Christian pilgrims visit the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem City, West Bank, Palestine, Monday (23/12/2019). The cave under the church is believed to be the place where Jesus was born. (AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP)
The birthplace of Jesus resembled a ghost town on Sunday (24/12), after Christmas Eve celebrations in Bethlehem were canceled following the Hamas vs Israel war that erupted on October 7.
The festive lights and Christmas trees that usually adorn Manger Square were nowhere to be seen, as were the throngs of foreign tourists and youth marching bands that gather in the West Bank city every year to mark the holiday. Dozens of Palestinian security forces patrolled the empty square.
“This year, without a Christmas tree and without lights, there is only darkness,” said Brother John Vinh, a Franciscan friar from Vietnam who has lived in Jerusalem for six years, as reported by AP, Monday (25/12).
Vinh said he always comes to Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas, but this year was especially sad. He gazed at a scene depicting a nativity scene in Manger Square with the baby Jesus wrapped in a white shroud, reminiscent of the thousands of children killed by Israel in the war in the Gaza Strip.
Barbed wire surrounds the scene, the gray debris not reflecting the happy light and splash of color that usually fills the square during the Christmas season. Cold weather and rain added to the gloomy atmosphere.
The cancellation of Christmas celebrations was a major blow to Bethlehem’s economy. Tourism accounts for about 70 percent of the city’s income – almost all of it during the Christmas season.
Because many major airlines canceled flights to Israel, few foreigners visited. Local officials said more than 70 hotels in Bethlehem had been forced to close, leaving thousands of people unemployed.
Gift shops were slow to open on Christmas Eve, although there were a few that opened after the rain stopped falling. However, there were few visitors.
“We can’t cut down trees and celebrate as usual, when some people (in the Gaza Strip) don’t even have a house to live in,” said Ala’a Salameh, co-owner of Afteem Restaurant just steps from the square.
Salameh said that Christmas Eve is usually the busiest day of the year.
“Usually there isn’t a single chair to sit on, we’re full from morning to midnight,” he said.
On Sunday morning, only one table was occupied, by journalists taking a break from the rain.
2023-12-26 00:01:52
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