BETHLEHEM, Palestinian Territories, Dec 24, (AFP) -Pilgrims flocked to a sun-kissed Bethlehem Friday to celebrate Christmas in the birthplace of Jesus Christ as other revellers battled snowstorms to make it home to their families.
Amid a last-minute dash by shoppers to purchase presents and turkeys in malls, troops serving in Afghanistan prepared for their chemically-heated Christmas meals under tinsel-decked trees in the heartland of the Taliban.
While large parts of Europe have been shivering in snow and sleet, the “little town” of Bethlehem has been enjoying unseasonably warm weather.
Joined for the first time by fellow worshippers from Arab countries that have no ties with Israel, Christians descended on the West Bank town which was bedecked with Christmas lights and inflatable Santas at every corner.
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| A Palestinian child dressed in a Santa Claus costume watches a Christmas parade outside the Church of the Nativity, the site revered as the birthplace of Jesus, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Christmas Eve December 24, 2010. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: RELIGION) |
Elsewhere in the Middle East however, particularly in Iraq, festivities have been muted among Christians amid death threats from Al-Qaeda.
In his midnight mass at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity, Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal, the Middle East's senior Catholic bishop, is expected to issue a message of hope for peace, but also sound a sombre tone after the October 31 massacre of worshippers in a Baghdad church.
According to an advance copy of his address, he will offer solidarity to Iraqi Christians, who have been the target of repeated bloody attacks, including a raid on a church that killed 44 worshippers and two priests.
At least 90,000 people are expected to flood the city for the celebrations, according to Palestinian Authority figures.
“It's amazing. To be in the birthplace of Christ on Christmas, you can't get better than that,” said 22-year-old Canadian Brady MacCarl who was among those gathered in Bethlehem.
Pope Benedict XVI, who has also voiced his fears for Christians living in the Middle East, will preside over midnight mass at The Vatican.
In a message recorded for BBC radio, Benedict said that he prayed for the sick and elderly and “those who are going through any form of hardship”.
“The child that was born in Bethlehem did indeed bring liberation, but not only for the people of that time and place -- he was to be the saviour of all people throughout the world and throughout history,” he added.
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II meanwhile will use her Christmas Day message to emphasise the importance of sport as a way of building communities and creating harmony, 19 months ahead of the London Olympics, according to advance excerpts.
The sense of Christmas cheer was being sorely tested in parts of Europe where freezing temperatures have caused transport chaos, with airports affected and motorists staying off icy roads.
Thousands of travellers were stranded at Paris's main airport as icy conditions forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights and transport minister Thierry Mariani warned that many would probably see in Christmas in the departure lounges.
Two thousand people had to be evacuated from one terminal at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle because of snow accumulating on the roof. “I'm so tired that I no longer have the strength to be angry,” said Zoe Stephanou, 45, after spending the night at Charles de Gaulle. “My flight to Milan has been cancelled twice. The first when there was no snow.”In Britain, where blizzards last week caused widespread transport chaos, meteorologists warned of heavy snow, with temperatures forecast to plunge to as low as minus 14 Celsius overnight in central Scotland.
Train services were disrupted across large parts of the country, hitting travellers making a final trip home for Christmas, although Heathrow airport was largely back to normal.
Consumers meanwhile embarked on a frantic final shopping spree. An estimated 200,000 shoppers headed to the Bullring shopping centre in the central English city of Birmingham, one of the largest in Europe, and 130,000 descended on Meadowhall near the norhern city of Sheffield.
Those forced to spend their Christmas away from their families did their best to create a semblance of festive spirit.
US marines at Patrol Base Talibjan, in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, gathered around a plastic tree, decorated with baubles and fairy lights. The Christmas star made from snack food tubes tops the tree.
Navy chaplain Father William Kennedy said the austere environment can be a humble reminder of the Christian holiday's true meaning. “There's a lot of dust and dirt out here and you take away a lot of the externals that people might have, a lot of the glitz, and it's a good time to be very simple and to say what is Christmas about,” he said. |
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