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

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.”

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.”

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

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

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

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)

VOVCHANSK, Ukraine (AP) — Moscow's forces captured five villages in a renewed ground assault in northeastern Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said Saturday, and Associated Press journalists in the city of Vovchansk described multiple buildings destroyed after Russian airstrikes and barrages of Grad rockets.

Ukrainian officials didn't confirm whether Russian had taken the villages, which lie in a contested “gray zone” on the border of Ukraine's Kharkiv region and Russia.

Ukrainian journalists reported that the villages of Borysivka, Ohirtseve, Pylna and Strilecha were taken by Russian troops on Friday. Russia said the village of Pletenivka was also taken.

In an evening statement Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said fighting was still ongoing in the settlements of Strilecha and Pletenivka, as well as Krasne, Morokhovets, Oliinykove, Lukyantsi and Hatyshche.

“Our troops are carrying out counterattacks there for a second day, protecting Ukrainian territory,” he said.

The Institute for the Study of War said Friday that geolocated footage confirms at least one of the villages was seized. The Washington-based think tank described recent Russian gains as “tactically significant.”

The renewed assault on the region has forced more than 1,700 civilians residing in settlements near the fighting to flee, according to Ukrainian authorities. It comes after Russia stepped up attacks in March targeting energy infrastructure and settlements, which analysts predicted were a concerted effort by Moscow to shape conditions for an offensive.

On Saturday, Russia continued to pummel Vovchansk with airstrikes and Grad rockets as police and volunteers raced to evacuate residents. At least 20 people were evacuated to safety in a nearby village. Police said that 900 people had been evacuated the previous day.

AP journalists who accompanied an evacuation team described empty streets with multiple buildings destroyed and others on fire. The road was littered with newly made craters and the city was covered in dust and shrapnel with the smell of gunpowder heavy in the air. Mushroom clouds of smoke rose across the skyline as Russian jets conducted multiple airstrikes.

The AP journalists witnessed nine air attacks during the three hours they were there.

“The situation in Vovchansk and the settlements along the border (with Russia) is incredibly difficult. Constant aviation strikes are carried out, multiple rocket missile systems strikes, artillery strikes,” said Tamaz Hambarashvili, the head of the Vovchansk military administration.

“For the second day in a row, we evacuated all the inhabitants of our community who are willing to evacuate,” he said. “I think that they are destroying the city to make (local) people leave, to make sure there are no militaries, nobody. To create a ‘gray zone.'"

Evacuees bade tearful goodbyes to their neighbors as they were taken away from their homes.

“You lie down and think — whether they will kill you now, or in an hour, or in three,” said resident Valentyna Hrevnova, 75. “I hope that they (Russians) will not come, but ours (Ukrainians) will be here.”

Vera Rudko, 72, was among those who left.

“We drove through Vovchansk in the city center,” Rudko said. “I can’t look at this without tears. Everything is trembling. We didn’t sleep these two nights at all.”

Russia's recent push in Kharkiv seeks to exploit ammunition shortages before promised Western supplies can reach the front line, and pin down Ukrainian forces in the northeast and keep them away from heavy battles underway in the Donetsk region where Moscow's troops are gaining ground, analysts said.

Russian military bloggers said the assault could mark the start of a Russian attempt to carve out a “buffer zone” that President Vladimir Putin vowed to create earlier this year to halt frequent Ukrainian attacks on Belgorod and other Russian border regions. Fears also mount that without adequate supplies, Russia might even be able to cut supply routes and besiege the city of Kharkiv, where 1.1 million people reside.

Ukrainian officials have downplayed Russian statements about captured territory, with reinforcements being rushed to the Kharkiv region to hold off Russian forces.

On Telegram, Kharkiv region Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said that heavy fighting continued in the areas around Borysivka, Ohirtseve, Pylna and Oliinykove, but that the situation was under control and there was no threat of a ground assault on the city of Kharkiv.

In the meantime, artillery, mortar and aerial bombardments hit more than 30 different towns and villages in the region on Saturday, killing at least three people and injuring five others, Syniehubov said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed Friday evening that Russian forces were expanding their operations. He also called on the country’s Western allies to ensure that promised deliveries of military aid would swiftly reach the front lines.

“It is critical that partners support our warriors and Ukrainian resilience with timely deliveries. Truly timely ones,” he said in a video statement on X. “A package that truly helps is the actual delivery of weapons to Ukraine, rather than just the announcement of a package.”

The attack was launched from two areas in the Kharkiv region early Friday, Ukrainian officials and analysts said. Russian assault groups attempted to break through Ukrainian defensive lines in the city of Vovchansk and in the region north of the village of Lyptsi.

Separately, Ukrainian forces also launched a barrage of drones and missiles on Friday night, Russia’s Ministry of Defense said, with air defense systems downing 21 rockets and 16 drones over Russia’s Belgorod, Kursk and Volgograd regions. One person died in a drone strike in the Belgorod region, and another in the Kursk region, local officials said.

Another strike set ablaze an oil depot in Ukraine’s Russian-occupied Luhansk region, killing four people and wounding eight more, Leonid Pasechnik, the region’s Moscow-installed leader, said on the messaging app Telegram on Saturday.

There was also shelling in the Russian-occupied Donetsk region Saturday, where three people died when an explosion hit a local restaurant, said Denis Pushilin, the area's Kremlin-appointed leader. Eight more people were wounded, including a child.

In the war's early days, Russia made a botched attempt to quickly storm Kharkiv but retreated from its outskirts after about a month. In the fall of 2022, seven months later, Ukraine’s army pushed them out of Kharkiv. The bold counterattack helped persuade Western countries that Ukraine could defeat Russia on the battlefield and merited military support.

Katie Marie Davies contributed to this report from Manchester, England.

A man gives his neighbour pills as his house is seen on fire after a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Valentyna reacts before leaving her home during evacuation to Kharkiv, in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Smoke rises over the houses after a Russian airstrike on a residential neighbourhood in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Valentyna reacts before leaving her home during evacuation to Kharkiv, in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Volunteer Vitaliy Kylchik helps Valentyna to walk to a car during evacuation to Kharkiv, in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A woman gets on a volunteers car as residents are evacuated to Kharkiv, in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A police officer speaks to a local man as his house is seen on fire after a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A man lies on the ground as he watches his burning house destroyed by a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Residential houses on fire after Russian airstrikes in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A police officer speaks to en elderly woman after a Russian airstrike during evacuation in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A damaged residential house after a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A police officer runs in front on burning house destroyed by a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Local residents save their belongings after their house was hit by a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

A woman sits in the car of her son during evacuation after a Russian airstrike in Vovchansk, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Tetiana, 82, cries with her daughter as she is evacuated from Vovchansk, Ukraine, Saturday, May 11, 2024. Her husband was killed in their house after a Russian airstrike on the city. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Police, police evacuate elderly people following the Russian attack around the town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Friday, May 10, 2024. (Ukrainian Police via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Police, police evacuate elderly people following the Russian attack around the town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Friday, May 10, 2024. (Ukrainian Police via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Police, police evacuate elderly people following the Russian attack around the town of Vovchansk in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Friday, May 10, 2024. (Ukrainian Police via AP)