Orthodox Christians marked Palm Sunday in Jerusalem, the beginning of the Holy Week leading up to Orthodox Easter.

The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III attended the vigil in Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.

Some faithful wore masks and held palm fronds to symbolise how worshippers greeted Jesus over 2,000 years ago as he triumphantly returned to Jerusalem.

The provision for gatherings come after Israel launched one of the world’s most successful vaccination campaigns, allowing it to reopen restaurants, hotels and religious sites.

But air travel is still limited by quarantine and other restrictions, keeping away the foreign pilgrims who usually throng Jerusalem during Holy Week.

Palm Sunday was marked amid rising tension in Jerusalem which triggered Gaza-Israel exchanges of fire.

Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip have fired some three dozen rockets into Israel while the Israeli military struck back at targets operated by the ruling Hamas group.

The rockets resumed Saturday evening after a day-long pause.

Saturday’s fighting came as Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli police in Jerusalem.

The clashes in Jerusalem have become a nightly occurrence throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and show no signs of easing.

Unrest in Jerusalem often spills over into fighting between Israel and Gaza militants, and similar tensions in 2014 erupted into a 50-day war. The U.S. has appealed for calm, and neighboring Jordan has condemned Israel’s actions.

source AP