Bethlehem lights up Christmas after years of silence

Despite heavy rain, the Palestinian city of Bethlehem turned on its Christmas lights for the first time in two years, in an event attended by residents and clergy.

Bethlehem, traditionally sustained by religious tourism, suffered a severe economic collapse during the two years of the war in Gaza. Shops, restaurants and hotels remain closed in the hope that the current ceasefire will bring about the long-awaited return of visitors.

Few people have felt the impact more strongly than Jack Tabash, a Palestinian Christian merchant whose shop specializing in religious crafts in Manger Square has been closed for two years.

“Many people suffer when there are no tourists,” he said, explaining that it was reopened only for the lighting ceremony on Saturday, but would have to close it again later.

“If there is peace, it would be better for us, better for the Palestinians, better for the Jews, better for Israel,” he added.

The ceremony began with the reading of the Palestinian national anthem, followed by a moment of silence for the victims of Gaza, where more than 70,100 people have been killed since 2023.

Among those waiting behind security barriers to enter the square was Pierre Demarole, a French Dominican who had recently moved to Jerusalem to study. He said celebrating Christmas in Bethlehem was a big deal.

“It is very important for Christians to support anything that reminds us that Christmas celebrates the birth of the Prince of Peace,” he said.

He hopes the illumination “gives some hope and shows the world that we can do other things besides fight and fight in the Holy Land.”

Although most Palestinians in the West Bank are Muslim, a small Christian community keeps Christmas traditions alive.

On Saturday, both groups gathered in Manger Square to embrace a brief return to normalcy.