Bethlehem Restores Public Christmas Celebrations Under Fragile Gaza Truce

Overview

• Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa led the service at the Church of the Nativity after visiting Gaza and conveyed greetings from its Christian community.
• Thousands gathered in Manger Square as a towering tree and Palestinian scout bands returned for the first festive observance in two years.
• Gaza remains in severe crisis under the lull in fighting, with hundreds of thousands displaced in winter conditions and extensive damage reported.
• Local health authorities in Gaza report nearly 71,000 Palestinians killed in the war, following Hamas’s 2023 attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people and resulted in roughly 250 hostages.
• Bethlehem’s tourism-reliant economy seeks recovery, with unemployment rising from about 14% to 65% during the war and roughly 4,000 residents leaving for work, according to the mayor.