RAMALLAH, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- The number of tourists to the occupied Palestinian territories increased by 15 percent in 2019, Palestinian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Rula Maayah said Monday.
"The number of tourists who have visited Palestine since the beginning of this year has exceeded 3,520,000, with an increase of 15.4 percent compared with 2018," she said in a press statement.
"American, Russian, Romanian, Polish, and Italian nationals top the list of tourists as the five most visited nationalities in Palestine," Maayah added.
The publication of the tourists' statistics came on the eve of Christmas that is mainly celebrated in the West Bank city of Bethlehem where the Church of the Nativity is located.
The Palestinian minister also pointed to her ministry's work on the restoration of many archaeological sites in an effort to create tourist attractions.
