Chilean miners accept Israeli invitation – if their relatives can go too

Family members pray outside the mine before the 33 Chilean miners were rescued. Photograph: Hector Retamal/AFP/Getty Images

Amid the euphoria surrounding the rescue of the 33 trapped Chilean miners last month, Israel has invited the men to spend Christmas in the Holy Land.

The miners – who became instant heroes after surviving 69 days trapped underground – have accepted the free trip, but with only one condition. They will not go without their relatives – all 70 of them.