The inauguration of Mar Toma Church (Credit : Vatican Media)
CT News
Oct 17, 2025 : In the heart of Mosul’s Old City, politicians, clergymen and members of the faithful gathered to reinaugurate the Mar Toma and Al-Tahira churches, which had been vandalised and destroyed by so-called Islamic State.
When ISIS seized power in northern Iraq in 2014, they declared Mosul—Iraq's second-largest city, built on the ruins of ancient Nineveh—their capital.
Holy sites belonging to Iraq's many minority groups—Christians, Yazidis and others—were desecrated, and believers forced to flee.
When the city was finally liberated in 2017, after a year-long siege, the few residents who returned found their homes destroyed and religious buildings vandalised.
A ‘sign of hope’
Wednesday 15th October, marked a significant milestone in the process, with the inauguration of two restored historic churches in the heart of Mosul's Old City.
Local politicians, Christian clergy and members of the faithful had packed the Syriac Orthodox Church of Mar Toma, which dates back to the 7th century, and the 18th-century Chaldean Church of Al-Tahira.
Restored and renewed, they now stand as powerful symbols of hope, resilience, and coexistence.
Related reading :
.png)
.png)
.png)