. palestinian christian town that is literally divided by the wall >> the muslim territory. the jewish neighborhood of jerusalem. they were using the christians as a human shield. today, it is divided into three

areas. a, b and c. christians that live in area c are much more secure than area a for sure. >> christians feel the very difference there. >> yes. >> under the control of israel. going down the hill you are in be and a. you can see some of the wall sneaking over in downtown bethlehem. >> for christians here, it is actually fairly complex. most christians have been pushed out. >> exactly. the muslim population often clashes. it is not uncommon to hear, shall we say, unkind sentiments by one or the other. >> unkind is one thing. for christians to have been effectively pushed out of bethlehem, something more than unkind words has happened to christians.

>> absolutely. >> what you will hear from the palestinian point of view is christians have fled because of israel. >> that is actually shifting the blame. christians here have found it increasingly difficult to live, to do business. the way things are done here with the police and courts, there is palestinian authority. that has become increasingly difficult. >> muslims using the authority to squeeze out the christians. >> i think it is fair, but it has more to do with this ideological conflict. >> it is not easy to get them on camera. no. >> i have talked with some very good friends here. if i talked on camera, i would probably have to leave. basically life becomes too

difficult. >> multiple interview set up for christian business owners in bethlehem, all backed out last minute, even when we offered to disguise their identities. >> they can speak, but i am not sure if they will tell the truth >> they will not say i am in danger from the palestinian government. they are endangered from the islamists. >> a professor and suck palestinian christian who teaches at a university here. >> they have dramatically plummeted to under 10% today. >> economic pressures are different than saying everybody leave. when you have economic

pressures, leaving more than those without. >> are you worried that as the christians moved out, they were a majority and now they are a small minority, because of conditions of radicalism. >> some israelis are also terrorists. many. do you want to solve a problem or just throw labels at people? how do you solve a problem when you have these in the world? do you think that they will

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jesus christ the savior of christianity. was he a jew or was he a palestinian? inside the church of the nativity, there is no confusion.

out here on the streets, there is another narrative. >> you will see that the palestinian authority has co-opted jesus. his suffering is symbolic of the suffering of palestinians under israel. as long as they are willing to allow or even promote this narrative, they are okay. christians that promote that jesus is the son of david, a jew, the messiah and worship him , they are the ones that have a problem. >> was jesus a jew or palestinian? >> palestinian. >> they want to kill jesus. he has palestinian. >> for christians, it is noted time and time again that jesus was a jew. he went to the holy temple.

he worshiped at the holy temple. >> do you believe jesus was a jew or palestinian? >> the word jew came in the third century a.d. long after jesus. somebody from judeo. this is where we are. judeo. he was not from judeo. he was from nazareth. if you ask me, was jesus a jew, no. is he a jew by religion, it depends on how you define that. only in the third century a.d. known as a religion. >> we have been hearing this idea that jesus was a palestinian. >> that is not true. that is not true.

you cannot find anywhere this in the life of jesus was a jew. no one can deny that. how can you denied the birth of jesus from virgin mary. she is from nazareth and her father family known as jewish people. bmx so why do they deny it? >> politics. you can say whatever you want to say, but that does not mean that you are right. >> now more than ever as a time to celebrate america. you can do that with us by streaming fox nation.

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>> here in the old city of bethlehem where every year millions of christians make the pilgrimage to the birthplace of jesus. especially at christmas and easter. we came across one individual that had a special skill. we decided to pay a visit. >> how are you doing. good to see you. should we do it? ♪ how many years have you been doing this?

>> 17 years. >> 17 years. >> yep. >> how did people respond when you said you would see a tattoo artist in bethlehem. >> well, when i start, everybody was against me. >> your family? >> yeah. >> religious leaders? >> yeah. >> it is forbidden in islam; right? >> >> yes. >> as a christian, this is not a majority christian town right now. >> we are 1% right now. >> 1%? >> 1%. >> while. we have heard 8%, 10%, you are saying closer to 1%. why is that? >> situations. >> i understand you have to be careful, is it economics, religion, political, all of them

? >> a little bit better than other -- they want, you know, that is why they go. >> if i stay in bethlehem it is because i have four kids. we cannot leave. they have their schools. you know. if i leave, they will stay here. >> you are worry is there may not be any christians in bethlehem. >> yes. [inaudible] ♪ >> christians that make the pilgrimage here. why do they feel like the tattoo is something that they really want to get.

>> they are agreeing to come here. some people think if they did not get the cross, they did not finish their journey. >> jesus in hebrew. what is it like for you to live so close to the birthplace of jesus? does it impact you? >> it is very special. i thank god every day that i am here. >> overall, it is a tough environment. >> i love the muslims, i love the jews. i love everybody. >> you just want the ability to do your job and remember this holy place. >> yeah. we want to live. in peace. >> bingo. look at that right there. thank you very much.

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what is the future for bethlehem and the middle east? >> this has been going on for well over 70 years. is the two state solution even viable? >> israelis don't like the solution. palestinians don't like the solution. >> the highly unstable situation has been an ominous threat. >> the results were that --

[inaudible] elected by the palestinians. >> parading through the streets of gaza to send a message to israel. they are prepared for battle. in addition to these weapons. they fire into israel on a monthly, sometimes weekly basis. >> think about the situation that may happen in the future. really losing control in the west bank. [inaudible] >> today we are more powerful. teach the israelis hard lessons. imposed on us by our people. >> we cannot build our security in the future on this assumption >> in re israel, they would say

muslims, christians, everybody. especially when it comes to hamas, how do you coexist with a group that seeks your destruction. >> over 100 years. killing tens of thousands of people. >> palestinians everywhere. you have to stop and forget that there group. >> and, so, and bethlehem, time moves forward. my fear can still feel timeless. >> as a people go about their daily lives, their lives shape international politics and religious beliefs and 3000 years of complicated history.

under the surface, the battle for bethlehem continues. ♪ >> hello, everyone, i'm dana perino out along with jesse watters, greg gutfeld, and geraldo rivera. this is "the five. ♪ >> dana: merry christmas everyone, we are excited to have you join us for our fun filled christmas special. santa and all his reindeer are not the only ones who have been busy getting ready for this big day. you've also joined in on the celebration by sending us tons of female questions and we will get to them now. here we go with the first one