CIA blamed as deal to end Bethlehem siege falters

The CIA was suspected of a diplomatic blunder yesterday that disrupted a deal which would have ended the 36-day siege of Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity.

An agreement stalled at the final hurdle after Italy refused to accept 13 Palestinians, regarded by Israel as terrorists. The Italian government com-plained it had received no formal request to take in the men.

An official blamed the Americans and Britain for the oversight, and complained of being treated in "an arrogant and intolerable" manner.Recent talks to end the siege have been led by the CIA's station chief in Israel. Britain has not been directly involved, apart from organising a RAF flight to transport the men, which was banned from Italian airspace.

Last night Washington was pressuring the Italian government to change its stance to enable the deal to go through, releasing more than 130 people who took refuge in the church.