LOUIS KAMIL Qaraqosh (Iraq) "Welcome to Iraq, Pope Francis." KATREEN HABASH/ HADEEL KAJA Qaraqosh (Iraq) "For those of us who experienced a lot of struggles when we fled ISIS, we need a message of hope from someone like Pope Francis." Fr. GEORGE JAHOLA Director Church supreme board reconstruction Baghdeda "We began preparing for Pope Francis' visit about 2 months ago amidst many challenges. We started gathering the youth, decorating the city with flags, with pictures of the Pope. This logo was made just for his visit to Qaraqosh; it is the logo that our young people created." A long-awaited visit by Pope Francis to the many Christians of the Nineveh Plain in Iraq, the first by a Pontiff in the land of Abraham. From Baghdad, to Mosul, passing through Qaraqosh. Here the Christian community has re-established itself at the end of the long occupation by the Islamic State. F. George, among the organizers of the trip and Director of the Church supreme board, recounts the work of this committee, in the city that symbolizes the reconstruction after the destruction of almost 35%, from 2014 to 2017, by Daesh. Fr. GEORGE JAHOLA Director Church supreme board reconstruction Baghdeda "We thought we would simply find an abandoned city. But 2 weeks after the liberation the satellite maps revealed a real tragedy: burnt churches, demolished bell towers, burnt houses. We classified the houses in 3 categories: category "A" those totally destroyed, about 62 houses; category "B" burnt or partially destroyed houses, about 2100 and category "C," those with little damage which were about 4774." The Reconstruction Committee in May 2017 had about 22 employees and over the years has rebuilt about 57% of the homes. Today, due to limited funding it has been reduced to just a few people. Fr. GEORGE JAHOLA Director Church supreme board reconstruction Baghdeda "We want the city of Qaraqosh, which we prefer to call Baghdeda, because that is the name in Aramaic, our language, to return as it was before. Today, the people who contributed to the reconstruction of the city want to live in peace in this land." Wandering through the streets of the old city, Fr. George guides us to Alaa's home. He and his family have benefited from the Committee's help, and have been able to return to an almost normal life. ALAA ESHOO Qaraqosh (Iraq) "With the rise of Isis we fled to Kurdistan, where we stayed 3 years. Certainly the Fr. George Committee allowed us to return because they helped us rebuild our home so that we could live there." ALAA’S MOTHER Qaraqosh (Iraq) "When we escaped, it was night; we left everything behind.... Thank God we managed to escape, but when we came back ... we stepped on black soil, ashes: our houses were emptied, burned... I thank God, the important thing is that we were saved. Money, houses are nothing comparable to human life, because money comes and goes but life is priceless." Fr. GEORGE JAHOLA Director Church supreme board reconstruction Baghdeda "This visit will give people strength, will encourage Christians to stay in this land, will give a moral incentive to be witnesses in this land. So we await him with much joy. His visit will bring a change to our lives, to our relationships with others: "we are all brothers" this is the Pope's message and this is what we want to live in this land." Read More