MOSUL, Iraq — Christmas remains a sad affair in Mosul, a city that once hosted a lively Christian community, even two years after its liberation from the Islamic State (IS).

This is largely because most of the Christians who fled five years ago have not come back and few churches have been renovated to bring back the Christmas spirit of the past, Samer Elias, a Christian Iraqi researcher and writer, told Al-Monitor. 

Elias’ book, "Mosul Churches, History and Pain," which was published in November, documents how Mosul’s churches and other Christian heritage sites were destroyed by IS. Elias calls on the Iraqi authorities to allocate more financial resources for the restoration and reconstruction of these churches, pointing out that the current process is very slow.

“Only one church has been rebuilt in Mosul — the Chaldean Church of St. Paul in al-Muhandisin district. The reconstruction was financed by the Chaldean Patriarchate, in cooperation with an Italian institution. UNESCO is currently working on the construction of two churches in the western part of Mosul — the Dominican Fathers Church known as the Our Lady of the Hour Church, and the Syriac Immaculate Church,” Elias said.