Bethlehem plans another somber Christmas under the shadow of war in Gaza

Bethlehem plans another somber Christmas under the shadow of war in Gaza
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A worshipper lights a candle in the Church of the Nativity, where Christians believe Jesus Christ was born, ahead of Christmas in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024. (AP)
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Updated 23 December 2024
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Bethlehem plans another somber Christmas under the shadow of war in Gaza

Bethlehem plans another somber Christmas under the shadow of war in Gaza
  • Manger Square is empty of tourists and many businesses aren’t sure how much longer they can hold on
  • The city’s hotel occupancy rate plunged from around 80 percent in early 2023 to around 3 percent today

BETHLEHEM: The Nativity Store in Manger Square has sold handmade olive wood carvings and religious items to people visiting the traditional birthplace of Jesus since 1927. But as Bethlehem prepares to mark its second Christmas under the shadow of the war in Gaza, there are almost no tourists, leaving the Nativity Store and other businesses unsure of how much longer they can hold on.
For the second straight year, Bethlehem’s Christmas celebrations will be somber and muted, in deference to ongoing war in Gaza. There will be no giant Christmas tree in Manger Square, no raucous scout marching bands, no public lights twinkling and very few public decorations or displays.
“Last year before Christmas, we had more hope, but now again we are close to Christmas and we don’t have anything,” said Rony Tabash, the third-generation owner of Nativity Store.
Israel’s war against Hamas has been raging for nearly 15 months, and there still is no end in sight. Repeated ceasefire efforts have stalled.
Since the war began, tourism to Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank has plummeted. And after Israel barred entry to most of the 150,000 Palestinians in the West Bank who had jobs in Israel, the Palestinian economy contracted by 25 percent in the past year.
The yearly Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem — shared among Armenian, Catholic and Orthodox denominations — are usually major boons for the city, where tourism accounts for 70 percent of its yearly income. But the streets are empty this season.
Tabash said he continues to open the store every day, but often an entire week will go by without a sale. Tabash works with more than 25 local families who create hand-carved religious items out of the region’s storied olive wood. But with no buyers, work has dried up for these families.
Lots of room at the inn
The number of visitors to the city plunged from a pre-COVID high of around 2 million visitors per year in 2019 to fewer than 100,000 visitors in 2024, said Jiries Qumsiyeh, the spokesperson for the Palestinian tourism ministry.
According to the Christmas story, Mary was forced to give birth to Jesus in a stable because there was no room at the inn. Today, nearly all of Bethlehem’s 5,500 hotel rooms are empty.
The city’s hotel occupancy rate plunged from around 80 percent in early 2023 to around 3 percent today, said Elias Al Arja, the head of Bethlehem Hoteliers Association. At his own hotel, the Bethlehem Hotel, he said he has laid off a staff of more than 120 people and retains just five employees.
The city hosts more than 100 stores and 450 workshops dealing with traditional Palestinian handicraft, Qumsiyeh said. But just a week before Christmas, when the city should be bursting with visitors, Manger Square was mostly empty save for a few locals selling coffee and tea. Only two of the eight stores in the main drag of the square were open for business.
Qumsiyeh worries that when the war ends and tourism eventually rebounds, many of the families that have handed down traditional skills for generations will no longer be making the items that reflect Palestinian heritage and culture.
Many are leaving the region entirely. “We have witnessed a very high rate of emigration since the beginning of the aggression, especially among those working in the tourism sector,” said Qumsiyeh.
A Christmas without joy
Almost 500 families have left Bethlehem in the past year, said Mayor Anton Salman. And those are just the families who moved abroad with official residency visas. Many others have moved abroad on temporary tourist visas and are working illegally, and it’s unclear if they will return, Salman said.
Around half of the population in the Bethlehem area, including nearby villages, works in either tourism or in jobs in Israel.
The unemployment rate in Bethlehem is roughly 50 percent, said Salman. Unemployment across the West Bank is around 30 percent, according to the Palestinian Economy Ministry.
Canceling Christmas festivities is one way to draw attention to the difficult situation in Bethlehem and across the Palestinian territories, said Salman. “This year we want to show the world that the Palestinian people are still suffering and they haven’t the joy that everybody else in the world having,” said Salman.
It is another blow to the Holy Land’s dwindling population over the decade due to emigration and a low birthrate.
Christians are a small percentage of the population. There are about 182,000 in Israel, 50,000 in the West Bank and Jerusalem and 1,300 in Gaza, according to the US State Department.
Finding the light in the night
Father Issa Thaljieh, the parish priest of the Greek Orthodox Church in the Church of the Nativity, said many families are struggling financially, leaving them unable to pay rent or school fees, much less buy Christmas presents or celebrate the holiday in other ways. The church’s social services have tried to help, but the needs are great, he said.
Thaljieh said his Christmas message this year focused on encouraging Palestinians in Bethlehem to stay despite the challenges.
“A church without Christians is not a church,” he said, as workers hand-polished the ornate brass candelabras in the cavernous, empty church a week before the holiday.
“The light that was born when Jesus Christ was born here is the light that moves beyond darkness, so we have to wait, we have to be patient, we have to pray a lot, and we have to stay with our roots because our roots are in Bethlehem,” he said.
Some families are finding ways to bring back pockets of joy.
Bethlehem resident Nihal Bandak, 39, gave into her three children’s requests to have a Christmas tree this year, after not having one last year. Decorating the tree is the favorite part of Christmas of her youngest daughter, 8-year-old Stephanie.
Mathew Bandak, 11 was thrilled his family brought back some of their traditions, but also torn.
“I was happy because we get to decorate and celebrate, but people are in Gaza who don’t have anything to celebrate,” he said.
Rony Tabash, the third-generation owner of Nativity Store, said he will continue to open the store, because it’s part of his family’s history.
“We are not feeling Christmas, but in the end, Christmas is in our hearts,” he said, adding that the entire city was praying for a ceasefire and peace. “We have a big faith that always, when we see Christmas, it will give us the light in the night.”


