Thousands of worshippers and visitors filled Bethlehem’s Manger Square on Christmas Eve, marking the return of public celebrations after two years of cancellations amid the war in Gaza.
The large Christmas tree, absent during the conflict, once again towered over the square as Palestinian scout bands marched and played bagpipes near the Church of the Nativity, revered by Christians as the birthplace of Jesus. In recent years, the square had instead displayed a somber nativity scene surrounded by rubble and barbed wire, reflecting the devastation in Gaza.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and the most senior Catholic cleric in the Holy Land, formally opened the festivities during the traditional procession from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. Calling for “a Christmas full of light,” he told the crowd that Bethlehem’s message of hope belongs to the entire world.
Pizzaballa said he carried greetings from Gaza’s small Christian community, where he celebrated a pre-Christmas Mass days earlier, describing a strong desire to rebuild despite widespread destruction.
Although the atmosphere was celebratory, the toll of the war remains deeply felt in Bethlehem, where tourism — the backbone of the local economy — collapsed during the conflict. City officials say roughly 80 per cent of residents rely on tourism-related work, and unemployment soared from 14 per cent to 65 per cent during the war.
Most of those attending the celebrations were local residents, though a small number of foreign visitors have begun to return. Longtime tour guide Georgette Jackaman said the holiday marked the first real Christmas celebration for her young children after more than two years without work. During the downturn, she and her husband turned to selling Palestinian handicrafts online to survive.
Despite a ceasefire in Gaza that began in October, tensions remain high across the occupied West Bank, where Israeli military raids continue and settler attacks against Palestinians are at record levels, according to the United Nations. Travel restrictions and checkpoints still make movement difficult, even during the holidays.
Bethlehem Mayor Maher Nicola Canawati said about 4,000 residents have left the city in search of work, accelerating a broader decline in the region’s Christian population, which now makes up less than two per cent of the West Bank’s residents.
Still, for many, this Christmas represented a cautious step toward normalcy. Families lined the streets to watch scout parades that had marched in silence during the war, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was expected to attend midnight Mass for the first time in two years.
As one resident put it, the return of Christmas celebrations offered a rare moment of hope — and a reminder of resilience — in a city long shaped by faith, conflict and perseverance.
