A storm swept over Israel and Palestine at the beginning of the week.

It caused floods on the coast, climbed seven hundred meters into the Judean Mountains without worrying about borders, walls or checkpoints, and also whistled the people in Bethlehem mightily on the ears.

Its foothills can still be felt on Tuesday, drizzle and sun alternate on the square in front of the Church of the Nativity.

It's three days until Christmas Eve.

How is the mood at the birthplace of Jesus, so shortly before Christmas?

Christian Meier

Political Correspondent for the Middle East and Northeast Africa.

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Anton Salman, the mayor, leans forward from his desk chair and first gives a diplomatic answer.

"When we talk about Christmas, we talk about joy - no matter what the situation is." From his office Salman looks at the Krippenplatz - "one of the most important places in the world," he says.

As every year, a huge Christmas tree was set up there, with a huge nativity scene in front of it.

Behind it, almost inconspicuously, is the Church of the Nativity, where everything is said to have happened.

In front of the Christmas tree and the crib - cars.

Normally they are not allowed to park there, explains the mayor.

"Normally, groups of pilgrims would wait here to come to church and pray there." But after twenty months of Corona it was different.

The place was empty.

"So we said, then we can at least create a little more parking space for cars." Salman leans back.

"This scene is the answer to the question of what is going on in Bethlehem."

With Omikron, hope vanished

Just a few weeks ago, hopes were high. On November 1, Israel let tourists into the country again, for the first time since spring 2020. The corona numbers were low, with the third vaccination the government had got the delta wave under control. A touch of normality spread, restrictions were relaxed, the masks slid down. The opening quickly made itself felt in Bethlehem as well. In November something moved again, says Alaa Salameh, the manager of the Afteem restaurant on the edge of the square. "We saw tourists going to church, there was even a little queue in the square." Hotel rooms were booked, the city council announced that the Christmas celebrations would be public. Everyone hoped that there would be Christmas sales again this year,after it failed last year.

But then it was all over as quickly as it had come.

At the end of November, the Israeli government sealed off the borders again in order to at least slow down the infiltration of the Omikron variant.

The highly contagious Corona mutant is now also on the rise in Israel.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said the early measures had saved "valuable time".

It was a catastrophe for the tourism sector.

Especially for a city like Bethlehem and just before Christmas.

Bethlehem has been through a lot

At the beginning of December, the city was still holding an elaborate festival, as if in spite of it, when the lights on the Christmas tree were switched on. But now people are again standing idle in the crib square or in front of their shops. A couple of young men press anyone who gets out of the car and looks somehow strange, whether they could show him sights. A Swedish journalist wanders through the rows of parked cars looking for foreign tourists to interview. The mood is morose to depressed. In the Holy Land Arts Museum, where the famous olive wood carvings are sold, they only opened again about three weeks ago, says Joseph Giacaman. The older man is the owner of the family business. In November a couple of tourists came"But now there is nothing left". They would keep the shop open until Christmas, "at least for a few hours a day," says Giacaman weakly. What will happen after that? "We do not know it."