‘Half joy, half sadness’: Christmas celebrations resume in Bethlehem

Bethlehem, occupied West Bank – Manger Square and the constrictive alleyways that situation it filled with the dependable of drums and brass arsenic Bethlehem’s scout troupes marched done successful their pristine uniforms.

They sang Christmas carols and played accepted Palestinian music, combining a solemnisation of Christmas with their ain nationalist identity.

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Amid Wednesday’s celebrations, held connected Christmas Eve, determination was a definite poignancy – this is the archetypal clip successful 2 years that specified festive scenes person returned to the city, believed to beryllium the birthplace of Jesus.

Among those astatine the celebrations was Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, who is the highest-ranking Catholic authoritative successful Palestine and the wider region.

“Here successful Bethlehem, from wherever I nonstop the Christmas connection not lone to Bethlehem but to the full world, I person noticed the beingness of light,” Pizzaballa said. “And this is not conscionable the airy of the sun, but the airy of your beauteous faces.”

“We decided to beryllium light, and the airy of Bethlehem is the airy of the world,” helium added. “Today, we bring you peace, prayers, and hearts.”

The suspension of Christmas celebrations successful Bethlehem successful 2023 and 2024 was successful solidarity with chap Palestinians successful Gaza, wherever Israel has killed much than 70,000 successful its genocidal war. Israel has besides accrued the ferocity of its raids connected Bethlehem and the occupied West Bank, wherever much than 1,000 Palestinians person been killed by Israelis successful the past 2 years.

Attacks from the Israeli subject and settlers alike person not spared Palestinian Christians, with attacks connected Gaza’s only Catholic church sidesplitting 3 successful July, and a predominantly Christian town successful the West Bank successful the aforesaid month.

A ceasefire successful Gaza that began successful October has brought immoderate respite, adjacent arsenic Israel continues its violations and attacks connected the Strip, sidesplitting hundreds of people. The Israeli service besides continued its subject raids successful the occupied West Bank.

And adjacent arsenic the festive ambiance lightened the temper successful Manger Square, the world of the warfare was not absent. Israeli subject raids and checkpoints continued, with Israeli forces arresting 3 young men from the adjacent exile camps of Dheisheh and Aida conscionable hours earlier the celebrations began.

Pizzaballa, who has conscionable returned from Gaza, was speedy to notation the suffering of Palestinians.

“In Gaza … I witnessed full destruction,” helium said. “But amid Gaza’s destruction, I felt a passionateness for life. In the midst of nothingness, radical created reasons for joyousness and celebration. They reminded america that we tin instrumentality and rebuild again contempt quality destruction.”

“We volition beryllium capable to observe successful Gaza and Bethlehem,” Pizzaballa continued. “We volition instrumentality to rebuild everything anew.”

Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa greets Palestinian residents and well-wishers arsenic helium arrives astatine the Church of the Nativity connected December 24 [Ahmad Jubran/Al Jazeera]

Tough journey

About 1,500 radical – some Palestinians and overseas visitors – attended the Christmas celebrations, which person go 1 of the biggest symbols of Christian beingness successful the region, adjacent arsenic the percent of Palestinian Christians surviving successful the West Bank gets smaller arsenic a effect of the Israeli occupation, among different factors.

George Zalloum, from occupied East Jerusalem, was 1 of the Palestinian Christians who had made the travel to Bethlehem.

He told Al Jazeera that helium was enjoying the atmosphere, but that it was tinged with sorrow.

“Today’s ambiance is fractional joyousness and fractional sadness, due to the fact that we person brothers who are inactive dying successful Gaza owed to the ongoing bombardment and sidesplitting there,” Zalloum told Al Jazeera. “We anticipation the warfare volition end, the sidesplitting volition stop, bid volition prevail successful the Holy Land, and that these holidays … volition continue.”

Other Palestinians travelled to Bethlehem from cities and villages crossed the West Bank, but their journeys highlighted the difficulties placed connected them by Israel.

Many waited for hours astatine checkpoints surrounding Bethlehem, adjacent arsenic the carnal region betwixt their homes and the metropolis was not long.

“It is existent that the ambiance of joy, emotion and bid has returned to us, but the roadworthy to Bethlehem was difficult,” said Hussam Zraiqat, who travelled to Manger Square from Birzeit, adjacent Ramallah. “We spent a agelong clip astatine an Israeli subject checkpoint, but convey God, we arrived.”

That was echoed by different Palestinian attendee, Ghassan Rizqallah, from the colony of Jifna, besides adjacent Ramallah.

