Hajj pilgrims in limbo can’t wait to return to ISIS-held Mosul

It’s a recent day at a mosque in Kirkuk and Hajji Jamal, 62, is sitting down dejectedly next to his old friend Abdullah. The men both look tired and angry, exposing the urgent and counter-intuitive problem they face: how to find the fastest way back inside the ISIS-held city of Mosul.
 
The problem started nearly two months ago, when the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) belied its fearsome reputation for cruelty and allowed some 600 Mosul residents, all men and women above the age of 60, to take part in the annual Hajj pilgrimage to the sacred Muslim city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
 
The trip to Islam’s holiest site went as planned, Jamal and his companions said, but their journey stalled after flying into Sulaimani without being told why they were flown there. After that, Baghdad’s Ministry of Religious Affairs transferred the group to Kirkuk. Now, they are being told the road home is unsafe to travel.
 
For now, the pilgrims are stuck in Kirkuk’s Topzawa district and have been forced to call on the governments of Iraq and the Kurdistan region to allow them safe passage to Mosul - a city that has become synonymous with beheadings, brutal interpretations of Sharia law and airstrikes.
 
Leaving the terrorist stronghold was the easy part, according to Jamal. He said many in the group were asked to leave the titles of their homes -- not to mention -- their loved ones, in the hands of ISIS in order to guarantee their return.
 
“They (ISIS fighters at checkpoints) did not even question us. They just checked our passports and a list that contained our names,” said Jamal, who like all the pilgrims asked that only his first name be used.
 
The questionable logic of returning to a city in the tight grip of the radical and often deadly extremist group does not seem to bother the returning pilgrims at all.


 The Mosul pilgrims claim they can easily go back to the ISIS-held city. Photo by Farzin Hasan 

‘LIFE IS NORMAL’

“We have never been punished by Daesh (ISIS). People think we live in hell, but it is not the case. We, the regular people, gave up everything to God and live a normal life,” said Abdullah, who was more worried about airstrikes by the US-led coalition to fight ISIS and the potential damage to his properties.
 
Abdullah doesn’t deny that violence, killing and beheadings do occur inside the city. But he believes such punishment is reserved only for former-military officers and spies.
 
Aisha, 66, and six other women were lying on cots inside the mosque’s biggest hall, accompanied by at least 30 other women. Like Jamal and Abdullah, all the women wanted was to find a way back home. Also similar to the men, Aisha painted a surprising picture of life inside Mosul.
 
“Shopping is really cheap. We used to buy one kilo of meat at 15,000 Iraqi dinars ($13.50) and now we buy it at 6,000 ID ($5.50),” said Aisha.
 
She explained that many young people are jobless, including all those in her family and the people she knows. 
 
“Services are satisfactory. We almost always have water and they (ISIS) provides five amps of electricity for each house, which is not a lot, but we have it round the clock,” she said.
 
Earlier this year, the militants in control of Mosul released a series of propaganda videos showing images allegedly showing the minting and circulation of the radical group’s new currency.
 
“We heard about the new currency, but until now we use the same currency you use here, except for the 500 ID bill, which they (ISIS) won’t accept,” Aisha said.   


 The pilgrims are marooned at the mosque. Photo by Farzin Hasan

STUCK IN LIMBO
 
The Mosul pilgrims claim they can easily go back to the ISIS-held city if the Iraqi government or Kurdish officials let them return the same way they left, which was by car from Mosul to Baghdad.
 
Meanwhile, authorities appear disinclined to accept responsibility for the group.
 
A source from the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Endowments told Rudaw on condition of anonymity that the issue of the Mosul pilgrims is not under its authority and that Baghdad’s Ministry of Religious Affairs is accountable in the areas that are not part of the Kurdistan region, including Mosul.
 
Sarhad Qadir, police chief of Kirkuk province, said the best way to get back was the Baghdad-Mosul highway, but he was concerned about safety.
 
“If they want to go back, we don’t have any problem with that. But the only available way is from Hawija, which is not safe and is heavily booby trapped. Even those who escape from the city have been killed or wounded by landmines,” said Qadir.
 
He was also worried the pilgrims would set off alarms with ISIS on their way back to the city.

“The Hajjis are numerous, and they might even be shot at by ISIS if their cars get close to their zone,” he said.
 
Abdullah said it’s a risk he and others are willing to take. After all, he said, he has heart disease and his family of 10 in Mosul is worried about his health.
 
“We are regular people. We have no problem with Daesh (ISIS). They know us, they have our names in the list they have, so why would they banned us from going home?” asked Abdullah.

As it stands, the pilgrims are marooned at the mosque, waiting for authorities to allow them to return to Mosul.
 
“The situation is not perfect, but we have been receiving all the necessities, from food to medicine, at this mosque,” said Hajji Jamal, in a sad voice.
 
“Yet all we want is to go back home and rejoin our families.”