ASIA/IRAQ - The monastery of St. George in Mosul damaged, but not destroyed

Mosul (Agenzia Fides) - The jihadists of the Islamic State (Is) have damaged the façade of the ancient monastery of St. George in Mosul. But the church – report Iraqi sources to Agenzia Fides – has not been destroyed, contrary to rumors in the media that spoke of its total demolition. A photo published exclusively on ankawa.com website shows the church with a destroyed facade.
The destructive fury of the jihadists focused on the facade of the place of worship for its special architectural configuration. The crosses that stood on the dome and roof of the monastery had been removed by jihadists already in December, similarly to what happened to the other churches in the territories controlled by the Islamic State. Local sources and the photo published by the Iraqi website confirms that the cemetery adjacent to the church, where the bodies of many Iraqi Christians soldiers killed during the Iraq-Iran war are buried, was destroyed.
In recent times, according to news confirmed by various sources, the monastery of St. George had been used by jihadists as a place of detention. In December, there were at least 150 prisoners who were transferred blindfolded and handcuffed, including some chief tribal Sunni opponents of the Islamic State and former members of the security apparatus, previously held in the prison in Badush. Previously, local sources had reported to Agenzia Fides that groups of women were brought to the same monastery. "We are saddened by what is happening to the monastery - says to Agenzia Fides Sister Luigina, superior of the Chaldean sisters in Rome, born and raised in Mosul". (GV) (Agenzia Fides 12/03/2015)