The arrival of the greek patriarch for orthodox christmas celebrations accusing him of betrayal. If i werent involved they wouldnt be talking about olympics right now u. S. President donald trump credits himself for the upcoming talks between north and south korea. Also new arrests in the kingdom of saudi arabia eleven princes are detained after a rare protest at a palace in riyadh. Here. Plus millions of all the docs christians celebrate christmas across the globe. Good to have you with us on the news our protests against the Greek Orthodox patriarch of jerusalem have overshadowed all the docs christmas celebrations property sales well what sparked the tense scenes as mohammed june explains from bethlehem. The protests were unprecedented in a display of anger toward the Greek Orthodox patriarch of jerusalem demonstrators attacked the convoy of the office the third as it made its way to bethlehems manger square in the occupied west bank behind all this recent news reports alleging the patriarch has been involved in property sales to foreign tax havens and those properties may end up in the hands of israeli businesses. Protesters believe the allegations and say it will make it harder for palestinians to establish their own state but the live now to mount a clear and simple we want the patriarch to resign we want to reform the patriarchate and to sign a Legal Committee to evaluate the situation representatives of the Greek Orthodox church of jerusalem deny the allegations and the handle of the snow if we did not as they claim to sell our lands to the Israeli Occupation those are old deals the patriarch wants to rectify clarify because all those old deals are detrimental to the right to the patriarch eight and its congregation while this is not the first time the church has been accused of selling some of the numerous properties it owns in jerusalem the outrage now is far greater than it had been before. In manger square despite the marching bands and music a truly festive atmosphere was hard to achieve. The arrival of the patriarch wasnt just protested local officials also gave him a Cold Shoulder when they refused to welcome him to the square another issue overshadowing celebrations this year is the decision by u. S. President donald trump to recognize jerusalem as israels capital in the month since that decision was made there been numerous protests in the occupied west bank and its really contributed to a growing sense of hopelessness amongst Palestinian Christians forty year old george i was sad says hes never witnessed such a song or mood at christmas as a lot of the ha ha ha if things remain as is opie pool seek to leave whod stay here if you see it being so and the city is sad have you ever seen. Bethlehem like this thousands would usually be here christmas muslims that would show up even before christians Palestinian Christians in the west bank are worried their relatively small number will continue to do windell and according to a recent study by the daughter of Columbia University college twenty eight percent of Palestinian Christians said theyd leave this region if given the chance highlighting yet again the growing feeling of despair at a time of year when there is usually at the very least a small semblance of hope mohamed atta bethlehem the occupied west bank. Now jordan says the arab league will Seek International recognition of a palestinian state herter the trumpet administration recognizes jerusalem as israels capital last month now some members of the league met in the jordanian capital amman jordan has seen a wave of protests against the u. S. And israel following trumps decision to move the American Embassy from tel aviv to jerusalem. Become our goal is to overturn the american decision to recognize jerusalem as the capital of israel and to assert that it has no legal effect. We have specific requests the most important of which is the recognition of the palestinian state with jerusalem as its capital according to the june the fourth nine hundred sixty seven borders now the New York Times is reporting that egypt has asked Media Outlets there to play down opposition to President Trumps Jerusalem Decision in leaked phone recordings a Senior Intelligence officer reportedly told leading Television Talk show host to influence their viewers to back the decision despite egypts public condemnation not the newspaper quoted captain ussher of holy and asking hosts how is jerusalem different from ramallah which is the current base of the Palestinian Authority in the occupied west bank captain curley was quoted telling the talk show host and intifada would not serve egypts National Security interests and could revive hamas well imad harbors director of research and analysis at the arab center in washington d. C. Joins me via skype from burke in virginia good to have you with us on the program why would egypt pursue this line of thought i mean perhaps could think that theyre trying to sell out the palestinians. Thank you for having me on while egypt trying to sell out the palestinians i mean what do you expect from a regime like this honestly. The. Situation in egypt is. That b. P. Is desperate to maintain his own domestic. Rule and he is definitely interested and just simply concentrating on his Domestic Affairs he has a problem with the economy as a problem with. The hardest the salaries and sinai he has a problem with. Trying to basically as many files as he could from his birth folios he can just simply concentrate on making sure that his regime survives the involvement of the involvement of the jerusalem issue really introduces things that. He doesnt desire if its a problem to sideline