Jerusalem - Ushering in the holiday celebrations in the Holy Land, the new head of the Roman Catholic Church in the region set out on the annual Christmas procession from Jerusalem to Bethlehem Wednesday.

Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal's motorcade left his headquarters in the Old City of Jerusalem and set out slowly on the 8.5-kilometre journey southwards to Bethlehem's central Manger Square.

At a news conference at the Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem Tuesday, the Roman Catholic bishop confirmed that Pope Benedict XVI planned to visit Israel, the Palestinian areas and Jordan in May, but gave no specific date for the visit.

Twal, a 68-year-old Jordanian who this year succeeded retired 75- year-old Palestinian Michel Sabah, is to lead Midnight Mass at Bethlehem's early medieval Church of the Nativity, built according to Christian tradition on the site of the stable where Jesus was born.

Thousands of Christian pilgrims from all over the world, as well as local Palestinian and Arab-Israeli Christians, have flocked to Bethlehem for the Midnight Mass, which will also be attended by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other officials.

Abbas' security forces have beefed up patrols in the autonomous West Bank city in preparation for the Christmas celebrations.

With tens of thousands arriving throughout this holiday season, Bethlehem is witnessing the largest influx of foreign tourists in eight years of Israeli-Palestinian violence which has largely subsided in the West Bank but continues to rage in Gaza. (dpa)