In Jerusalem, Palestinian Christians observe scaled-down Good Friday rituals

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Despite ongoing tensions in the Middle East, Christians marked Good Friday in Jerusalem. Worshippers marched slowly along the Via Dolorosa - the cobblestone path that cuts through the limestone-walled Old City, where tradition says Jesus bore the cross to his crucifixion. (AP Video/Shlomo Mor)

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Hundreds of spectators flocked to Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood Good Friday morning to witness a Good Friday tradition. The 47th Via Crucis procession reenacted scenes from Jesus Christ’s final days. (AP VIdeo:Teresa Crawford)

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Faithful gathered outside Paris’ Notre Dame as they took part in the traditional Good Friday procession.

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The Good Friday Eve religious procession, which dates back centuries in the old Mexican silver-mining town of Taxco, went off as planned Thursday night despite the mob killing of a woman earlier in the day.

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Devout Catholics in the Philippines marked Good Friday with a re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in San Fernando City, north of the capital Manila. The crucifixion ritual has been a tradition in the province of Pampanga for decades. Devotees undergo the re-enactment in the belief that extreme pain is a way to atone for their sins, attain miracle cures for illnesses or give thanks to God. (AP video/Iya Forbes)

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Dozens of Christians sheltering in the Holy Family Church in Gaza City gathered to attend the Good Friday mass. (AP video: Mohammad Hajjar)

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Christians walk the Way of the Cross procession that commemorates Jesus Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

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Christians walk the Way of the Cross procession that commemorates Jesus Christ’s last day, on Good Friday, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

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Christians walk the Way of the Cross procession that commemorates Jesus Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

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Christians walk the Way of the Cross procession that commemorates Jesus Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday, in the Old City of Jerusalem, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

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A Christian worshipper kisses the Stone of Unction, the stone slab traditionally claimed as the stone where Jesus’ body was prepared for burial, in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and rose from the dead, in the Old City of Jerusalem, on Good Friday, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

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Faithful kneel in prayer during a Good Friday service as part of Holy Week celebrations, at the Saint Pierre Catholic church in the Pétion-Ville neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

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A penitent known as cucurucho takes part in the Jesus the Almighty Good Friday procession, as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

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Penitents known as cucuruchos carry flower bouquets during the Jesus the Almighty Good Friday procession, as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

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Penitents known as cucuruchos file past in the Jesus the Almighty Good Friday procession, as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

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People stand in front of the Colosseum during a Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) torchlight procession on Good Friday, in Rome, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

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Penitents known as cucuruchos carry a large cross during the Jesus the Almighty Good Friday procession, as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

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People hold candles during a Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) torchlight procession on Good Friday, in Rome, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

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A woman holds a crucifix during a Good Friday service as part of Holy Week celebrations, at the Saint Pierre Catholic church in the Pétion-Ville neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)

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People gather round sand sculptures depicting Jesus Christ on a cross as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Los Arenales de Cochiraya, on the outskirts of Oruro, Bolivia, Good Friday, March 29, 2024. Artists gathered for the annual Holy Week event in the highland region, building sand sculptures based on Bible stories. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

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An actor, playing the role of Jesus Christ, stands in chains during a Way of the Cross reenactment, as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Atyra, Paraguay, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus’ earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz)

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Actors perform in a Way of the Cross reenactment as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Atyra, Paraguay, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus Christ’s earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz)

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An actor, playing the role of Jesus Christ, hangs on a cross during a Way of the Cross reenactment, as part of Holy Week celebrations, in Atyra, Paraguay, Friday, March 29, 2024. Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus’ earthly life which culminates with his crucifixion on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz)

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Monsignor Krzysztof Marcjanowicz puts the skull cap on Pope Francis during the liturgy of the passion on Good Friday in St. Peter’s Basilica at The Vatican, Friday, Mar. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis)

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A worker lights candles on a cross at the Colosseum prior to the start of a Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) torchlight procession on Good Friday, in Rome, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Policemen patrol prior to the start of the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) torchlight procession at the Colosseum on Good Friday, in Rome, Friday, March 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

By JULIA FRANKEL

JERUSALEM (AP) — Hundreds of Christians participated in a customary Good Friday procession through the limestone walls of Jerusalem’s Old City, commemorating one of the faith’s most sacred days with noticeably thinner crowds amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

The procession, which normally draws thousands of foreign visitors, was unusually local — mostly Palestinian Christians, joined by some foreigners living in Jerusalem and a few undeterred tourists.

