Bethlehem celebrates first festive Christmas since Gaza war
Summary
Bethlehem hosts its first festive Christmas celebration in over two years amid a fragile Gaza truce, with traditional masses and parades marking the occasion.
Key Points
- Bethlehem celebrated its first festive Christmas in over two years following the Gaza war.
- The Church of the Nativity held a mass with Jerusalem's Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa urging peace and hope.
- A fragile truce in Gaza allowed celebrations in occupied West Bank while many in Gaza face hardship.
- Pope Leo XIV delivered his first Christmas Mass at the Vatican, calling for global peace and critiquing economic injustices.
