Through carols, cookies and Christmas lights, December 25 is marked by jubilation and celebration of the birth of Jesus for more than 2 billion Christians worldwide, Al Jazeera reports.

However, a silent night falls on the 50,000 Christians in Palestine — a number that is in rapid decline.

The safety of Christians in Palestine was shaken by the bombardment of Gaza’s oldest Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius in October, which killed at least 18 people including children.

Israeli forces also shot and killed an elderly Christian mother and her daughter in a Catholic church in Gaza yesterday.

This year, the many gleeful rituals that characterise Christmas in Palestine will be replaced by simpler ceremonies, mourning and prayer, shining a harsh light on the current reality of the region.

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