Palestinian security forces deployed around the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank holy city of Bethlehem on Tuesday, as the faithful prepared for another solemn Christmas overshadowed by the war in Gaza.

Christians gathered at the Church of the Nativity in the holy city of Bethlehem on Tuesday to mark a solemn Christmas overshadowed by war, as Pope Francis led mass in the Vatican. Pope Francis marked Christmas Eve on Tuesday with a special ceremony launching Jubilee 2025,

The war, the violence in the occupied West Bank it has spurred and the lack of festivities has deeply hurt Bethlehem’s economy.