Officials in Bethlehem said Christmas celebrations will be canceled in Jesus’ traditional birthplace due to the Israel-Hamas war and the thousands of Palestinians lives lost.
No tree, no lights, no nativity scene. The only ones to be seen are being hand-crafted in wood factories along with crosses and other sculptures, only to sit on store shelves waiting for customers who aren’t coming.
“There is no one, it’s like a desert,” says Rony Tabash, a local shop owner. “I never seen Bethlehem in my life like that.”
Bethlehem is about 50 miles from Gaza — where Israeli forces have sought out Hamas militants since their atrocity in Israel on 7 October.
One reason is business. Pilgrims from around the world are staying away, unwilling to risk the possibility of conflict affecting Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem.
Dr Mitri Raheb, rector of Dar al-Kalima University in Bethlehem, an arts and culture college, described the cancellation of festivities as “a sign of mourning for the thousands of civilians murdered in Gaza”.
He highlighted parallels between today and when Jesus was born to the situation today. “The Christmas story is a Palestinian story par excellence,” Dr Raheb said. “It talks of a family from Nazareth who is forced by the Roman Empire to evacuate from the north of Palestine to the south, to Bethlehem. Jesus was born to this displaced family.
“There was no place for him at the inn so he was born in a manger. The situation in Palestine and the Roman occupation 2,000 years ago was not easy at all. In fact, King Herod ordered the massacre all the children in the Bethlehem area. Over 8,000 children have been murdered in the Israeli airstrikes in Gaza within five weeks.”
The Gaza Ministry of Health estimates at least 18,000 people have been killed in Gaza since October, including 8,000 children.
Hamas-Israel Conflict Forces Christmas To Be Canceled