“We faced the subject checkpoint, wherever we waited for astatine slightest an hr and a fractional earlier we were capable to participate the city,” Rizqallah said. “The travel was precise difficult.”

But erstwhile helium arrived, Rizqallah was overjoyed to acquisition the Christmas atmosphere. “Watching the scout bands and proceeding the euphony takes america backmost to the beauteous past of our country, our land, and our practice – and we merit to unrecorded successful information and peace.”

Christmas celebrations had been suspended successful Bethlehem for the past 2 years due to the fact that of Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza and raids successful the occupied West Bank [Ahmad Jubran/Al Jazeera]

Vital tourism

Bethlehem’s mayor, Maher Canawati, said that the Manger Square celebrations carried a meaning that went beyond Bethlehem.

“Bethlehem’s connection contiguous is 1 of steadfastness and anticipation for the radical of the city, for Gaza, and for each of Palestine,” Canawati told Al Jazeera. “Today, we nonstop a connection to the full satellite that the Palestinian radical emotion beingness and peace, and that they cannot beryllium uprooted from their onshore and their roots due to the fact that they are the rightful owners.”

Canawati pointed to tentative signs of economical revival successful the city, whose Church of the Nativity is simply a large tract of Christian pilgrimage, aft a prolonged illness successful tourism.

“All the Bethlehem hotels are reopening their doors to person section and overseas visitors aft astir 2 years of astir implicit shutdown,” Canawati said. “God willing, the instrumentality of tourism has started turning again.”

Bethlehem’s economy, heavy babelike connected tourism, has been severely hit. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Tourism, edifice occupancy rates since the opening of the twelvemonth stood astatine lone 25 percent.

Palestinians travelled from crossed the West Bank and Israel to be the celebrations successful Bethlehem [Ahmad Jubran/Al Jazeera]

Elias al-Arja, the caput of the Palestinian Hotel Association, said that hotels successful Bethlehem had suffered $300m successful losses this year. However, the renewal of the Christmas celebrations has been a immense boon.

“Hotel occupancy rates implicit the past 2 days person risen to 80 percent, with astir 8,000 visitors – 6,000 of them Palestinian citizens of Israel, and 2,000 from assorted nationalities from Europe and the United States,” al-Arja said.

Some of those visitors took the accidental to ticker the Christmas celebrations successful Manger Square.

“It is bully to spot these celebrations returning,” said Dwayne Jefferson, who travelled from the US authorities of North Carolina. “It is simply a affirmative acquisition and opens the doorway to the anticipation that this full portion tin instrumentality to a authorities of mean life. I americium precise blessed to beryllium here.”

Jean Charles, a tourer from Italy, said that it was his archetypal sojourn to Bethlehem, and that helium was blessed to spot truthful overmuch joyousness aft 2 years of war.

“I spot this feast arsenic a solemnisation for each Palestinian, not lone Christians,” said Charles. “I spot Muslims present arsenic well, and this is precise important and absorbing for the aboriginal of this people.”

“Unfortunately, I noticed the debased fig of tourists … But honestly, the concern is precise calm. Everyone tells me, ‘Welcome to Palestine’. It is simply a precise beauteous day, and a precise beauteous Christmas.”

Jack Jaqman arranges accepted artefacts wrong his store astatine Manger Square adjacent the Church of the Nativity successful Bethlehem, arsenic helium prepares to invited tourists and visitors [Monjed Jadou/Al Jazeera]

More visitors needed

For businesses astir Manger Square, the time brought cautious optimism. George Ejha, the proprietor of St Georges Restaurant, said: “Today’s enactment was bully and relied chiefly connected Palestinians from wrong Israel, but it is not bully capable compared to the play earlier the war.”

“I wholly stopped moving erstwhile the warfare broke retired and lone reopened the edifice 2 weeks ago. The losses I suffered cannot beryllium counted,” helium said. “We anticipation determination volition beryllium much enactment astatine the opening of the year.”

Souvenir store proprietor Jack Jaqman struck a akin note. “The enactment we saw contiguous is not capable … Those who visited Bethlehem were [mainly] overseas workers successful Israel from the Philippines, India and Romania, oregon our ain radical [living successful Israel],” Jaqman said. “Still, it is important successful showing the city’s world and its readiness to person pilgrims and tourists again.”

“I person been successful my souvenir store for 10 days and person not felt the beingness of existent tourer groups that could amended the economical situation,” helium said. “On this day, we commune for the extremity of the siege that has turned Bethlehem into a ample prison.”