Jerusalem's local Santa Claus, Issa Kassissieh, on Tuesday sent Christmas greetings to the world from a hot air balloon above the Old City.
Kassissieh does this annually at places across Israel.
This year, with the help of the Tourism Ministry and the municipality of Nazareth, Kassissieh starred in a Christmas greetings video in which he gave gifts to local children in the city.
Tourism Ministry offers free shuttle services for visitors
This holiday season, the Tourism Ministry is offering free shuttles to tourists and pilgrims traveling between Bethlehem and Jerusalem on Christmas Eve.
The ministry expects some 120,000 people, a 20% increase, to come to Israel for the holiday. It noted that tourism is nearing pre-COVID-19 levels, with 2.6 to 2.7 million tourist entries anticipated this year, compared to 4.55 million in 2019.
Last year, The Jerusalem Post reported that Christian residents of Bethlehem and Nazareth lamented the lack of tourists and its negative effects on both the local economy and the holiday cheer.
Khaled Abu Toameh contributed to this report.