Despite many months of violence between Israelis & Palestinians, the most noteworthy Christmas Eve celebration in Bethlehem went on as planned Thurs., although crowds have been reportedly thinner than in years of time of time past.
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Since October, violence between Palestinians and Israelis has been constant, with 20 Israelis killed by Palestinians and 124 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces or citizens, Reuters reported.
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BETHLEHEM, Occupied West Bank- The large Christmas tree placed on Bethlehem’s Manger Square was lit on 6 December, but this year’s festivities are likely to be reduced as a result of the ongoing unrest across the Holy Land.
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The display in Manger Square, near the site where Jesus Christ was thought to have been born, was adorned with the used cannisters of sound grenades and tear gas and set at the foot of an ancient olive tree that was uprooted by Israeli forces from its home in the nearby village of Beit Jala.
Friday marked the 48th Christmas which Bethlehem has celebrated under Israeli military occupation.
Christian pilgrims pray inside the Grotto of the Church of… “But I feel safe”. The Palestinian Authority imposed heavy security on Bethlehem, which was draped in festive decorations. “This is the birthplace of the king of peace so what we want is peace”.
Contrary to Israel’s claims, and despite their minority numbers, Christians have been and continue to be a fundamental part of Palestinian society and national identity alongside their Muslim compatriots.
“This is the first year in more than 10 years, possibly 15 according to one of our engineers, that Palestinian officials denied our crew permits to get across the border into the West Bank an Bethlehem”.
Auravelia Colomer of Toronto looks at the photos she took in Bethlehem’s Manger Square on Christmas Eve, 2015.
He sat on a chair at the outdoor of his little store that is full of statues of Holy Mary and other religious souvenirs and close to the Church of Nativity in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, where Jesus Christ was born.
In Iraq, the mood was sombre, as the dwindling Christian community trickled in to churches, while in Somalia, the government has banned celebrations of Christmas and New Year in the Muslim majority country, saying the festivities might attract Islamist attacks.
In Bethlehem, Twal wished “peace and love” for all.
“[This is] the worst Christmas that I ever lived”, said Nabil Giacaman. The video purported to show a wedding attended by Jewish extremists last week, where revelers stabbed pictures of a Palestinian toddler killed in an arson attack earlier this year, danced with rifles belonging to the Israeli military and in one case, held a mock firebomb in the air.
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He hoped the Christmas celebrations this year would bring a message “of hope for all inhabitants of the Holy Land” and allow the church to “share joy with those who are suffering”.