the problem as patsy sees it they just want to try and get rid of it how do you assess the you must see the reaction of other arab states in the months since weve had this decision by the u. S. To move the embassy from tel aviv to jerusalem it sort of got a bit quiet since the u. N. General assembly vote. Actually true doesnt feel that they are really taking the next step which is were just reported on jordan wanting the arab league to vote on tuesday rules limb recognizing that it sounded like united jerusalem as the capital but generally speaking that of the world has been quiet and actually it has been quiet but a long long time everybody knew and Everybody Knows what the Israeli Government has been up to or for decades and now you know the this is not really the end you think donald trump just simply made sure that this decision was taken but he must have read the thought that. Regimes would probably support that if youre a problem and that got us in there would have to have something indeed im sorry to interrupt mr hubbell if you havent a sonar rio. You take the arab nations out of the equation you still have a very large muslim world who have been supportive of the palestinians from indonesia to talk to start all over the place supporting the right for an independent state do you think that just going to fall in line if countries such as egypt or even jordan will say yes ok well accept what the americans are doing a will accept jerusalem as the capital of an israeli state. It will always be a problem the arab street is not necessarily with the arab rulers on this issue arab street still believe that the palestine issue is a separate issue and jerusalem is the more center of their central issue you know the muslim world definitely thinks the same way its a problem there is a basically a bifurcated position you know between the peoples of the arab and muslim world and the leaders of the arab and muslim world. The palestinian equation itself has to also. Come to terms with the with the with the problem of the arab and muslim worlds and theyre the palestinians themselves have to be big up the mantle for their own. Cause well see what does happen anyway for the moment or image hard there in virginia thank you very much sir for joining us thank you very much. Now the government of saudi arabia says eleven princes have been detained in riyadh after staging a protest outside the royal palace now the princes are being held in a notorious high security prison thats in contrast to dozens of other high profile figures who were detained in a luxury hotel last year during an Anti Corruption dr peter sharp possible. Eleven saudi princes were arrested outside the royal palace in riyadh where theyve been protesting about the kingdoms decision to make saudi royalty pay their water and utility bills as part of a wider austerity plan. The princes were transferred to the high security prison of a high yeah and i expected to go on trial be lugged visuals fish we were arrested leaving about back there there are scores of city school water electricity for some reason they were doing our other reports. Back there were president s of brits who was executed you know who were two thousand and sixteen come to us who are you sure its very conflicting at this point we dont know exactly what is going on saudi arabia has introduced a string of austerity measures to boost revenues and cut spending as the global slump in oil prices led to balloon ing budget deficits slapping a five percent sales tax on food clothes electronics water and electricity and raising fuel prices significantly next patrick workers who also caught up in the price rises but careful not to complain and spend seven hundred sixty eight something. In the city no they shouldnt buy percent thats one thing that the six. Police officers. Theyre helping so there may be. More than two hundred princes were arrested in november in an Anti Corruption led by the crown Prince Mohammed bin solomon which also served to strengthen his power many of the countrys richest and most influential princes struck deals for their release while a few remain here at the palatial ritz carlton in riyadh described as the most luxurious prison in the world saudi arabias Oil Based Economy has taken a battering with the fall in oil prices balancing the books will be a long and protracted task that will not prove popular with ordinary people here or at very least ordinary princes peter shop al jazeera. The u. S. President has defended himself against accusations that hes mentally unfit for office describing himself as a stable jenius publication of a book that questions his ability to do his job claims his staff you him infant. Hendra reports from washington d. C. Latest attacks all told of Michael Wolff again the shadows his policy agenda and i did a quick interview with him a long time ago having to do with an article this book clearly has donald trump rattled the suggestion in fire and fury the cabinet members and allies to question trumps intelligence and his fitness for office have gotten under the president s skin the book has driven a wedge between trump and his one time closest adviser Steve Bennett but i dont know this man i guess sloppy steve brought him into the white house quite a bit and it was one of those things thats why sloppy steve is now looking for a job as Republican Leaders met the president to discuss their legislative agenda for twenty eight trump began his day with a barrage of morning tweets he wrote throughout my life my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being like really smart and he said that winning the presidency qualifies him as not