Sadness and joy: Christians in Mosul celebrate first Christmas since Isil's defeat.
AA church in Mosul has hosted the first Christmas service since the city was liberated from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil).
Saint Paul’s Church in east Mosul celebrated Christmas mass on Sunday amid tight security.
At least 100 Christians were in attendance, with a large number of Muslims coming to support their friends and neighbours.
Christians in the congregation spoke of the need to stake a place for Christians in the city's future after three years of persecution by the radical Islamists.
“Our faith and our hope was to be here to evangelise on our earth and in our town,” says Father Thabet Habib “ This pushed us to come here and to celebrate the mass and to tell all the world that we are here as Christians.”