Aoun, Abbas agree Lebanon will not be used as launchpad for strikes against Israel

Aoun, Abbas agree Lebanon will not be used as launchpad for strikes against Israel
Updated 54 min 30 sec ago
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Aoun, Abbas agree Lebanon will not be used as launchpad for strikes against Israel

Aoun, Abbas agree Lebanon will not be used as launchpad for strikes against Israel
  • ‘Era of weapons outside the authority of the Lebanese state has ended,’ presidents say
  • Leaders also call for ‘just and lasting peace in the region’

BEIRUT: The Lebanese and Palestinian presidents have agreed that Palestinian factions will not use Lebanon as a launchpad for any attacks against Israel.

The two sides also agreed on Wednesday to remove weapons that are not under the authority of the Lebanese state.

The announcement came at the start of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ three-day visit to Lebanon.

Abbas and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun affirmed their “commitment to the principle of exclusive possession of weapons by the Lebanese state and to ending any manifestations that fall outside the framework of the Lebanese state.”

In a joint statement they highlighted “the importance of respecting Lebanon’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and their belief that the era of weapons outside the authority of the Lebanese state has ended — especially since the Lebanese and Palestinian peoples have for many decades borne heavy losses and made great sacrifices.”

They said also that the Palestinian side “affirmed its commitment not to use Lebanese territory as a launchpad for any military operations and to respect Lebanon’s declared policy of non-interference in the affairs of other countries and avoiding regional conflicts.”

Both sides agreed the need to reach “a just and lasting peace in the region that would allow the Palestinian people to establish their independent state following relevant international legitimacy resolutions, while also ensuring that all countries and peoples in the region obtain their rightful and legitimate rights.”

The statement condemned the “ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and the resulting severe human losses and unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe” and called on the international community “to take immediate and serious action to stop it and to provide full protection for Palestinian civilians.”

Abbas arrived at Beirut airport at about 1 p.m. and immediately headed to the presidential headquarters. A presidential source said the talks focused on the issue of “Palestinian weapons in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, the extension of full Lebanese state authority over these camps and the implementation framework for the plan.”

Aoun and Abbas underscored “the urgent need to strengthen the role of the UN and its institutions in safeguarding the Palestinian people, upholding international law and ensuring the enforcement of the resolutions of international legitimacy.”

They condemned the “repeated Israeli attacks on Lebanon” and called on “the international community, particularly the US and France, to pressure Israel to follow the agreement reached under their auspices in November 2024. The agreement stresses a cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal from Israeli-occupied hills and the release of Lebanese prisoners.”

