Iraqi Christians celebrate first Easter since ISIL defeat

Iraqi Christians of Hamdaniya, in the Nineveh plains near Mosul city in northern Iraq, are returning home to celebrate Easter there for the first time since the defeat of the Islamic State group.

Many Christians in Iraq will be able to pray and gather together at Easter for the first time since the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL, also known as ISIS).

In the northern city of Mosul, the armed group destroyed many churches, and Christians fled the area.

Now the Christian community is on a mission to rebuild itself, but it is not without challenges.

Al Jazeera’s Imran Khan reports from Baghdad.