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ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 478

Manger Square

People walk in Manger Square, adjacent to the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, December 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
December 17, 2023, 12:58 pm
Bethlehem plans muted Christmas festivities under shadow of Israel-Hamas war
Mayor of traditional birthplace of Jesus says celebratory events impossible while Gazans suffer during war, as city’s tourism-dependent economy takes dramatic hit
By Agencies and ToI Staff
In this December 5, 2019, photo, a Palestinian wearing a Santa Claus costumes welcomes Christian visitors outside the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
December 9, 2019, 10:23 am
Palestinians in Bethlehem look beyond religious tourism
With art and food tours, residents of West Bank city try to find new ways to attract visitors
By Agencies
Bethlehem's Manger Square on December 24, 2018. (Adam Rasgon/Times of Israel)
December 25, 2018, 1:49 am
Thousands celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem with waning Christian Palestinians
Community makes up less than 1% of West Bank and Gaza population, according to PA; in past 50 years, thousands have emigrated, Lutheran pastor says
By Adam Rasgon
A Palestinian policeman stands guard at the Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity as people gather for Christmas Eve celebrations in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, December 24, 2017. (AFP Photo/Musa Al Shaer)
December 25, 2017, 1:15 am
Amid Jerusalem move tension, faithful few flock to Bethlehem for damp Christmas
Crowds thin as temperatures dip but tourists still come to visit site where Christians believe Jesus was born
By JALAL HASSAN and IMAD ISSEID
Roman Catholic deacons and clergymen walk in a procession prior to Christmas eve at the Church of the Nativity compound in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on December 24, 2017. (AFP PHOTO / Musa AL SHAER)
December 24, 2017, 6:47 pm
Bethlehem Christmas celebrations kick off under shadow of Trump tensions
As Christians gather to mark birth of Jesus, demonstrations and clashes keep some tourists away
By Agencies
A mural resembling the work of elusive artist Banksy, depicting US President Donald Trump wearing a Jewish skullcap, adorns Israel's West Bank security barrier in Bethlehem, August 4, 2017. (Nasser Nasser/AP)
December 20, 2017, 11:53 am
As Christmas nears in Bethlehem, Trump’s Jerusalem shift looms large
Locals in the West Bank birthplace of Jesus say protests against the US recognition of Israel’s capital have driven away tourists
By AP and ToI Staff
Palestinian Christian scouts perform at the Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity as people gather for Christmas celebrations in the city of Bethlehem in the West Bank, on December 24, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / HAZEM BADER)
December 24, 2016, 4:35 pm
Pilgrims in Bethlehem, fears in Europe for Christmas Eve
As Christians settle in for holiday, Aleppo’s minority Catholics prepare for first mass in five years; Berlin investigators search for market attacker’s accomplices
By Shatha YAISH
A Palestinian dressed up as Father Christmas decorates a "popular resistance" Christmas tree with tear gas canisters and Palestinian flags at Manger Square, outside the Church of the Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West Bank biblical city of Bethlehem, on December 23, 2014. (photo credit: AFP PHOTO / MUSA AL-SHAER)
December 24, 2014, 4:25 pm
Christmas pilgrims gather in Bethlehem after hard year
Christians suffered attacks by jihadists in Syria and Iraq; Palestinian celebrations muted after Gaza conflict
By Sarah Benhaida
In this Sunday, Dec. 14, 2014, photo tourists walks and cars drive past the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, West Bank. (photo credit: AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)
December 23, 2014, 2:52 pm
Traffic bedlam grips Jesus’s birthplace
Bethlehem municipality considers a tunnel beneath Manger Square to alleviate crowding
By Tia Goldenberg
Pope Francis waves to pilgrims upon his arrival at the Amman stadium where he will celebrate a mass on May 24, 2014 in the Jordanian capital. (photo credit: Patrick Baz/AFP)
May 25, 2014, 10:22 am
Pope Francis greeted by cheering crowds in Bethlehem
Pontiff meets with PA officials, offers speech and mass in Manger Square
By ToI Staff
Illustrative photo of clergymen gathering at Manger Square outside the Church of Nativity for Christmas celebrations in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, December 24, 2012 (photo credit: Issam Rimawi/Flash90)
December 11, 2013, 6:34 am
Bethlehem’s Christians put a patriotic spin on a traumatic siege
A decade later, the 39-day takeover of the Church of the Nativity by Palestinian gunmen fleeing the IDF is recounted by most — but not all — of the city’s Christian elite as a saga of heroism
By Elhanan Miller
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal, center, holds a Baby Jesus statue in Saint Catherine's Church at the end of the Christmas Midnight Mass, and leads the procession to the Grotto, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, at the nearby Church of the Nativity, in Bethlehem on Tuesday, December 25, 2012. (photo credit: AP/Abed Al Hashlamoun, Pool)
December 25, 2012, 12:16 pm
Worshipers rejoice in Jesus’s Bethlehem birthplace
Pilgrims line up inside the fourth-century Church of the Nativity complex to celebrate Christmas
By Dalia Nammari
Bethlehem’s first female mayor, Vera Baboun is seen in front of the Church of Nativity, traditionally believed by Christians to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ, in the West bank city of Bethlehem. Bethlehem’s first female mayor, Vera Baboun, can’t walk through the main square of the biblical town without being stopped by admirers. “This is our new mayor, who is turning Bethlehem into one of the greatest cities in the world,” a tour guide hollered to a group of Christian tourists passing by the Church of the Nativity, built over the grotto where tradition says Jesus was born. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
December 22, 2012, 5:50 pm
New female mayor gears Bethlehem up for Christmas
Vera Baboun, a Christian, tries to raise hope in city plagued by economic woes, says ‘we’re celebrating birth of Jesus… and of Palestinian state’
By Lauren E. Bohn
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