"Fewer than 50,000 Christians now live in Palestine, under threat from Israel's illegal occupation and attacks. Palestinian Christians have gathered at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem for the first time since Israel's genocidal war in Gaza began in 2023 to celebrate Christmas. Bethlehem's mayor says the municipality has chosen to restore the city's festivities after a long period of darkness and silence."
"However, making that trip today would be very different due to several Israeli checkpoints, illegal settlements, and the separation wall, as highlighted in the map below. Once a thriving community, the number of Christians living in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza is now fewer than 50,000, according to the 2017 census, making up about 1 percent of the population."
Fewer than 50,000 Christians live across the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza, representing about 1 percent of the population compared with roughly 12 percent in the early 20th century. Palestinian Christians gathered at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas for the first time since the 2023 Gaza war, while Bethlehem's municipality restored festivities after a long period of darkness. Travel to Bethlehem is constrained by Israeli checkpoints, illegal settlements, and the separation wall. Israel's occupation has squeezed communities, created economic hardship, and pushed many families to seek stability abroad.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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