Bethlehem, Europe Brief News – Orthodox Christians have celebrated on Saturday Christmas in the West Bank city of Bethlehem.
“Despite the Israeli restrictions, Bethlehem is getting ready to celebrate Christmas with joy and happiness,” Geryes Qumsiyeh, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Tourism Ministry, said.
Since early morning, work was in full swing by Palestinian scout groups to hold shows in front of the Church of the Nativity in celebration of the festival.
“The Christmas message is to remain happy in spite of pain and suffering in the birthplace of Jesus because of [the Israeli] occupation,” Qusmiyeh said.
According to the spokesman, more than 3.5 million tourists visited Bethlehem in 2019.
Thousands of Palestinians and Christians from around the world are expected to gather in the main square outside the Church — built on the site where Jesus is believed to have been born — to celebrate Christmas.
Christmas festivities are typically a boost for Bethlehem, which is surrounded by Israel’s separation wall that cuts the city off from the rest of the occupied West Bank.
While Catholic and Protestant Churches celebrate Christmas Eve on Dec. 24, the festival is celebrated by Orthodox Churches on Jan. 7.
Similar subdued scenes were repeated across the world as the festive family gatherings and packed prayers that typically mark the holiday were scaled back or canceled altogether.
