Overview
- Thousands gathered in Manger Square as the 15‑meter tree was lit and scout bands marched through the city.
- Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa led the traditional procession from Jerusalem and told the crowd he carried greetings from Gaza’s Christian community.
- With foreign pilgrims scarce, most attendees were local residents, reflecting a tourism collapse that pushed unemployment from about 14% to roughly 65%, according to the mayor.
- Local officials say around 4,000 residents have left Bethlehem to find work since the fighting began, compounded by revoked West Bank work permits and tighter checkpoints.
- Despite an October cease-fire in Gaza, Israeli raids and rising settler attacks continue across the West Bank, and Christians now make up under 2% of its population.