Palestinians feel ‘no joy’ as Israel bombs Gaza on Christmas

Palestinians said they felt "no joy" this Christmas as Israel bombed Gaza on Monday, with no end in sight to the war that Hamas says has claimed more than 20,000 lives.

Festivities were effectively scrapped in the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem, revered as the birthplace of Jesus Christ, with few worshippers or tourists on the usually packed streets.

In the besieged Gaza Strip, the Hamas-run ministry of health said early on Monday Israeli strikes had killed at least 18 people in the southern city of Khan Yunis, the centre of recent fighting.

At a hospital in the city, Fadi Sayegh — whose family has previously received permits to travel to Bethlehem for celebrations — said he would not be celebrating Christmas this year.

"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."

A smoke billows from inside the Palestinian enclave. AFP

Sister Nabila Salah from the Catholic Holy Church in Gaza -- where two Christian women were killed by an Israeli sniper earlier this month according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem -- struck a sombre tone.

"All Christmas celebrations have been cancelled," she told the media. "How do we celebrate when we are... hearing the sound of tanks and bombardment instead of the ringing of bells?"

The war broke out when Hamas fighters attacked southern Israel on October 7 and killed about 1,140 people, mostly civilians, and seized 250 hostages, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel has vowed to eliminate Hamas in response and its military campaign, which has included massive aerial bombardment. The campaign has killed 20,424 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's health ministry.

Palestinians wounded in the Israeli bombardment are brought to the hospital in Deir Al Balah in Gaza Strip. AP

Pope Francis kicked off global Christmas celebrations on Sunday with a call for peace.

"Our heart goes to Gaza, to all people in Gaza but a special attention to our Christian community in Gaza who is suffering," the Catholic leader said.

Christmas eve strike

Just ahead of Christmas, the Hamas-run health ministry said at least 70 people were killed in an Israeli air strike on Sunday at the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza.

This photo shows the Christmas midnight Mass in the biblical city of Bethlehem in the West Bank on Monday. AFP

Health ministry spokesman Ashraf Al Qudra said the "toll is likely to rise" as many families were thought to be in the area at the time of the strike.

In a separate incident, the ministry said 10 members of one family were killed in an Israeli strike on their house in the Jabalia camp in northern Gaza.

Agence France-Presse