(CNSNews.com) – As the Christian world prepares to mark the birth of Jesus Christ, the little town of Bethlehem has once again become a platform for Palestinians and their allies to use the seasonal spotlight to score political points against Israel.

In the crosshairs is the security barrier that runs between Palestinian Authority (P.A.)-controlled Bethlehem and the Israeli capital just two or three miles away. The project was launched by Israel in mid-2002 in a bid to prevent suicide bombings and other terror attacks of the type that had cost hundreds of Israeli lives since the outbreak of the “second intifada” 20 months earlier.

Traditional olive woodcarvers in Bethlehem have begun to incorporate the security wall into carvings of the nativity scene offered for sale to visitors, with the politicized versions reportedly especially popular with foreign diplomats and journalists...