Residents return to Makhmour three years after ISIS

After three years of displacement at the hands of ISIS militants, displaced residents of liberated Aliyawa village in Makhmour town, south of Erbil,  are beginning to return home, under the encouragement of Kurdish President Masoud Barzani. 

Although the residents are happy to return to their homes, which suffered large-scale destruction, they are requesting the help of the government to clear debris as well as provide basic necessary services.

Of an estimated 100 families that call Aliyawa village home, only 54 have  returned.

Officials say they are working to help the inhabitants of another five villages in Makhmour also return home.