Canceling Christmas celebrations is a financial hardship for the city as well as a spiritual one, explained the mayor, as Bethlehem relies heavily on religious tourism, particularly during the ...

Christmas in Bethlehem was solemn, somber and lonely in 2023, and will be again this year, he said. “There will be no celebrations, because there are no tourists,” Nissan said.

Christmas is just a month away and Lina, a Christian woman from Bethlehem, told CNA that while Christian families in Bethlehem usually begin to prepare for the celebration of Christmas now, and ...

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: The annual Christmas parade went ahead today in Bethlehem. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) SHAPIRO: The Palestinian city in the West Bank hosts a big Christmas Eve celebration every year.

Christmas celebrations have been put on hold in Bethlehem this year as the war between Israel and Hamas carries on. Bethlehem, located in the West Bank, approximately six miles south of Jerusalem ...

Nov. 30 -- Christmas has been canceled in Bethlehem. City officials have called off plans for an elaborate celebration because of Israeli travel restrictions and ongoing violence.

Bethlehem, a Palestinian city in the Israel-occupied West Bank just 6 miles south of Jerusalem, has so far escaped the same ravages of war that have gripped Gaza and parts of Israel since Hamas ...

Bethlehem’s mayor, Anton Salman, said he was optimistic that 2021 celebrations would be better than last year’s Christmas, when even local residents stayed home due to lockdown restrictions.

Larger Crowds, Renewed Hopes For Peace On Christmas Eve. Larger Crowds, ... A Merrier Christmas In Bethlehem. December 24, 2004 / 11:38 AM EST / AP ...

This context gives the contemporary celebration of Christmas in Bethlehem and the Middle East more significance, not less. Diverse Celebrations.