BITS OF HISTORY (DECEMBER 24)

1989: Deposed Panamanian strongman General Manuel Antonio Noriega turned himself in to the papal envoy and asked for political asylum.

2001: Israel barred Palestinian President Yasser Arafat from making his annual Christmas visit to Bethlehem, insisting he crack down on Palestinian militants.

2008: Harold Pinter, the British playwright and Nobel laureate famous for his brooding portrayals of domestic life and barbed politics, died aged 78.