Implementing such measures was “essential for allowing the Lebanese army to complete its deployment to the internationally recognized borders, following Resolution 1701, to which Lebanon remains fully committed,” they said.

The two sides highlighted the need to “enhance coordination between official Lebanese and Palestinian authorities to maintain stability within and around the Palestinian camps” and their commitment to “strengthening cooperation in the fight against terrorism and extremism and to ensuring that the camps do not serve as safe havens for extremist groups.”

On the issue of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, they stressed the importance of “continued support for UN agency UNRWA, the continuation of its services to refugees and increasing its financial resources to enable it to fulfill its obligations.”

They also agreed to form a joint Lebanese-Palestinian committee to monitor the situation in the Palestinian camps in Lebanon and work to improve the living conditions of refugees, “while respecting Lebanese sovereignty and adhering to Lebanese laws.”

During his visit, Abbas is scheduled to hold meetings with parliament speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and other senior officials and representatives of Palestinian factions from the refugee camps.

Also, the Hani Fahas Academy for Dialogue and Peace will honor Abbas with the 2025 Peacemakers Award at a ceremony on Thursday in Beirut, “in recognition of his efforts to promote Lebanese-Palestinian reconciliation.”

This is not the first time the issue of weapons in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon has been raised. The matter was included as a clause in the 2006 Doha Agreement and was discussed during the Lebanese National Dialogue in 2008, chaired by former President Michel Suleiman.

The discussion focused on the need to disarm Palestinian factions in refugee camps and in politically protected Palestinian communities.

The clause was not enforced however, leading to clashes in the Nahr Al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp between the Lebanese army and Palestinian factions supported by the former Syrian regime.

The issue was tackled again during Abbas’ visit to Lebanon in 2013. In a meeting with Suleiman he said Palestinians were “guests in Lebanon and are subject to the law.”

“The Palestinian presence in Lebanon is temporary and the Lebanese territory’s unity and sovereignty are a sacred matter for us. We count on the Lebanese government to protect the safety of Palestinian refugees and ensure their well-being,” he said.

Ain Al-Helweh — the biggest and most populated Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon — witnessed armed clashes in 2013 between the Jund Al-Sham and Fath Al-Islam factions, resulting in the death of 16 Lebanese soldiers.

Abbas also visited Lebanon in 2017 and held talks with former President Michel Aoun. The following year, bloody clashes erupted within Ain Al-Helweh between the Fatah Movement and armed extremists, resulting in rifts between Palestinian factions there.

Further clashes took place in 2023 between members of Fatah and individuals affiliated with extremist groups close to Hamas.

According to a 2017 census by the Central Administration of Statistics in Lebanon and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, 174,422 Palestinian refugees were living in camps and other pockets across Lebanon.

There were also Palestinian military centers affiliated with Palestinian factions loyal to the Syrian regime located outside the Palestinian camps, specifically in Bekaa, which were handed over to the Lebanese army following the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime.

The Palestinian arms crisis reached its peak following the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah in November last year, when members of Hamas repeatedly launched rockets toward the Israeli side from southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese army pursued and apprehended several suspects but four evaded capture and went into hiding in Palestinian refugee camps in Tyre. Three were later surrendered by Hamas following pressure from the Lebanese government on its leadership, while the fourth, reportedly a religious figure, remains at large.

Haitham Zaiter, a member of the Palestinian National and Central Council, said in a statement that Abbas’ visit carried “a message of support for Lebanon.”

“During the meetings, it will be emphasized that Palestinians are guests on Lebanese territory, respect sovereignty and abide by Lebanese laws until their return to their homeland. This is a right that cannot be waived and does not expire with time,” he said.

“Discussions will also address issues related to the living, social and civil rights of refugees, as well as the right to work and own property in Lebanon, which require amending some laws. It will also be emphasized that Palestinians in Lebanese territory are subject to the law.”


Rubio steers clear of branding Putin ‘war criminal’

Rubio steers clear of branding Putin ‘war criminal’
Updated 57 min 37 sec ago
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Rubio steers clear of branding Putin ‘war criminal’

Rubio steers clear of branding Putin ‘war criminal’
  • “Crimes have been committed in the war on Ukraine, and there will be accountability for that,” Rubio said
  • Keating accused Rubio of being “inconsistent” and “equivocating“

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday steered clear of calling Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal,” saying the priority was negotiations to end the Ukraine conflict.

