Christmas trees banned in Nazareth

(December 24, 2010) The mayor of a Jewish suburb of Nazareth sparked outrage on Wednesday after he refused to allow Christmas trees to be placed in town squares, calling them "provocative". Predominantly Jewish Nazareth Illit, or Upper Nazareth, is next to the old town of Nazareth, where Jesus is believed to have spent much of his life. It has a sizable Arab Christian minority, as does mostly Muslim Nazareth itself. "The request of the Arabs to put Christmas trees in the squares in the Arab quarter of Nazareth Illit is provocative," Mayor Shimon Gapso told AFP. "Nazareth Illit is a Jewish city and it will not happen - not this year and not next year, so long as I am a mayor," he said. His decision has angered the town's Arab and Christian minority, who accused him of racism.