BETHLEHEM, West Bank — Thousands of tourists, pilgrims and clergy are converging on Bethlehem as the town of Jesus' birth prepares to celebrate Christmas Eve.

Boy Scout marching bands are playing in Manger Square, just outside the Church of the Nativity, which Christian tradition identifies as the site of Jesus' birth in a stable two millennia ago. Pilgrims are lighting candles inside.

The Catholic Church's top clergyman in the Holy Land is to arrive in Bethlehem in a traditional procession just past midday today. Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal will later attend midnight mass at the church.

BEIJING — China’s capital announced Thursday that it will sharply limit new vehicle registrations to try to ease massive traffic jams that are rapidly turning Beijing’s streets into parking lots.The city will only allow 240,000 vehicles to be registered next year, said Zhou Zhengyu, vice secretary general of the Beijing city government. The figure is equal to a little more than one-third of the total number of new cars put on the capital‘s streets this year.Traffic jams in Beijing have worsened recently, with the city dithering over how to clear up the smoggy congestion while still allowing the Communist country’s burgeoning middle class the automobiles they crave.The capital now has 4.76 million vehicles, compared to 2.6 million in 2005. A global survey conducted this year by IBM said Beijing is tied with Mexico City for the world’s worst commute.