A giant Christmas tree adorned with red and gold baubles stands in the West Bank city of Bethlehem for the first time since 2022.
The Palestinian city, revered by Christians as the birthplace of Jesus, had refrained from public Christmas celebrations over the past two years as war raged in Gaza.
But as a precarious ceasefire in Gaza enters its second month, the city held a ceremony on Saturday night, lighting up the 20-metre tree at the edge of Manger Square.
Thousands of Palestinians from across the West Bank and Israel filled the square, erupting in cheers when the tree's lights were turned on shortly before 8 p.m.
"We came to celebrate, watch and enjoy, because for several years we haven't had the chance," said Randa Bsoul, a 67-year-old Palestinian from Haifa in Israel.
CHRISTMAS TREE BRINGS GLIMMER OF JOY TO TROUBLED BETHLEHEM
Israel's assault on Gaza has devastated the territory of some 2 million Palestinians. Last month, the reported death toll climbed above 70,000. The war began in October 2023 after a surprise attack on Israel by the Hamas group ruling Gaza in which around 1,200 were killed.
Although Gaza is some 60 km (37 miles) from Bethlehem, the war has painfully affected Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Many have family and friends in Gaza, and the war has shrivelled the tourism that Bethlehem's economy relies on.
The past two years have been "like hell", said a Bethlehem shopkeeper selling souvenirs, who asked to remain anonymous because of fears of reprisal by Israeli forces.
"We are trying our best to keep going," the shopkeeper said, describing a worsening economic situation and tightening Israeli restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank.
Israel has erected new military checkpoints across the territory over the past two years and some Palestinian communities have in effect been sealed off by gates and roadblocks.
Moreover, tens of thousands of Palestinians have been forced from their homes by Israeli forces waging an assault on northern West Bank cities since the start of the year.
Israel and Hamas agreed to a truce in October as part of a U.S. plan to end the war. Although it is formally holding, Israel has repeatedly carried out air strikes that it says are fending off attacks or destroying militant infrastructure. Hamas and Israel repeatedly accuse each other of violations.
BETHLEHEM FEELS PAIN OF GAZA WAR
"As Bethlehem lights its Christmas tree, the deep anguish endured by our people in Gaza does not leave our hearts," Bethlehem Mayor Maher Canawati told reporters this week.
"The wound of Gaza is our wound, the people of Gaza are our people, and the light of Christmas has no meaning unless it first touches the hearts of the afflicted, and the oppressed all over Palestine."
In Bethlehem, Palestinians said that they were hopeful that Christmas and the new year would bring peace after two years of what some described as agony and pain. They hoped that Saturday's ceremony would bring some joy for those suffering in Gaza.
"We are looking for hope," said Diana Babush, a Palestinian in her 50s from Bethlehem.
"We are looking that, from this moment, peace will prevail. We hope that we can have peace and prosperity."
In contrast to the time before the war in Gaza, there were no fireworks following the lighting of the Christmas tree, a solemn nod to the uncertainty of the future.
"It's scary because no one knows what will happen in the future. But we are hopeful," said Bsoul from Haifa.
Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, with Hamid Bovard, chief executive of the state-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), ap...
The leader of Yemen's Saudi-backed government announced the beginning of a major military operation against...
A committee overseeing the Mecca defence pact between Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will meet in Riyadh on Monday, 5 O...
The co-pilot of Israel bound flydubai flight attempted to carry out a “terrorist attack” with an axe during the flight, the United Arab Emirates prosecutor general said on Saturday.
Hammam al-Hammami, the Flydubai co-pilot accused of stabbing the captain of an Israel-bound flight on Wednesday in a suspected terrorist attack, was banned from flying by Oman over concerns about his radical views, U.S. media reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Two Iranian nationals have been charged in Britain with preparing a suspected terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community in northern England, police said on Friday (2 October).
Uzbekistan’s grape exports have grown rapidly. In January-August 2025, the country exported 86,200 tonnes of fresh grapes worth $78.3 million to 19 countries but can it turn these crops into a recognisable international product?
A major bridge across the Dnipro river in Kyiv was hit in a Russian air attack on Saturday, the city's mayor, Vitali Klitschko said, as strikes on the capital's infrastructure continue.
Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, with Hamid Bovard, chief executive of the state-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), appointed as acting oil minister, according to Iranian state media.
Uzbekistan’s grape exports have grown rapidly. In January-August 2025, the country exported 86,200 tonnes of fresh grapes worth $78.3 million to 19 countries but can it turn these crops into a recognisable international product?
The world’s space community is heading to Antalya for the 77th International Astronautical Congress (IAC), taking place from 5 to 9 October.
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan will travel to Tehran on Sunday (4 October) for talks with Iranian officials, with regional cooperation and Armenia-Iran relations expected to be key topics.
An Israeli airstrike killed at least five Palestinians, including four women, in an apartment building in Gaza City early on Saturday 3 October, health and civil defence service officials said.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment