Worshippers in southern Lebanon's Qlayaa celebrate Palm Sunday

Despite escalating conflict with Israel, Christians in Qlayaa gather for Palm Sunday mass, highlighting faith amid growing instability in southern Lebanon.

Reuters

29 March 2026 at 14:25:49

A man sells vegetables outside St. Touma Melkite Catholic Church on the day of Palm Sunday celebrations, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran continues, in Tyre, Lebanon, March 29, 2026.

Yara Nardi/Reuters

Christians in the Lebanese village of Qlayaa marked Palm Sunday (March 29) with a mass at Saint Georges Church, despite the ongoing conflict with Israel in the country’s south.

Palm Sunday marks the day Christians believe Jesus entered Jerusalem and was welcomed by crowds waving palm branches, which later became a symbol of faith.

Last week, Israel has said it will seize a chunk of southern Lebanon to create a "buffer zone" against Hezbollah militants, stoking fears among Lebanese of Israeli military occupation that could deepen instability and stoke further displacement.

Israel's troops are clashing with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and its warplanes have heavily bombed the south, the east and the capital Beirut. More than 1 million people have been displaced and more than 1,000 have been killed, including more than 120 children, 80 women and 40 medics, Lebanon's health ministry says. It does not otherwise distinguish between civilians and militants.

Production: Karamallah Daher, Jihed Abidellaoui/Reuters