In Pictures: Christmas gets under way around the world after year of trials

A Palestinian vendor sells balloons in Manger Square, adjacent to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem where events have been scaled down because of the pandemic (Nasser Nasser/AP)

Christmas celebrations were getting under way in some parts of the world, while others dashed home or did some last-minute shopping in a year blighted by coronavirus.

Midnight Mass in Indonesia was celebrated while a coronavirus-themed Christmas tree in Vietnam provided a reminder of what has been a difficult year for believers and non-believers alike.