Meanwhile, only first-degree relatives of Israeli immigrants have been allowed entry, and only for life-cycle events such as weddings and births.
The exceptions for the Jewish tour groups at Christmas, one of the top tourist times for Christian pilgrims, were viewed by some as insensitive, if not discriminatory.
“If you’re really trying to stop the spread, it doesn’t matter if you’re Jewish or Christian,” said Brad Brown, a travel agent for Signature Tours in Duluth, Georgia, that books pilgrimage tours for church groups. “It looks bad when American Christians, and I’m assuming Muslims, can’t get in.”
The Jewish tourism exception approved by Shaked, a conservative firebrand who supports the annexation of the West Bank and expansion of settlements there and opposes an independent Palestinian state, was criticized inside Israel, too.
Shaked’s Ministry of the Interior did not respond to a request for an interview.
The travel ban has hit the Palestinian economy hard, especially in tourist destinations such as Bethlehem.
“A very large percentage of Bethlehem-area residents rely on tourism for their livelihoods,” said Khadar Abu Jeries, manager of the Peace Café, on Manger Square in Bethlehem.
Khalil Awad, the owner of the Old Cave Souvenir shop in Bethlehem, is one of them. His 40-year-old shop, which reopened in November after closing in 2020, supports four families, he said.
“We had hoped and prayed people would come for Christmas,” Awad said. “Now our hopes are dashed.”
The closure, of course, affected the wallets of the U.S. tourists, too. Brown said he was able to refund most of the money church groups had put up for the trip. But some pastors said many church families were suddenly faced with planning a holiday stateside when they thought they’d be abroad.
Brown said only about half as many people have signed on for a rescheduled trip next year.
“These are trips of a lifetime for people,” he said. “They want to go to Jerusalem before they die. Some of these people never travel internationally at all. They may never have been outside Oklahoma, but they’ll go to Israel.”
Yonat Shimron reported from the U.S.; Michele Chabin from Israel.
This article originally appeared here.