In a fiery congressional hearing, Democratic Representative Bill Keating recalled Rubio’s heated criticism of Putin’s record when the top US diplomat served as a senator, and asked him if he still believed Putin is a “war criminal.”

“Crimes have been committed in the war on Ukraine, and there will be accountability for that, but our goal right now is to end that war,” Rubio said.

“Because let me tell you, every single day that that war goes on, people are killed, more people are maimed and, frankly, more war crimes are being committed,” he said.

Keating accused Rubio of being “inconsistent” and “equivocating.”

Rubio later responded to a fellow Republican by saying there was a value in speaking to Russia.

“If there had not been communications between the US and Russia in 1961,” Rubio said, “the world could have ended during the Cuban Missile Crisis.”

President Donald Trump spoke Monday by telephone to Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his latest effort, so far unsuccessful, to end the war.

Putin, who had faced international isolation during former president Joe Biden’s administration, has rebuffed US calls backed by Ukraine for a 30-day ceasefire.

Tens of thousands have died, mainly civilians, since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Early in the war, dozens of civilians were found dead in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha following a months-long occupation by Russian forces.

Putin faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over the transfer of children from Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine into Russia.


Israel supreme court rules security chief sacking ‘unlawful’

Israel supreme court rules security chief sacking ‘unlawful’
Updated 59 min 15 sec ago
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Israel supreme court rules security chief sacking ‘unlawful’

Israel supreme court rules security chief sacking ‘unlawful’
  • The ruling is the latest twist in a judiciary and political affair
  • Wednesday’s ruling noted “irregularities” in the process that led to Bar’s sacking

JERUSALEM: Israel’s supreme court on Wednesday ruled as “unlawful” the government’s decision to fire domestic security chief Ronen Bar in March, a move which had triggered mass protests in the country.

“The Supreme Court ruled that the government’s decision to terminate the head of the Shin Bet’s tenure was made through an improper and unlawful process,” the court ruling said.

The ruling is the latest twist in a judiciary and political affair that shook Israel since the government’s decision to sack Bar in March, which the supreme court froze.

Israel’s government said in late April it had canceled its decision to fire Bar, a day after he announced he would stand down following weeks of tension with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Wednesday’s ruling noted “irregularities” in the process that led to Bar’s sacking, as well as “a disregard for fundamental principles regarding internal security.”

The move to sack the security chief sparked large protests across Israel led by the opposition, which saw it as a sign Netanyahu’s government’s was slipping toward autocracy.

Netanyahu had argued that the government was allowed to sack Bar, whom he blames for the security failure that allowed Hamas’ deadly October 7, 2023, attack to unfold.

Noting Bar’s decision to quit the job, the supreme court ruling said that “this announcement puts an end to the (legal) procedure.”


UK FM facing calls to recognize Palestine statehood

UK FM facing calls to recognize Palestine statehood
Updated 21 May 2025
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UK FM facing calls to recognize Palestine statehood

UK FM facing calls to recognize Palestine statehood
  • Labour’s chair of foreign affairs committee says recognition would be ‘first step’
  • Major conference promoting two-state solution will be co-hosted by Saudi Arabia in June

LONDON: The governing Labour Party chair of the foreign affairs committee is pushing for UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy to recognize Palestine as a state, the Daily Telegraph reported on Wednesday.

MP Emily Thornberry said the move would be a “first step” if Lammy announced British recognition next month at a high-level conference co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France.

It follows Lammy’s halting of trade talks with Israel and the summoning of the country’s ambassador in response to Tel Aviv’s renewed Gaza offensive.

Labour’s manifesto at the last general election said the party was “committed” to recognizing Palestine within the context of a two-state solution.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long vowed to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Thornberry told the Telegraph: “I think Britain and France should recognize Palestine at the New York conference chaired by Saudi Arabia in June.

“The two signatories of the 1916 Sykes-Picot agreement, which created the borders of the Middle East as we see today, would be very powerful.

“It would be a first step in working multilaterally to update Oslo, build on the Arab Deal and create a new peace deal proposal.”

The conference in the US will be held from June 17-20, and aims to galvanize support for the two-state solution.

French diplomats have said the event will likely lead to more countries recognizing Palestine as a state.

