Christmas joy returns to Bethlehem amid Israeli raids across West Bank

In honor of the thousands of people killed in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, thousands of people have gathered in Bethlehem on Christmas Eve for the first public gatherings since 2022. The city has since canceled or muted the festivities for two years.

A giant Christmas tree in Manger Square in the occupied West Bank city replaced a nativity display from the war that featured a baby Jesus amid rubble and barbed wire, symbolizing the destruction in Gaza.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the most renowned Catholic leader in the Holy Land, who drove from Jerusalem in the customary Christmas procession and called for “a Christmas full of light” led the festivities.

Scout bands from West Bank towns carried Palestinian and Palestinian flags through Bethlehem’s streets while playing their bagpipes.

Israel’s forces have launched nearly daily raids across the West Bank, detained thousands of Palestinians, and severely restricted movement between cities since the start of the country’s bloody war against Gaza.

Palestinians claim that Bethlehem’s economy is dependent on the increased military presence, road closures, and checkpoint delays, paralyzing the tourism industry.

Only a small number of foreign visitors attended the celebrations, with the majority of them being local residents.

During the genocidal war in Gaza, Bethlehem’s unemployment rate increased from 14 percent to 65 percent, according to Mayor Maher Nicola Canawati earlier this month. Around 4, 000 people left the city in search of work, he added, as the economy deteriorated.

Israeli settlement attacks and raids

Even after a fragile ceasefire in Gaza, which has been repeatedly violated by Israeli forces, was established in October, despite ongoing raids and large-scale military incursions across the occupied West Bank.

The raids frequently result in numerous mass arrests of Palestinians, home searches and demolitions, as well as physical assaults that occasionally result in fatalities.

Since the UN’s humanitarian office began keeping track of data in 2006, Israeli settlers’ attacks on Palestinians have reached their highest level. The Israeli military has frequently protected the victims of the attacks, which have included killings, beatings, and property destruction.

More than 570 Israeli settlers were reportedly under police guard entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem earlier on Wednesday, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

According to Palestinians, these incursions violate the third-holiest site in Islam’s tradition.

Palestinian officials claim that this move adds to a decades-long project of demographic engineering, land theft, and security, as Israel’s security cabinet has also approved plans to formalize 19 illegal settlements across the West Bank.

On Wednesday, the move was criticized by the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and other nations.

In a joint statement, the UK, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, and Spain all called on Israel to reverse this decision as well as the settlement expansion.