Since the October 7 attacks and the start of the war in Gaza, no part of life in the region has been left untouched – least of all, the three great religions whose histories are rooted there.
While Israeli Jews struggle to celebrate holidays or find common ground with one another, Palestinian Muslims and Christians struggle to reach their holy sites at all.
Israel this year introduced some of the strictest restrictions on Ramadan prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, one of the holiest structures in the Islamic faith. Al-Aqsa, which sits on an ancient plateau in Jerusalem that is sacred to Jews and Muslims, has long been the subject of controversy.
For decades, Israel's government prevented Jews from praying to avoid inflaming tensions, and officially, it still does. But since Israel has tightly controlled the site, right-wing politicians and settler groups have repeatedly entered the area to offer prayers, a move seen as provocative to Palestinian Muslims.
Palestinian Muslims, particularly those from the West Bank, have faced routine restrictions on access to Al-Aqsa for many years. The Israeli agency that oversees policy for the region said in response to a question from The New York Times that while Palestinians have been allowed in since October, it has not granted West Bank residents any permission to access the mosque. No letter issued, except “specified labour.”
Israel also imposes strict restrictions on the approximately 50,000 Christians living in the West Bank.
During Easter, Israel restricts access to what is known as the celebration of the Holy Fire, when a flame is taken from Jesus' tomb at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem and used to light pilgrims' candles. goes Israel cited security reasons for the change, but Palestinians accused Israeli authorities of pushing them out of their homelands as part of efforts to halt the centuries-old tradition.
Christian celebrations in the West Bank city of Bethlehem have also been forced to break with tradition. In April, a procession of Easter worshipers that normally winds through the streets of central Bethlehem was canceled and instead held inside the Church of the Nativity.
The growing tension between Israelis and Palestinians is reflected in Israeli society, particularly the division between secular Jews and the ultra-Orthodox, who now make up about 13 percent of Israel's population.
In Bnei Barak, a city east of Tel Aviv that is considered Israel's ultra-Orthodox capital, the images of Israeli hostages captured on October 7 that are ubiquitous in more secular areas are notably absent. And some ultra-Orthodox celebrating Passover this year clashed with police over another traditional ritual: burning all the bread in their homes before the holiday begins.
Instead of burning their bread in the trash, as legally required, many defied the police and went to do so in the nearby hills, increasing the risk of wildfires already raging in northern Israel. Wrapping up. Cross-border militants in Lebanon.
There has been no retreat for the Palestinians since October. 7 landscape. Many people have lost their jobs in Israel, and employees of the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, have seen their salaries cut as Israel finances operations in the area. The transfer of funds has been stopped or slowed down.
The changes in the cultural and religious practices of the Jerusalem Christians have not only upset the mood but also destroyed the economy. Tourism, a major part of the city's income, has fallen since the start of the war, especially during the holiday season.
Pilgrims no longer crowd the cobbled streets of Bethlehem. Squares that once buzzed with the sounds of butchers quoting prices for their slabs of meat, or bakers selling holiday pastries, are now more likely to be silent.
During Ramadan, Lailatul-Qadr, or Night of Qadr, is one of the most important dates in the Islamic calendar. For Muslims, it marks the night when the Qur'an was revealed from heaven to the world.
In previous years, families shopped for treats and clothes before that night. This spring, many residents turned up empty-handed at their local mosque but were eager to keep up the tradition of family gatherings, while children played late into the night.
On Eid al-Fitr, the celebration marking the end of Ramadan, families in the West Bank city of Nablus filled cemeteries to offer early morning prayers for their loved ones. When local fighters went to a cemetery to try to fire guns in honor of their own dead, families quietly asked them to leave, to avoid a possible crackdown by the authorities.
In the absence of pilgrims from the West Bank, many of those traveling to Jerusalem for the April holy days were Christian pilgrims from abroad. Yet even their numbers were few, as tourism to Israel has fallen by more than 70 percent since the start of the war in Gaza.
While believers of all religions are determined to practice their faith, any sense of celebration is struggling to survive. Visitors to Jerusalem find the long, ancient shopping streets that stretch through the city's ancient quarters to be overwhelmingly empty.