From missiles to mistletoe.

Christmas celebrations publicly returned to Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank, for the first time since the outset of the war in Gaza.

The city, where Jesus Christ was born, is decking the halls again — decorating the city with traditional lights and a massive tree in front of the historic Church of the Nativity, which was unveiled Saturday.

“It’s been a bad two years of silence. No Christmas, no jobs, no work,” Bethlehem Mayor Maher Canawati told the BBC . “We’re all living here from tourism and tourism was down to zero.”

Since October 2023, Israel and Hamas have been locked in bitter war in the Gaza Strip.

Despite the struggles of many in the region, including minority Christians, the Christmas spirit could not be denied this Yuletide, the mayor said

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