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.

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.

Palestinian police line up next to Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of Jesus, on Christmas Eve, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024.

There will be no Christmas celebration in Bethlehem this year. Bshara Nassar says it’s hard to celebrate the Prince of Peace when Israeli bombs are killing thousands of Palestinians every day ...

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) — On Christmas Eve in 1741, Moravian settlers named this Pennsylvania city after the biblical birthplace of Jesus. Nearly 300 years later, Moravians continue celebrating ...

BETHLEHEM, Pa. — On Christmas Eve in 1741, Moravian settlers named this Pennsylvania city after the biblical birthplace of Jesus. Nearly 300 years later, Moravians continue celebrating their ...

On Christmas Eve in 1741, Moravian settlers named this Pennsylvania city after the biblical birthplace of Jesus. Nearly 300 years later, Moravians continue celebrating their Christmas season ...

Nearly 300 years later, Moravians continue celebrating their Christmas season traditions in Bethlehem. On Christmas Eve in 1741, Moravian settlers named this Pennsylvania city after the biblical ...

Nuns walk along the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of Jesus, on Christmas Eve, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias ...

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Bethlehem marked another somber Christmas Eve on Tuesday in the traditional birthplace of Jesus under the shadow of war in Gaza. The cheer that typically descends on ...

Christmas — from the Christian celebration to the secular commercial holiday — is omnipresent in Bethlehem. On a recent day, Santa Claus checked on a red sleigh (drawn by horses instead of reindeer) ...