A jubilant priest skips along the street, whipping up a crowd. The hymns of a young choir pierce the morning cold.
Not long ago, this scene would have been impossible. Barely five years have passed since ISIS gunmen patrolled the streets of Qaraqosh, a town known as the home of Iraq’s Christian people.
Nestled on the Nineveh plains east of Mosul, it was overrun in ISIS’s rampage across Iraq in 2014.
The militants replaced crosses with their black flag and thousands of Christians fled.
Those unable to escape were killed or subjugated under the extremists' Christian tax.
Churches were ransacked, hymn books and benches were torched. One church was turned into a bomb factory.
Today, the Pope was in town as part of a historic trip, the first by a serving pontiff to Iraq.
Pope Francis, 84, trod in areas most western diplomats and foreign delegations refuse to include on their itineraries. They say it is too dangerous.
"Our people expected a visit from the Pope to Iraq but we didn't expect that he would visit Al Hamdaniya," Issam Bahnam, the Mayor of the town told The National using another name for Qaraqosh.
“In protocol, the Pope visits the capital of countries he arrives to, but a small city like Baghdeda or Qaraqosh is something unheard of. This visit will erase the pain our people went through.”
There were many reasons the trip might could been cancelled, with a precarious security situation and a critical healthcare crisis during a global pandemic being but two of them.
Then, just days before Pope Francis’s arrival, the Vatican’s envoy Mitja Leskovar tested positive for Covid-19.
It seemed the trip would be called off at any moment.
Yet so in need of a lift were Iraq’s Christians, let alone the rest of the country, that the Vatican insisted the trip go ahead even if it did so with the tightest of precautions.
Pope Francis arrived by helicopter from nearby Mosul, a flight of just a few minutes.
Then a meandering convoy of 50 vehicles, loaded with Iraqi Special Forces, Kurdish Peshmerga units and intelligence agents, escorted him the few hundred metres from the helicopter to Qaraqosh’s Church of the Immaculate Conception.
Above, low-flying helicopters with marksman hovered. Every person in town had either a gun or a balloon.
As the papal convoy passed crowds lining the rubble city’s main street, there were screams of ecstasy, even relief.
“Bring him to bless my baby,” shouted one woman, dangling her infant over the fence.
Although the effects of the country’s brutal war against ISIS continue to be present, with hundreds still missing and much of the town destroyed, it was forgiveness and perseverance the Pope was preaching.
"The road to a full recovery may still be long but I ask you, please, not to grow discouraged," he told those gathered in the church.
"What is needed is the ability to forgive, but also the courage not to give up."
The Vatican hopes that the visit might help stem a continuing departure of Christians from Iraq, a community that once numbered 1.5 million but had fallen to a few hundred thousand even before ISIS invaded.
A dire economy, political instability and a lack of reconstruction in places such as Qaraqosh leave few prospects for communities to return home.
Asylum with the support of churches in countries such as Canada and Australia is the most enticing option for an increasing number.
Mirron Ayoud said that although many of his friends had fled Iraq, the Pope’s visit encouraged him to stay.
“I’m 25, I don’t want to migrate," Mr Ayoud said. "I want to stay in my city, in my country.
“If things are stable and fine in Iraq I will never leave, and perhaps some of my friends will come back.
"They will see the Pope is here and they will come back and rebuild the city with me.
“Within 24 hours, everything became different in the whole city. The Pope has achieved something no Iraqi has managed yet – he gave us hope."
Yet, whether this euphoria can lead to any lasting, meaningful change is a question for another day, says Joni Kochar, 33, who waited for hours sitting on a wall to catch a glimpse of the Pope.
“I came with my friends to see the Pope and that’s what I did. I saw him wave and I’m happy,” Ms Kochar says.
“Tomorrow I’ll work out how to fix my community. Today I’ll enjoy the party.”
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
THREE
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Results
6.30pm: Madjani Stakes Group 2 (PA) Dh97,500 (Dirt) 1,900m, Winner: RB Frynchh Dude, Pat Cosgrave (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,400m, Winner: Mnasek, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson.
7.40pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Grand Dubai, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 2,200m, Winner: Meqdam, Sam Hitchcock, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Dubai Creek Mile Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Thegreatcollection, Pat Cosgrave, Doug Watson.
9.25pm: Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (D) 1,900m, Winner: Sanad Libya, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
10pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (D) 1,400m, Winner: Madkhal, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
How it works
1) The liquid nanoclay is a mixture of water and clay that aims to convert desert land to fertile ground
2) Instead of water draining straight through the sand, it apparently helps the soil retain water
3) One application is said to last five years
4) The cost of treatment per hectare (2.4 acres) of desert varies from $7,000 to $10,000 per hectare
More from Aya Iskandarani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
Results
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Dirt) 1,600m, Winner: Panadol, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
6.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m, Winner: Mayehaab, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh85,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Monoski, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (T) 1,800m, Winner: Eastern World, Royston Ffrench, Charlie Appleby
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Madkal, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
8.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 1,200m, Winner: Taneen, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company profile
Name: Back to Games and Boardgame Space
Started: Back to Games (2015); Boardgame Space (Mark Azzam became co-founder in 2017)
Founder: Back to Games (Mr Azzam); Boardgame Space (Mr Azzam and Feras Al Bastaki)
Based: Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Industry: Back to Games (retail); Boardgame Space (wholesale and distribution)
Funding: Back to Games: self-funded by Mr Azzam with Dh1.3 million; Mr Azzam invested Dh250,000 in Boardgame Space
Growth: Back to Games: from 300 products in 2015 to 7,000 in 2019; Boardgame Space: from 34 games in 2017 to 3,500 in 2019
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
Trippier bio
Date of birth September 19, 1990
Place of birth Bury, United Kingdom
Age 26
Height 1.74 metres
Nationality England
Position Right-back
Foot Right
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Babumoshai Bandookbaaz
Director: Kushan Nandy
Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami
Three stars
Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm
Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm
Women's exhibition
Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm
Friday December 28
5th place play-off 3pm
Men's semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm
Saturday December 29
3rd place play-off 5pm
Men's final 7pm
