Irish-funded Christmas project a lifeline for Palestinian craftspeople in Bethlehem

Since October 2023, not one store in Bethlehem has made an order with Claudia Stephan. Photo: Hannah McCarthy

Claudia Stephan started working on an order from a local souvenir store in Bethlehem for 5,000 wooden decorations at the small workshop she runs from her home in the hills around the Palestinian city on October 6, 2023. 

The October 7 attack and the onset of the Gaza war brought tourism — the economic engine of Bethlehem — to a grinding halt. The large order Stephan, 42, received was quickly cancelled, and since then not one store in the city has made an order with her, she says.