Religious school in Iraqi holy city reopens for first time since pandemic - in pictures

In-person classes have resumed at the Al-Hawza Al-Ilmiyyah school in Najaf, Iraq

Pakistani Muhammad Azzam Saqi, right, in the shrine of Imam Ali – the first time the religious school Al-Hawza Al-Ilmiyyah has been open since the Covid-19 outbreak, in the holy city of Najaf, Iraq.

Shiite clerics look at book summaries on library stationery at the reopening of Al-Hawza Al-Ilmiyyah in Najaf, Iraq.

Shiite clerics at study in the shrine of Imam Ali at Al-Hawza Al-Ilmiyyah in Najaf.

A view of the shrine of Imam Aliat Al-Hawza Al-Ilmiyyah in Najaf, Iraq.

A class at the religious school Al-Hawza Al-Ilmiyyah, in Najaf, which has opened again after the pandemic.

Shiite clerics in the shrine of Imam Ali in Najaf, Iraq.

A Shiite cleric browses literature at the religious school.

Shiite clerics in the shrine of Imam Ali.