smart but genius in a very stable genius at that in defending himself against the allegations in this book President Trump was knocked off message in it steve bannon says hes lost his stuff media mogul Rupert Murdoch calls him an idiot and staffers describe him as a semi literate fool but what the republicans who met with trump on saturday wanted to talk about with their plans for twenty eight teen and Immigration Reform it was candid it Donald Trump Signature Campaign and we are building a wall on the southern border we need safety we need cameras and i will have mexico pay for that wall it turns out he might have that half right the administrations plan for an immigration overhaul would spend eighteen billion dollars over ten years and add five hundred five. To an existing border with mexico and the u. S. Congress would pay for the bill is expected to restore some protection for the socalled dreamers children of undocumented immigrants who were brought to the u. S. By their parents trump recently rescinded an obama era rule protecting them but democrats fear the new immigration funds could be used to deport dreamers who registered for the program or their families they dont have resources to deport eight hundred thousand dreamers and its not at all clear that the information that the dreamers volunteered to the government to establish their right to. Work at work and otherwise could be used to identify and detain and then deport the dreamers but immigration was not the top question trump addressed on saturday john hendren aljazeera washington. Proclaiming his genius the us president said hes open to talks with north korea not trouble says that hes hopeful next weeks meeting between north and south korea will go beyond the north participation in the Winter Olympics. I would love to see them take it beyond the olympics we have a very Good Relationship with south korea i would love to see it go far beyond the six absolutely just. Right now theyre talking olympics its a start its a big if i werent involved they wouldnt be talking about it and things right to be doing you know talking a word they would be much more serious larry korb is a former u. S. Assistant secretary of defense and senior fellow at the center for American Progress joins me now from washington d. C. Good to have you with us back again on the program mr called its all down to your president thanks to him north and south korea talking is it. Not really basically whats happened is the South Koreans have been upset at President Trumps very very boa costs stands and theyve told them they dont want you doing anything without talking to us the North Koreans i think want want to use the olympics as a way to begin negotiations to see if theres any way that they can Work Together with or without trump the president was initially opposed to them talking to each other now corsi saying im taking credit for it but the key thing is that they are talking and theyre using the olympics as a cover to really deal with more Serious Problems and of course in the lead up to the olympics you know we have sort of seen this carrot and stick approach and when one does whos dying in the capital whos using the stick because sanctions have been at the center in recent weeks of perhaps tighten the screw on north korea if we talk about Oil Shipments along the coastline of the peninsula. Yeah theres no doubt about it the latest scientists have been several but the latest ones which were passed about a week ago or unfortunately because of the whole jerusalem thing people did notice it but the u. N. Unanimously put them on they did tighten them and the South Koreans now have been intercepting the oil that was being transferred from from ships i think with american intelligence so i think you know kim took this as a way to begin talks without looking like hes weak or caving in or anything its just kind of well the olympics we have to talk and see if were going to come together and you know have one korean team or whether will march in the olympic parade how concerned are you is of the form of government officials Civil Servants this issue about the threat to push the Nuclear Button ive got a bus and ive got a bigger boats and this war of words between yang and washington d. C. Thats quite serious sort of a blahs a approach perhaps from the outside when you when you hear president term talking about this issue. Yeah i mean Nuclear Weapons are not something you want to talk very cavalier only about its not a joke and even he doesnt have a but not as the host in fact the only button he has there is to get him a diet coke i mean thats not the way you know that it works that you could push a button and start a nuclear war and so really it did not help the situation and i think thats probably one of the reasons why the South Koreans who are very alarmed that his rhetoric were more open to the talks with the with the North Koreans right now how do you see the approach if we just focus on north korea for a moment youre in a situation where sanctions have been tightened around your country china. Is not so much of an ally and is quite cool about how your progressing with your missile. Development and now youre going to talks with previously and in the at the end of the Olympic Games how do you expect those talks to progress well i think im very optimistic because one of the things that happened is weve postponed our exercise until after the olympics and thats been one of the things that you know kim has demanded because he thinks we want to you know kind of win the korean war or take home which is not true but that says perception and he sees these exercises and thats one