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Key Points
- Pope Francis kicked off mass at Saint Peter’s Basilica with a call for peace.
- The Israeli military said 10 of its soldiers had been killed, its worst two-day losses since early November.
- More than 20,400 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the Hamas-Israel war.
The Israeli military spokesperson’s office said it was looking into the report.
Meanwhile, the head of the Islamic Jihad group joined talks in Cairo, one small sign that diplomacy remained alive.
“Tonight, our hearts are in Bethlehem, where the Prince of Peace is once more rejected by the futile logic of war, by the clash of arms that even today prevents him from finding room in the world,” Pope Francis said, presiding at Christmas Eve Mass in St Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
‘No joy, no Christmas tree’ in Bethlehem
Festivities are usually held in Bethlehem, but this year the city is almost deserted, with few worshippers around and no Christmas tree erected, after church leaders decided to forego “any unnecessarily festive” celebrations in solidarity with Gazans.
Sister Nabila Salah from the Catholic Holy Church in Gaza struck a sombre tone.
Catholic clergy walk in procession at Manger Square in Bethlehem on Sunday. Source: AAP / Wisam Hashlamoun/EPA
“All Christmas celebrations have been cancelled,” she told AFP. “How do we celebrate when we are… hearing the sound of tanks and bombardment instead of the ringing of bells?”
“There is no joy. No Christmas tree, no decorations, no family dinner, no celebrations,” he said, while undergoing dialysis. “I pray for this war to be over soon.”
Israel paying a ‘heavy price’, Benjamin Netanyahu says
The Israeli military said 10 of its soldiers had been killed in the past day, following five killed the previous day, its worst two-day losses since early November.
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A relative mourns Israeli soldier of Ethiopian origin staff sergeant Birhanu Kassie during his funeral in Mount Herzl military cemetery on Sunday. Source: AAP / Abir Sultan/EPA
“This is a difficult morning, after a very difficult day of fighting in Gaza,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting on Sunday.
Hamas rejected the Israeli claims, saying they are meant “to justify their massacring of innocent civilians and their destructive aggression”.
Photographs of Israeli hostages being held in the Gaza Strip are placed on a house that was destroyed by Hamas militants in Kibbutz Be’eri, Israel, on 20 December. Source: AAP / Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
It said five Israeli hostages killed in Hamas captivity were recovered from an underground tunnel network in the northern Gaza Strip on Sunday, showing footage of a white-tiled bathroom and workroom linked by dark, concrete-lined passages.
The three soldiers and two civilians were among 240 people taken by Hamas gunmen during the cross-border rampage of 7 October that sparked the war.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees said on social media that “it’s hard to wish those celebrating ‘Merry Christmas’, with ongoing loss, grief and destruction.”
And World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus similarly renewed calls for a ceasefire, saying: “The decimation of the Gaza health system is a tragedy.”
“Israel is a sovereign state,” Netanyahu said. “Our decisions in the war are based on our operational considerations, and I will not elaborate on that.”
The US abstained from the final statement, which urges steps to allow “safe, unhindered, and expanded humanitarian access” to Gaza and “conditions for a sustainable cessation” of fighting.
In 2021 the International Criminal Court opened an investigation into alleged Israeli war crimes in the Palestinian territories dating back to 2014, including the recent attacks of both Israel and Hamas.
