Hundreds of Christians today took part in the usual Good Friday procession that runs between the limestone walls of Jerusalem’s Old City, commemorating one of the holiest days with noticeably thinner crowds amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. .
The processions, which normally attracted thousands of foreign visitors, have been unusually local on this occasion. Most of the observers were Palestinian Christians, who were joined by foreigners living in Jerusalem and some tourists who had traveled to Jerusalem for the occasion.
Israeli police patrols set up barricades along the road, diverting shoppers in the bustling Muslim quarter of the Old City to make way for hundreds of pilgrims. The traditional Good Friday procession passes along the Via Crucis, or Via Dolorosa, the route Jesus is believed to have taken until his crucifixion.
The final stations of the procession are inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Jesus is believed to have been crucified and buried before his resurrection at Easter. There, the impact of the war is clear: instead of the crowds that normally queue for hours in the churchyard, the entrance to the site was relatively clear. The city’s streets were noticeably devoid of Palestinian Christians from the West Bank, who normally flock to the Holy City for the Holy Week festivities. Since October 7, Palestinian worshipers have needed special permission to cross checkpoints into Jerusalem.
The celebrations coincided with the third Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and worshipers once again flocked to the revered Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray. Despite fears that the ongoing war could lead to clashes at the revered mosque, the month has so far passed peacefully under tight Israeli security.
