(ANSA) - BETHLEHEM, 25 DEC - In the Piazza della Mangiatoia in Bethlehem, the few hats of Santa Claus and the sound of the drummers remind us that today is a day of celebration.
But the crowd was small, because this year too the coronavirus ruined the celebrations of 24 December.
According to the Christian tradition, the birthplace of Jesus, Bethlehem usually sees thousands of tourists and foreign pilgrims flock to it at Christmas. But the city in the occupied West Bank had to settle for restricted celebrations once again, with Israel - which controls access to this Palestinian territory - closing its borders to limit the spread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. Palestinian tourism minister Rula Maayah is pleased that this year, "thanks to ivaccini", the city is back to celebrate after a limited 2020 edition. In his homily for the midnight mass celebrated in the church of Saint Catherine in Bethlehem, the Apostolic administrator of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, stressed that the celebrations were "certainly more joyful"of the previous year. "Compared to Christmas 2020, the participants are much more numerous and this is an encouraging sign", he declared in front of an assembly entirely covered by masks, however lamenting the absence of foreign faithful.
In the adjacent Basilica of the Nativity, visitors had the opportunity during the day to meditate on their own in the cave where Jesus was born. "Surreal," admits Hudson Harder, a 21-year-old American student.
"Selfishly, we think it's nice to see this place so empty," said the young man.
"But on the other hand, we're sorry for the shops, for the money they lose. It's pretty tragic."
Numerous hotels in the city are practically deserted these days.
Some businesses, despite being the most important day of the year, did not even deign to open yesterday.
(HANDLE).
