The Christmas celebrations were absent this year from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and other Palestinian cities amid the destructive war waged by Israel on Gaza, claiming the lives of thousands.
This article was originally published in, translated from online newspaper Al Anbaa.
In Lebanon, Christmas was present but with a somber tone, especially in the border villages that have been under Israeli attacks for over 78 days.
The celebrations in these border villages served as an act of resilience against the backdrop of continuous Israeli shelling in the south.
On this occasion, Progressive Socialist Party leader and Member of Parliament Taymour Jumblatt extended Christmas greetings, stating: "During the holiday season, the focus remains on the tragedy of the Palestinian people and the people of the south, and the suffering of the oppressed."
He wished for genuine salvation for Lebanon and the causes of justice everywhere.
Pope Francis addressed Christmas and the war in Gaza in his speech, calling on the international community to press for ending the war in Gaza, the release of all hostages, to put an end to this war, and to bring humanitarian aid to the besieged population.
He expressed deep sorrow for the victims of the heinous attack.
Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros al-Rahi expressed his disappointment, finding no change in the minds of the deputies that would make them insist on electing a president, which means that the presidency and the completion of appointments have been postponed to the new year.
In this context, political sources expressed concern that 2024 may be like its predecessors, witnessing the accumulation of unresolved files.
In a call with Al Anbaa, they mentioned many files that were hoped to be resolved on such occasions but were transferred to the years that followed, and their solution now required a "divine miracle."
Sources told Al Anbaa that the parliament's current composition and division make it incapable of electing a president through local consensus.
It is nearly impossible for parliamentary blocs to find common ground that might help elect a president without external pressure, at least equivalent to the pressure exerted to extend the term of the army commander.
The sources expected the appointment of the Chief of Staff and the Military Council for army leadership to pass, linking the president's election to the cessation of the war on Gaza.
There will be no initiative towards the Lebanese interior unless the international forces put an end to the movements of the Houthis in the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea.
This is expected to take time to resolve, indicating that no presidential breakthrough is likely before next spring.
However, parliamentary sources told Al Anbaa about initiatives to revitalize the presidential deadline, which will be witnessed at the beginning of the new year.
The most important of these is the initiative of Speaker of the Parliament Nabih Berri, who anticipates the possibility of finding common ground between various political forces, relying on the atmosphere that accompanied the extension of the army commander's term that can be built upon in the presidential deadline.
Therefore, the Lebanese await the beginning of a new year, hoping it brings peace to their homeland and salvation through the election of a president and the revival of state institutions, which are witnessing unprecedented collapse one after another.