In Gaza, a humble Christmas celebration marks hope for an end to suffering

It’s been two years since Jehan Trazi last celebrated Christmas

It’s been two years since Jehan Trazi last celebrated Christmas.

But now that a ceasefire is in place in Gaza, children like Trazi finally got to decorate the Holy Family Church, Gaza’s only Catholic church, which was still largely intact despite two years of brutal war.

“This is the first holiday we’ve celebrated in two years, and we are happy that the war has ended,” Trazi, 11, told an NBC News camera crew.

“We want to celebrate the glorious birth of Jesus.”

For two years, Christmas has gone without celebration for the tiny Christian community in the war-torn Gaza Strip, where more than 70,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s war against Hamas, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, in which more than 1,200 people were killed and 251 people were taken hostage.