Christians celebrate, NORAD tracks Santa’s route – DW – 12/24/2025

Christmas celebrations have begun in the Holy Land, with the traditional procession taking place from Jerusalem to Bethlehem.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the highest representative of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, led the motorcade.

Pizzaballa is scheduled to celebrate Midnight Mass in Bethlehem, considered the birthplace of Jesus Christ.

Traditional celebrations in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank have been subdued over the past two years due to the war in Gaza.

Despite a shaky ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian extremist group Hamas that took effect on October 10, this year’s celebrations are still overshadowed by war.

Christians are a minority in the Jewish state and throughout the Palestinian territories.

Of Gaza’s more than 2 million residents, about 1,000 are Christian, while about 2% of Israel’s population of 10 million are Christian. About 1.5% of the 3 million people living in the West Bank are Christians.

Pope Leo XIV is preparing to hold his first Christmas Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Eve.

The Chicago-born pope is the first American cleric to hold the post, replacing Argentina-born Pope Francis, who died this spring.

The Pope is expected to speak out against war and violence in his Christmas message. Earlier, Christian church leaders in Jerusalem stressed the message of hope at Christmas, warning against false hopes of peace amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East.

In a joint message published ahead of Christmas Eve, the heads of the churches said the ceasefire in Gaza had allowed some communities to again celebrate more openly, but urged restraint and realism.

“Despite the declared cessation of hostilities, hundreds of people continue to be killed or seriously injured,” the statement said.

The group includes the Patriarch of Jerusalem of the Greek Orthodox, Armenian and Latin Churches, the Patriarch of the Holy Land representing the Roman Catholic Franciscan Custody, and the archbishops of the Coptic Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox and Ethiopian Orthodox churches.

A traditional midnight mass will also be celebrated at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, where a large Christmas tree has been erected for the first time in two years.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has started its annual Christmas Eve tradition, so families are once again getting ready to track Santa Claus’ visit.

You can follow Santa’s journey around the world In real time, with the NORAD website at this link Providing a 3D and 2D map as well as a “Gifts delivered” counter.

The first stop on the destination list was Ulen in the Russian Far East.

As Santa prepared his sleigh earlier, military trackers noted: “Current conditions at the North Pole indicate good weather for the flight.”

For 70 years, NORAD has arranged calls and monitored Santa’s route as part of a holiday ritual that goes along with its mission of protecting North American airspace.

More than 1,000 volunteers will be taking calls on Christmas Eve. Last year, the hangar decorated for the holidays at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, NORAD’s headquarters, received about 380,000 calls.

Rudolph the Reindeer’s glowing red nose emits a heat signature similar to that of a missile, allowing satellites to pick it up, according to NORAD spokesperson Colonel Kelly Frushor.

President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has used his Christmas address on 24 December to highlight the importance of community, communication and cooperation, and called on his fellow Germans to work together and help each other in difficult times.

“A light shines in the darkness,” He said in a televised speech on 24 December: “A light is shining in the darkness.”

Read more about what the German President said here.

Merry Christmas from the DW newsroom in Bonn!

As the world celebrates, we’ll be here to keep you updated on all the latest festive news.

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