(9 Apr 2017) Dozens of Christians attended the Palm Sunday Mass in Hamdaniya, near Mosul, on Sunday.
The city was once considered the Christian capital of Iraq and the heart of the region.
Nowadays Hamdaniya is almost empty.
Most of the residents abandoned their homes and only went back on Sunday to attend the mass in Al Tahira church.
The area had been used by the Islamic State group (IS) as a shooting training field.
Located about 32 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of Mosul, it fell under the control of IS in 2014, prompting thousands to abandon their homes.
The town was under IS control until October 2016, when the battle for Mosul began and Iraqi forces, together with the help of the US-led coalition, liberated the region.
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