The Vatican has called in the Israeli and United States' ambassadors to the Holy See and a representative of the Arab League to discuss ways to stop the violence around Bethlehem, a Vatican spokesperson announced on Wednesday.
The meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday discussed "the necessity to put an end to indiscriminate acts of terrorism" around Bethlehem, spokesperson Joaquin Navarro Valls said.
Christians revere Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus Christ.
Vatican Foreign Minister Jean-Louis Tauran held talks on Tuesday with Israel's ambassador Yosef Neville Lamdan, and met US ambassador Jim Nicholson as well as a representative of the Arab League on Wednesday, Navarro Valls said.
Tauran, a French archbishop, reiterated the Vatican's condemnation of terrorism, called for the humiliation of the Palestinian people to end, and for both sides in the conflict to respect the latest UN resolution.
He also reminded the warring parties of their duty to protect holy sites in the region revered by the three monotheistic faiths.
The Vatican meetings follow Tuesday's launch of a diplomatic drive by Pope John Paul II to end the escalating Middle East conflict.
Vatican envoys in the Middle East, Washington and Brussels were instructed to pursue the "diplomatic initiatives."
The UN Security Council's resolution 1402 that passed on Saturday called on "both parties to move immediately to a meaningful ceasefire" and "for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian cities, including Ramallah." -AFP