(17 Apr 2022) IRAQ EASTER
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
LENGTH: 2:58
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Qaraqosh, Iraq - 16 April 2022
1. Various of Christian faithful and clergy marking Easter at ceremony in church
2. Christian faithful praying and cheering
3. Priests starting Mass at church
4. Various of Easter Mass
5. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Hana Stefou, teacher from Qaraqosh:
"Honestly, we have many (relatives) who left due to the incidents (insecurity) that occurred here and I wish they would come back. I wish I could see them, I mean my sister, my nephews and nieces. We have many people who left and I wish they would return, so we could reunite again. This is what everyone wishes for, along with peace in Iraq. Nothing is more important than peace."
6. Various of people attending Easter ceremony at church
7. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Salim Ilyas, bishop at church in Qaraqosh:
"Yes, there is still migration, but there are also people coming back from Irbil (in the Kurdish autonomy), though at a slow pace. The migration is continuing and we want that to stop. We want this ongoing migration to stop so that the genuine Iraqi Christians get to stay here, hold on to their roots and land, in order to continue their path."
8. Various of Mass service, people praying
9. Statue of St. Mary at church
10. Various of faithful attending Mass
11. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Sofia Matti, resident of Qaraqosh:
"All everyone wishes for this holiday, which we call the big holiday or Easter, is to have their loved ones and relatives beside them to celebrate together. It is true that there is social media that makes it possible for people to call and congratulate each other, but it is not like celebrating together. Celebrating together is nicer, of course."
12. Various of priest offering sacramental bread to people at church
13. Church choir singing at end of Mass
14. Various of Mass
15. St. Mary statue in front of church
LEADIN:
As they mark Easter this year, Iraq Christians long to reunite with the family members who have left Qaraqosh .
Iraq's Christian communities in the area were dealt a severe blow when they were scattered by the IS onslaught in 2014.
STORYLINE:
Hundreds of Iraqi Christians got together to celebrate Easter on Saturday in Qaraqosh in northern Iraq.
For Christians, Easter is a day of joy and hope, as they mark their belief that Jesus triumphed over death by resurrection following his crucifixion.
Worshippers in Qaraqosh attended Easter Mass at the city's main church, filling it up.
But for many Christians in Qaraqosh, the day was overshadowed by longing for all those who could not attend the celebration.
Iraq's Christian communities in the area were dealt a severe blow when they were scattered by the IS onslaught in 2014, further shrinking the country's already dwindling Christian population.
"We have many (relatives) who left due to the incidents (insecurity) that occurred here and I wish they would come back," says Hana Stefou, a teacher from Qaraqosh.
"I wish I could see them, I mean my sister, my nephews and nieces... I wish they would return, so we could reunite," she added.
The IS juggernaut and the long war to drive the militants out left ransacked homes and charred or pulverized buildings around the north.
But the biggest loss perhaps has been the people.
Traditionally Christian towns across the plains of Nineveh virtually emptied out and, by some of the widely varying estimates, fewer than half of the Christians who fled have returned.
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