David Cameron, who served as foreign secretary in the previous Conservative government, said last year that Britain was weighing whether to recognize Palestine.

In the UN, 139 of 193 member states recognize Palestine, while Israel is recognized by 165. In 2021, the UK abstained in a UN General Assembly vote that granted Palestine “non-member observer” status.

Labour MP Rachael Maskell said: “With the imminent catastrophic loss of life through starvation and military operations, the government must hesitate no longer in fully recognizing the state of Palestine.

“The reprehensible actions of the Israeli government must be held to account, so full sanctions and ceasing all arms sales must also take place immediately.”

Lammy, speaking in the House of Commons this week, condemned Israel’s expansion of the Gaza war as an “affront to the values of British people.” He added: “History will judge them.”

Lammy outlined a series of sanctions against Israeli settlers who are targeting Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank.

“Blocking aid, expanding the war, dismissing the concerns of your friends and partners. This is indefensible and it must stop,” he said.

Some MPs say the government should take further action over the Gaza war, such as a complete arms embargo on Israel and sanctions on senior members of its government, including Netanyahu.


In Syria, a Shiite shrine and community navigate a changed landscape

In Syria, a Shiite shrine and community navigate a changed landscape
Updated 21 May 2025
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In Syria, a Shiite shrine and community navigate a changed landscape

In Syria, a Shiite shrine and community navigate a changed landscape
  • It’s more than just religious devotion that the golden-domed shrine became known for during Syria’s prolonged civil war
  • With such a legacy, local Shiite community leaders and members are now navigating a dramatically altered political landscape around Sayyida Zeinab and beyond

SAYYIDA ZEINAB, Syria: At the Sayyida Zeinab shrine, rituals of faith unfold: worshippers kneel in prayer, visitors raise their palms skyward or fervently murmur invocations as they press their faces against an ornate structure enclosing where they believe the granddaughter of Prophet Muhammad is entombed.

But it’s more than just religious devotion that the golden-domed shrine became known for during Syria’s prolonged civil war.

At the time, the shrine’s protection from Sunni extremists became a rallying cry for some Shiite fighters and Iran-backed groups from beyond Syria’s borders who backed the former government of Bashar Assad. The shrine and the surrounding area, which bears the same name, has emerged as one symbol of how the religious and political increasingly intertwined during the conflict.

An altered landscape after Assad’s ouster

With such a legacy, local Shiite community leaders and members are now navigating a dramatically altered political landscape around Sayyida Zeinab and beyond, after Assad’s December ouster by armed insurgents led by the Sunni Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS). The complex transition that is underway has left some in Syria’s small Shiite minority feeling vulnerable.

“For Shiites around the world, there’s huge sensitivity surrounding the Sayyida Zeinab Shrine,” said Hussein Al-Khatib. “It carries a lot of symbolism.”

After Assad’s ouster, Al-Khatib joined other Syrian Shiite community members to protect the shrine from the inside. The new security forces guard it from the outside.

“We don’t want any sedition among Muslims,” he said. “This is the most important message, especially in this period that Syria is going through.”

Zeinab is a daughter of the first Shiite imam, Ali, cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad; she’s especially revered among Shiites as a symbol of steadfastness, patience and courage.

She has several titles, such as the “mother of misfortunes” for enduring tragedies, including the 7th-century killing of her brother, Hussein. His death exacerbated the schism between Islam’s two main sects, Sunni and Shiite, and is mourned annually by Shiites.

Zeinab’s burial place is disputed; some Muslims believe it’s elsewhere. The Syria shrine has drawn pilgrims, including from Iran, Iraq and Lebanon. Since Assad’s ouster, however, fewer foreign visitors have come, an economic blow to those catering to them in the area.

The shrine’s locale has faced many attacks

Over the years, the Sayyida Zeinab area has suffered deadly attacks by militants.

In January, state media reported that intelligence officials in Syria’s post-Assad government thwarted a plan by the Daesh group to set off a bomb at the shrine. The announcement appeared to be an attempt by Syria’s new leaders to reassure religious minorities, including those seen as having supported Assad’s former government.

Al-Khatib, who moved his family from Aleppo province to the Sayyida Zeinab area shortly before Assad’s fall, said Assad had branded himself as a protector of minorities. “When killings, mobilization ... and sectarian polarization began,” the narrative “of the regime and its allies was that ‘you, as a Shiite, you as a minority member, will be killed if I fall.’”

