To the sound of bagpipes and drums, Palestinian scouts paraded through the streets of Bethlehem on Wednesday, kicking off the first festive Christmas celebrated in the West Bank city, the cradle of Christianity, since the war in Gaza.

Thousands of kilometers away, Leo XIV will preside late Wednesday evening at the Vatican over the first Christmas Mass of his pontificate. In the gilded splendor of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, the Pope is expected to focus his homily on peace and fraternity, after another year marked by conflict.

In Bethlehem, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Christmas celebrations for the past two years have been marred by the deadly and devastating war unleashed in Gaza by Hamas’ unprecedented attack on October 7, 2023.

Out of solidarity with the Palestinians in the territory, the festivities had been cancelled, but the huge Christmas tree, decorated with red and gold baubles, was lit up again in early December in front of the Basilica of the Nativity.

A joy made possible by the very fragile truce in place in Gaza for more than two months.

- "Christmas has really arrived" -

On Wednesday, hundreds of people flooded the city streets to watch the scouts parade in the iconic Manger Square, singing traditional songs.

"You can really feel that Christmas has arrived," rejoices 17-year-old Milagros Anstas, in his blue and yellow uniform. "It's a day full of joy, because before we couldn't celebrate because of the war," he tells AFP.

For 18-year-old Katiab Amaya, these festivities are synonymous with "hope". In the Middle East, "there are still Christians who celebrate and we preserve the traditions", she says.

As in other Middle Eastern countries, Christians represent a minority in the Holy Land, with a community of 185,000 people in Israel and 47,000 in the Palestinian territories.

Despite the festive atmosphere in the city, the Bethlehem municipality sought to somewhat temper the lavishness of the celebrations. For despite the ceasefire, the Palestinians in Gaza continue to be affected by a severe humanitarian crisis.

The vast majority of Gazans' 2.2 million, many of whom have been displaced by the conflict, have lost everything. And hundreds of thousands still live in tents, helpless against the winter rains.

- "To return to a normal life" -

Until now, Gazans "were living in survival mode," stressed the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, on Monday upon his return from Gaza where he celebrated a Christmas mass with the tiny Christian community.

His visit allowed him to feel "the desire to return to a normal life" in Gaza, he said.

On Wednesday, he will lead the traditional midnight mass at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, built in the 4th century on the cave where, according to Christian tradition, Jesus was born more than 2,000 years ago.

The city, whose economy depends almost exclusively on tourism, is delighted to welcome pilgrims and visitors, after the crises caused by the war, but also the Covid-19 pandemic.

"All these obstacles have been removed this year," says George Hanna, who came from the neighboring town of Beit Jala. "I hope we can celebrate, make sure the children are happy. That's why we're here."

Elsewhere in the world, while millions of children eagerly await Santa Claus, tracked by the Flightradar website, the festivities are overshadowed in Australia by the anti-Semitic attack that occurred on December 14 on Bondi Beach.

"Christmas will be different this year," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wrote on X, expressing "deep sadness."