The birth-place of Jesus looks different this winter - Bethlehems Manger Square stands quiet and shop-fronts remain dark for second year straight. The usual christmas-tree wont light up the square; its absence mirrors the citys mood
Tourism-dependent economy faces hard times as visitor numbers drop to near-zero (which hits local shop-owners particularly hard). Issa Thaljieh‚ an Orthodox priest at Nativity Church‚ explains: “We cant show joy when our cities face such times“
The cityʼs make-up changed a lot since mid-20th century: from being 85% Christian during British times to just one-tenth of 215‚000 people about 7 years ago. Now‚ the out-flow of people speeds up - both Christians and Muslims look for better life elsewhere. Alaa Afteem‚ who runs a small food place says: “My cousin just moved to Australia; everyone wants better chances for their kids“
Movement between West Bank cities becomes more difficult; checkpoints and security issues make daily life complex. The settlements grow fast‚ and about a year ago settlers got over 120‚000 new fire-arms for protection. Munther Isaac from Lutheran Church points to deeper worries: his church displays baby Jesus lying in rubble - a sign of current times
We feel that this war will never end
Local families face hard choice between staying in their home-town or moving abroad; the tourist-based economy doesnt work anymore. Travel between places like Bethlehem‚ Ramallah and Jericho gets harder each day