Christian Iraqi town Bartella returns to normal life after Daesh extremists driven out

[TomSea]

Christian Iraqi town Bartella returns to normal life after Daesh extremists driven out

For the first time in two years bells can be heard again in the northern Iraqi village of Bartella, pealing from the local church, which unlike many other structures is still standing.

Now located just behind the frontlines of the battle for Mosul, Bartella bears the scars of heavy fighting after the last Daesh extremist fighters were expelled, leaving a scene of devastation behind.

The walls of the Mart Shmuny church are charred, hymn books lie scattered around the building between the dust-covered pews, and only the keyboard remains of its electric organ. The statue of a revered clergyman that once stood in the courtyard is missing, while the daubings of Daesh fighters on an adjacent building show what they thought of the Christians: "Allah stands above the cross."

Armoured vehicles of the Iraqi military now thunder along the narrow village streets, their doors adorned with the insignia of the elite anti-extremist unit that retook Bartella just a couple of days earlier. Trucks ferry in fuel and other supplies needed for the onward assault towards Mosul, their wheels throwing up clouds of dust into the murky grey air, with only a few glimmers of sun.

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