The annual religious olive-pressing tradition in Dohuk - in pictures
Members of the Yazidi religious community take part in an annual olive-pressing tradition, at a temple in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region. All photos:AFP
Each year, more than 300 volunteers pick and squeeze olives from the Lalish temple grove, in a valley near the Kurdish city of Dohuk
Volunteers fill canvas bags with olives
A canvas bag is washed before it is used
The oil is used daily to light the temple's 365 sacred lamps, numbered to the days of the year
It is also used for other religious occasions, such as the Yazidi New Year
Straining the oil to remove solids and impurities
Many hands make light work
The tradition has been passed down for generations
Pouring the freshly pressed olive oil into a boiling cauldron
Keeping the fire burning under the cauldron, while boiling the freshly pressed olive oil
