![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/I4T667Q4IOZKNNT7HWYLBNBD74.jpg?smart=true&auth=b543b7a3dfd6cb9169ffd7fa8652f0db58e0e2fc597d42dccbb0b572ef72c706&width=400&height=225)
Officials say nearly 15 per cent of the city was destroyed during the conflict with ISIS.
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Tourists visit the ancient city of Hatra in northern Iraq. All photos: AFP
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The ancient city was destroyed by ISIS in 2015.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/JFOJYRDUCRPA6KKKQUJRWZTU5M.jpg?smart=true&auth=93b6519576b23ad6ef9b6b2f12c4c72402bb448b2b62c6fa7027203d32b8f92a&width=400&height=225)
A group of tourists visit the ancient city of Hatra in northern Iraq on September 10, 2022, as local authority initiatives seek to encourage tourism and turn the page on the years of violence by the Islamic State IS group. - Five years after the defeat IS, Mosul and its surroundings are regaining some semblance of normality, even if reconstruction is slow and the cities still show the scars of the destructive fighting that drove out the jihadists. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
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The city is Unesco-listed and was once famed for its cultural diversity.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/YGW246SQ4L6TFIR7M67STQZTDQ.jpg?smart=true&auth=3b377bf59ccca7c7f52b13cd716fb35a3da71e3e55db2c2635bb3113024f38b9&width=400&height=225)
Five years after the defeat of ISIS, Mosul and its surroundings are regaining some semblance of normality with the first tourists visiting Hatra.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/LJJUWMX7X45TN27DVAPMXA75BI.jpg?smart=true&auth=9394d6f5bdff19ae5b98f607cf39d8cf72259db021bc1c2f3aaad100c440cb93&width=400&height=225)
A tourist explores the ancient city of Hatra in northern Iraq.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/BVG2O3M7X73ZZCSO5QNIWIM2OE.jpg?smart=true&auth=3b066f350c5d31f808ec5b58bdfb2559abd12a5c2be2413266c8c29befd3a35b&width=400&height=225)
At its peak, Hatra covered an area of 299 hectares and sat at the crossroads of major trade routes between the Roman and Parthian Empires.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/I4T667Q4IOZKNNT7HWYLBNBD74.jpg?smart=true&auth=b543b7a3dfd6cb9169ffd7fa8652f0db58e0e2fc597d42dccbb0b572ef72c706&width=400&height=225)
Officials say nearly 15 per cent of the city was destroyed during the conflict with ISIS.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/Y7ZV4XCZCUMLICXTQNXTKVHLEQ.jpg?smart=true&auth=9c9aa308d9e235f0b3675ab55fa8dd14c9361ce3bedf7262d705b387776e1e7a&width=400&height=225)
Tourists visit the ancient city of Hatra in northern Iraq. All photos: AFP
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/JNBE7QPPJTVSSJLQPZ5WFWSR4A.jpg?smart=true&auth=1622160bde433d35cb4ab38843be58bf63c20fb350bf3506daaf341a0cb466a8&width=400&height=225)
The ancient city was destroyed by ISIS in 2015.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/JFOJYRDUCRPA6KKKQUJRWZTU5M.jpg?smart=true&auth=93b6519576b23ad6ef9b6b2f12c4c72402bb448b2b62c6fa7027203d32b8f92a&width=400&height=225)
A group of tourists visit the ancient city of Hatra in northern Iraq on September 10, 2022, as local authority initiatives seek to encourage tourism and turn the page on the years of violence by the Islamic State IS group. - Five years after the defeat IS, Mosul and its surroundings are regaining some semblance of normality, even if reconstruction is slow and the cities still show the scars of the destructive fighting that drove out the jihadists. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/SPYE4KGGVZHQNFETKLR6NDQUGU.jpg?smart=true&auth=7baae46bb69896da006cd00e1e7da0ba901e804bdf6db0fbee2e03533074f469&width=400&height=225)
The city is Unesco-listed and was once famed for its cultural diversity.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/YGW246SQ4L6TFIR7M67STQZTDQ.jpg?smart=true&auth=3b377bf59ccca7c7f52b13cd716fb35a3da71e3e55db2c2635bb3113024f38b9&width=400&height=225)
Five years after the defeat of ISIS, Mosul and its surroundings are regaining some semblance of normality with the first tourists visiting Hatra.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/LJJUWMX7X45TN27DVAPMXA75BI.jpg?smart=true&auth=9394d6f5bdff19ae5b98f607cf39d8cf72259db021bc1c2f3aaad100c440cb93&width=400&height=225)
A tourist explores the ancient city of Hatra in northern Iraq.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/BVG2O3M7X73ZZCSO5QNIWIM2OE.jpg?smart=true&auth=3b066f350c5d31f808ec5b58bdfb2559abd12a5c2be2413266c8c29befd3a35b&width=400&height=225)
At its peak, Hatra covered an area of 299 hectares and sat at the crossroads of major trade routes between the Roman and Parthian Empires.
![](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/I4T667Q4IOZKNNT7HWYLBNBD74.jpg?smart=true&auth=b543b7a3dfd6cb9169ffd7fa8652f0db58e0e2fc597d42dccbb0b572ef72c706&width=400&height=225)
Officials say nearly 15 per cent of the city was destroyed during the conflict with ISIS.
Iraq welcomes tourists to explore the ancient ruins of Hatra
The Unesco World Heritage Site features monuments and statues that have been restored after destruction wrought by ISIS
![Hayley Skirka](https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/v2/https%3A%2F%2Fs3.amazonaws.com%2Farc-authors%2Fthenational%2F5aa171d9-e19e-4724-894f-afdab957726f.png?smart=true&auth=0060497e4d6de279036bf67ee0e69c23726110ddc9067f6419a245b2b05cf91d&width=70&height=70)
Hayley Skirka
12 September, 2022
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