Bethlehem, the city known as Jesus' birthplace, saw a major drop in tourism during the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. As the ceasefire holds, the city is publicly celebrating Christmas events for the first time since 2022. Imtiaz Tyab has more.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

Bethlehem has resumed public Christmas celebrations for the first time since the onset of the Israel-Gaza conflict, but the city continues to face a significant decline in international tourism. Local officials and business owners report that the absence of foreign visitors has devastated the tourism sector, which is a cornerstone of Bethlehem's economy.

Hotel vacancies have reached record highs and unemployment in the city has risen to 80 percent, with many businesses forced to lay off staff. Despite a fragile ceasefire and renewed calls for pilgrims to return, the city remains quiet, and local leaders emphasize the importance of tourism for Bethlehem's recovery.

Bethlehem struggles to revive tourism amid Israel-Gaza conflict

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Bethlehem, the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ. But many people there will tell you it doesn't feel like Christmas used to. The historic town in the West Bank is holding public celebrations for the first time since the war in nearby Gaza began. MTS Tayeb went to Bethlehem, where pilgrims and tourists have been very slow to come back. A moment of joy and wonder. Right where the Christmas story began, thousands traveled from nearby towns and villages to attend Bethlehem's annual tree lighting ceremony in Major Square. The first such celebration since 2023, but hardly any foreign visitors. For more than two years, international tourists and Christian pilgrims have largely stayed away from the Holy Land. Following Hamas's deadly October 7th attacks, as war in Gaza raged on, church leaders canceled Christmas celebrations. But for Bethlehem's mayor, Maher Kanawati, a fragile Trump administration-brokered ceasefire was reason enough to bring the faithful back and face-to-face once more with the nativity. We're here in Major Square. Describe the scene to us. We're here in Major Square. Describe the scene to us. Yes, well, you know, this is the scene that should have never left. Why is it so important to celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem this year? Bethlehem, you know, we are living from tourists, from tourism, and from pilgrims who come to stay in our hotels, to eat in our restaurants, to buy our souvenirs that we're producing here. And there was a complete halt on tourism for the past two years. Inside the fourth-century Church of the Nativity, one of the world's oldest and most sacred Christian sites, where in peacetime around 15,000 visitors would arrive every single day. It's here, at this very spot, where Christians believed Jesus was born. Normally, this would be packed full of tourists, and now there's next to no one. The absence of tourists has devastated Bethlehem's tourism industry, crippling the city's entire economy, pushing hotel vacancies to record highs and driving unemployment to 80 percent. And this is one of your bestsellers? Yes, this is what I bestsell. Mohamed Abujara's family has run this souvenir shop for generations, but over the past two years, he's been forced to lay off all six of his staff. How's business? We didn't have a lot of tourists because, you know, the war. So this is why they have a big problem in Bethlehem without tourists. The line or the visitors who are coming to visit this church... In Major Square, we met Matthew Kassis, who's been a tour guide his entire adult life and says he's never seen it this quiet. What is your message to Christians around the world? Come back, because Bethlehem, it belongs for each one. And Bethlehem, it is a message of the love and the peace. A message needed now more than ever, and a prayer of hope that the faithful from around the world return to the place where it's believed Christmas began. For CBS Mornings, I'm Imtiaz Tayeb in Bethlehem. It's beautiful. I'm glad that people are finally returning there. I had a chance to visit Bethlehem when I was based in Jerusalem for a time as a foreign correspondent. It's a lovely region, and everybody should be able to get out there and feel that love and peace. You always forget love and peace, so that's exactly what this holiday is about.

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