The procession passes along the Way of the Cross, or Via Dolorosa, the route believed to have been walked by Jesus to his crucifixion. Squads of Israeli police set up barricades along the path, rerouting shoppers in the Old City’s bustling Muslim quarter to make way for hundreds of pilgrims.

A young group of Palestinian Arab scouts led the day’s procession, past the 14 stations, each marking an event that befell Jesus on his final journey. Hundreds of Palestinian Christians walked in their wake. Behind them was a small parade of the Franciscan religious order, composed mainly of foreigners who live in Jerusalem.

“We wait for this every year,” said Munira Kamar, a Palestinian Christian from the Old City, who waved to the cross-bearers who stopped to give her young daughter a kiss on the cheek. “Of course, this year we are unhappy because of the situation with the ongoing war.”

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Thousands of Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza, launched after Hamas’ Oct. 7 killings and hostage-taking in Israel.

The impact of the war was clear at the procession’s final stations are inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where Jesus is believed to have been crucified and laid to rest before his resurrection on Easter. There, instead of the crowds who normally queue for hours in the church courtyard, entrance to the site was easy.

The city’s streets were noticeably devoid of Palestinian Christians from the West Bank, who normally flock to the Holy City for Easter. Since Oct. 7, Palestinian worshippers have needed special permission to cross checkpoints into Jerusalem.

Despite the thinned crowds, shopkeepers, whose heavy metal doors are usually closed on Fridays, threw them open for tourists seeking Catholic memorabilia. But shoppers were few and far between.

“Comparing last year’s Easter festivities with this year is like light and day,” said Fayaz Dakkak, a Palestinian storeowner whose family first opened the shop in 1942. His shop stood empty.

“Usually people are joyful today and kids are excited,” he said. “But when you compare children here who have water and food and a family to what’s happening in Gaza, how can you be happy?”

An estimated 50,000 Christian Palestinians live in the West Bank and Jerusalem, according to the U.S. State Department’s international religious freedom report for 2022. Approximately 1,300 Christians lived in Gaza, it said. Some Christians are also citizens of Israel. Many Palestinian Christians live in diaspora communities.

A few tourists braved the day. Carmen Ros, a lawyer who lives in Jerusalem, had managed to corral a group of pilgrims from Spain to visit the country for a religious tour. The group rested in the shade outside the church.

“They were afraid of the situation at first,” she said, “but I told them here in Jerusalem, it’s safe, we don’t have violence. We are close to Gaza, but the Christian people are not the target of terrorism.”

The celebrations coincided with the third Friday in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, with worshippers once again flocking to the revered Al-Aqsa mosque for prayer. Despite fears the ongoing war would spark clashes at the revered Al-Aqsa mosque, Ramadan has so far been peaceful, under tight Israeli security.

Sister Harriet Kabaije, a pilgrim from Uganda who moved to Jerusalem three weeks ago to live in a monastery, said she was holding the people of Gaza in her prayers. She said she believed that peace could be achieved in the region.

“Many people think that the war here is natural,” she said. “But when Jesus was in Bethlehem, it was peaceful. We know that people are suffering in Gaza so we carry them in our prayers and pray that peace can return to this land.”

Elsewhere, Pope Francis skipped the traditional Good Friday procession at the Colosseum in Rome, the Vatican said, to “conserve his health in view of the vigil tomorrow and Mass on Easter Sunday.”

It was the second time Francis had skipped the traditional procession in his 11-year papacy, an event that St. John Paul II famously skipped just before he died in 2005. Francis had also skipped the event in 2023 because he was recovering from bronchitis and it was a particularly cold night.

In Spain, several Good Friday street processions were canceled due to storms that provided some much-needed rain to areas battling a prolonged drought. Seville’s brotherhoods were forced to call off the processions of their giant floats bearing sculptures of Jesus of the Virgin for the first time in over a decade due to bad weather.

In Chicago, hundreds of spectators flocked to the city’s Pilsen neighborhood to witness a Good Friday tradition — the 47th Via Crucis procession reenacting scenes from Jesus’ final days.

“It’s the story that we all know from when we were little kids,” said Jason Rodriguez, a Pilsen resident and event volunteer. “This reenactment drives home the suffering, the strength and the passion that our Lord had.”

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Associated Press writers Teresa Crawford in Chicago, Nicole Winfield in Rome and Joseph Wilson in Madrid contributed to this report.

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This story corrects that this is the second time that Francis skipped the procession.