The involvement of Sunni militants and some hard-line foreign Shiite fighters fanned sectarian flames, he said.

The Syria conflict began as one of several uprisings against Arab dictators before Assad brutally crushed what started as largely peaceful protests and a civil war erupted. It became increasingly fought along sectarian lines, drew in foreign fighters and became a proxy battlefield for regional and international powers on different sides.

Post-Assad, new tensions center on the shrine

Recently, a red flag reading “Oh, Zeinab” that had fluttered from its dome was removed after some disparaged it as a sectarian symbol.

Sheikh Adham Al-Khatib, a representative of followers of the Twelver branch of Shiism in Syria, said such flags “are not directed against anyone,” but that it was agreed to remove it for now to keep the peace.

“We don’t want a clash to happen. We see that ... there’s sectarian incitement, here and there,” he said.

Earlier, Shiite leaders had wrangled with some endowments ministry officials over whether the running of the shrine would stay with the Shiite endowment trustee as it’s been, he said, adding “we’ve rejected” changing the status quo. No response was received before publication to questions sent to a Ministry of Endowments media official.

Adham Al-Khatib and other Shiite leaders recently met with Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa.

“We’ve talked transparently about some of the transgressions,” he said. “He promised that such matters would be handled but that they require some patience because of the negative feelings that many harbor for Shiites as a result of the war.”

Many, the sheikh said, “are holding the Shiites responsible for prolonging the regime’s life.” This “is blamed on Iran, on Hezbollah and on Shiites domestically,” he said, adding that he believes the conflict was political rather than religious.

Early in the conflict, he said, “our internal Shiite decision was to be neutral for long months.” But, he said, there was sectarian incitement against Shiites by some and argued that “when weapons, kidnappings and killing of civilians started, Shiites were forced to defend themselves.”

Regionally, Assad was backed by Iran and the Shiite militant Lebanese group Hezbollah, whose intervention helped prop up his rule. Most rebels against him were Sunni, as were their patrons in the region.

Besides the shrine’s protection argument, geopolitical interests and alliances were at play as Syria was a key part of Iran’s network of deterrence against Israel.

Emotions can run high; for some, fears persist

Today, rumors and some social media posts can threaten to inflame emotions.

Shrine director Jaaffar Kassem said he received a false video purporting to show the shrine on fire and was flooded with calls about it.

At the shrine, Zaher Hamza said he prays “for safety and security” and the rebuilding of “a modern Syria, where there’s harmony among all and there are no grudges or injustice.”

Is he worried about the shrine? “We’re the ones who are in the protection of Sayyida Zeinab — not the ones who will protect the Sayyida Zeinab,” he replied.

While some Shiites have fled Syria after Assad’s fall, Hamza said he wouldn’t.

“Syria is my country,” he said. “If I went to Lebanon, Iraq or to European countries, I’d be displaced. I’ll die in my country.”

Some are less at ease.

Small groups of women gathered recently at the Sayyida Zeinab courtyard, chatting among themselves in what appeared to be a quiet atmosphere. Among them was Kamla Mohamed.

Early in the war, Mohamed said, her son was kidnapped more than a decade ago by anti-government rebels for serving in the military. The last time she saw him, she added, was on a video where he appeared with a bruised face.

When Assad fell, Mohamed feared for her family.

Those fears were fueled by the later eruption of violence in Syria’s coastal region, where a counteroffensive killed many Alawite civilians — members of the minority sect from which Assad hails and drew support as he ruled over a Sunni majority. Human rights groups reported revenge killings against Alawites; the new authorities said they were investigating.

“We were scared that people would come to us and kill us,” Mohamed said, clutching a prayer bead. “Our life has become full of fear.”

Another Syrian Shiite shrine visitor said she’s been feeling on edge. She spoke on condition she only be identified as Umm Ahmed, or mother of Ahmed, as is traditional, for fear of reprisals against her or her family.

She said, speaking shortly after the coastal violence in March, that she’s thought of leaving the country, but added that there isn’t enough money and she worries that her home would be stolen if she did. Still, “one’s life is the most precious,” she said.

She hopes it won’t come to that.

“Our hope in God is big,” she said. “God is the one protecting this area, protecting the shrine and protecting us.”