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Tens of thousands of Christian pilgrims and tourists celebrate their holidays in Israel and the Palestinian territories and take part in festivities in the most sacred places of Christianity. Most chose to spend Christmas in Jerusalem, Bethlehem or Nazareth, the place of the biblical account of Jesus Christ.
Throughout the year, tourism in Israel has set records with more than 4 million visitors, 56% of whom are Christians. This represents an increase of 10% over 2017. This growth reflects a moment of calm in a generally very rough region.
Besides the tourists, the Christians of Israel also celebrate. They currently represent 175,000 people, or 2% of the population of the Jewish state.
Peace and celebration in the West Bank
In Bethlehem, in the West Bank, the climate is conducive to peace and celebration. About 10,000 pilgrims from all over the world flock to the city's hotels in one of the largest birthstones of all time.
On Christmas Eve, thousands of people attended a procession led by the Catholic Archbishop of the Holy Land, Pierbattista Pizzaballa. In the Church of the Nativity, which is being completely renovated, visitors lined up to see the exact place where, according to Christian tradition, Jesus was born.
Tourists also gathered in front of the traditional Christmas tree on the Place Manger.
In 2001 and 2002, in the middle of the second Palestinian Intifada, the city received no tourists and at the end of the second Palestinian Intifada, Mahmoud Abbas was arrested at midnight. Over the last 15 years, it has had its ups and downs in the endless conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Israel.
But this year, Bethlehem received a record number of tourists. There were 3 million visitors from January to December.
Christmas in the Gaza Strip
There is a small Christian community in the Gaza Strip, which met Monday night in Gaza to light the lights of a Christmas tree. Thousands of Muslims – the vast majority of Palestinians in the region – also participated.
But despite the festive climate, the situation of Christians in Gaza is not the best. Before the Islamic group took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, the number of Christians in the region was estimated at 4,000. Today, there are only 1,000 people in a population of nearly 2 million inhabitants.
In general, Christians represent only 4% of the population of the Middle East, the cradle of Christianity.
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