Christmas procession arrives at Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem

TEL AVIV — Christmas celebrations in the Holy Land have begun, overshadowed by the devastating war in the Gaza Strip.

The traditional Christian procession arrived in Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ as described in the Bible, in the afternoon.

The procession consisted of a convoy of vehicles from Jerusalem led by the highest representative of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa.

The patriarch walked the last stretch of the way to the Church of the Nativity. He was received by Christian representatives.

Due to the war in Gaza, which has been going on for a year and a half, the traditional Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem in the Palestinian West Bank are rather subdued, as they were in 2023.

The midnight Mass is to take place as usual, but other public festivities have been abandoned, such as the lighting of a large Christmas tree in the square in front of the Church of the Nativity and musical performances by bands from all over the world.

There are hardly any tourists in Bethlehem this year because of the fighting in the region.

On the weekend, as a sign of solidarity, Pizzaballa visited the only Catholic church in the Gaza Strip and celebrated a Mass there.