Pilgrims flock to Jerusalem after two-year break

Father Rami Asakriyah sprinkles holy water on palm fronds during the Palm Sunday service at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. [Reuters]

Prayers in Arabic and Latin echoed in the rotunda of Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Sunday as Christians from around the world were once again able to attend Palm Sunday mass after two years of Covid-19 travel restrictions.

Around 500 worshippers passed through the huge wooden doors of the church that is the focus of the most important festival in the Christian calendar as the site where Jesus is believed to have been crucified and resurrected.