Bethlehem cancels Christmas with celebrations kept to a minimum in birthplace of Jesus amid continuing Israel-Hamas bloodshed

• Bethlehem will not be celebrating Christmas this year, amid ongoing violence
• The city in the Israel-occupied West Bank is in mourning for those who have died
• Over 18,000 Palestinians have so far been killed since October 7 

Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ, are set to be all but cancelled this year, amid the on-going war between Israel and Hamas. 

Churches in the holy land of Christianity, which lies in the West Bank, demanded that festivities tone down this Christmas, in recognition of the suffering felt by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, following Israel’s response to Hamas’ attack on October 7. 

The Black Saturday attack on October 7 by Hamas led to 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, being mercilessly killed in the early hours of the morning.

In response, Israel launched a vicious response that it says aimed to eliminate Hamas, but has so far killed thousands of civilians, roughly 70% of whom are women and children. 

‘We cannot celebrate when our brothers and sisters are dying,’ Issa Thaljieh, a Greek-Orthodox priest of the Church of the Nativity, the 4th-century place of worship whose crypt holds Christ’s supposed birthplace, told the Times. 

Churches in the holy land of Christianity, which lies in the West Bank, demanded that festivities tone down this Christmas, in recognition of the suffering felt by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and West Bank

The city normally sees an influx of around 150,000 tourists during the Christmas period, but fighting has brought that number down to virtually zero

The Black Saturday attack on October 7 by Hamas led to 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, being mercilessly killed in the early hours of the morning

A Christmas tree normally set up in the city’s main square will not be erected, and fairy lights that normally bathe the city with a warm glow at night will not be lit. 

READ MORE: Moment shirtless ‘Hamas fighters surrender with their hands up and hand over their weapons’ as IDF tanks rumble into the heart of key city in Gaza

Thaljieh revealed he had learned that an entire family from Gaza he knew were recently wiped out in an airstrike, months after he led prayers for their newborn daughter. 

He said he now prays for the young daughter’s peaceful rest: ‘They are grieving. We have to stand with them.’

Thaljieh said he worried for his three children, who he has raised in the occupied city: ‘It’s not easy for them growing up inside a prison. 

‘Anytime they want to go anywhere, they’re not allowed. There are no swimming pools or playgrounds they can go to here.’ 

The city normally sees an influx of around 150,000 tourists during the Christmas period, but fighting has brought that number down to virtually zero. 

One souvenir seller revealed he had not sold anything in 50 days. 

Ziad Bandak, 57, a Greek Orthodox Christian, said: ‘We sit and play backgammon all day. I come in two days a week just so I’m not sitting at home the whole time.’

One church set up an installation of a scene of the nativity of Christ with a figure ‘symbolising baby Jesus lying in his manger amid rubble’

‘We cannot celebrate when our brothers and sisters are dying,’ Issa Thaljieh, a Greek-Orthodox priest of the Church of the Nativity, (pictured) said

Despite its standing as a holy site renowned for peace, there have been clashes between the IDF and West Bank citizens that have only increased in their frequency and lethality since October 7. 

In early November, a month after Hamas attacked Israel, dozens of Bethlehem residents were attacked by IDF troops. 

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said at the time that its medical teams treated 64 injury cases from the clashes. 

It added that 10 cases involved people wounded by live bullets while others suffocated from Israeli teargas.

Residents have protested in small ways, with one church setting up an installation of a scene of the nativity of Christ with a figure ‘symbolising baby Jesus lying in his manger amid rubble’, in reference to Gaza, inside the the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

The focus of the conflict has shifted to the besieged territory’s south following fierce fighting and bombardment that reduced much of the north to rubble

Despite not being the focus of Israel’s military campaign against Hamas, 267 West Bank Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7

Residents said there was heavy fighting in and around the southern city of Khan Younis, where Israeli ground forces opened a new line of attack last week

The US has provided unwavering diplomatic and military support for Israel’s campaign, even as it has urged Israel to minimize civilian casualties and further mass displacement

Israel has pledged to keep fighting until it removes Hamas from power, dismantles its military capabilities and returns all of the scores of hostages still held by Palestinian militants

READ MORE: Hamas vows to carry out ‘worse and greater’ terror attacks on Israeli civilians in chilling new threat after warning hostages will be executed unless their demands are met

Despite not being the focus of Israel’s military campaign against Hamas, 267 West Bank Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7, Palestine’s health ministry said. 

The focus of the conflict has shifted to the besieged territory’s south following fierce fighting and bombardment that reduced much of the north to rubble and forced nearly two million people to flee their homes.

But the relentless bombing, which has killed 18,000 Palestinians according to Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza, is ‘narrowing the window’ for a new ceasefire to be agreed upon, Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said.

Israel has pledged to keep fighting until it removes Hamas from power, dismantles its military capabilities and returns all of the scores of hostages still held by Palestinian militants after being captured during the October 7 surprise attack into Israel that ignited the war.

The US has provided unwavering diplomatic and military support for the campaign, even as it has urged Israel to minimise civilian casualties and further mass displacement.

Residents said there was heavy fighting in and around the southern city of Khan Younis, where Israeli ground forces opened a new line of attack last week, and battles were still underway in parts of Gaza City and the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, where large areas have been reduced to rubble. 

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