At the foot of a 12th century minaret, workers are busy surrounded by bricks and alabaster saved from jihadist destruction.
To revive the old city of Mosul, a metropolis in northern Iraq, mosques, churches and centuries-old houses are being rebuilt.
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With its winding streets, the district was the last redoubt where the fighters of the Islamic State (IS) group had retreated, delivering fierce resistance to the Iraqi forces which had reconquered the city in the summer of 2017. Thanks to Unesco and its initiative
Reviving the Spirit of Mosul
, several projects are underway, financed in particular by the United Arab Emirates and the European Union.
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On the esplanade of the al-Nouri mosque, only the base of an 850-year-old leaning minaret remains, nicknamed Al-Hadba,
the hunchback,
and covered with a protective tarpaulin.
"Al-Hadba is the symbol of Mosul
," says Omar Taqa, an engineer supervising the work for Unesco.
“All the inhabitants hope to see the minaret as it was”.
The site was destroyed in June 2017, the Iraqi army accusing the jihadists of having placed explosives there.
Only the central part of the mosque, topped with a dome, has survived, an empty shell on arches supported by wooden wedges.
Surmounting the gray marble columns, hints of blue enhance the interlacing of the capitals.
"We found 11 mines ready to be activated"
, remembers the engineer.
"Some hidden inside the walls."
After clearing 5,600 tons of rubble, the reconstruction of the minaret, which will remain leaning, begins in mid-March.
Then the work of the mosque will begin this summer.
The site should be restored at the end of 2023.
$110 million mobilized
While waiting for an identical reconstruction, the most fragile vestiges are kept in a warehouse.
There are the fragments of a Mihrab, a niche indicating the direction of Mecca.
But also the parts of a Minbar, pulpit for the preaching on which the former leader of the EI had climbed to proclaim his
caliphate
in 2014. Terracotta bricks are aligned on shelves.
45,000 will be reused, a third of the original structure of the minaret, explains Omar Taqa.
The site still holds many surprises.
In January, authorities announced that they had discovered a 12th-century prayer hall underground.
In total, Unesco mobilized 110 million dollars.
In addition to Al-Nouri, two churches are under construction, Al-Tahira and Notre-Dame de l'Heure, with around a hundred houses as well as the neighborhood school.
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Entrusted to local companies, the sites have enabled the creation of 3,100 jobs, half of which are occupied by young people who have benefited from training in heritage and building restoration trades, according to the UN agency.
In the old town, Azhar used to sell fruit on a cart.
He is now a worker on the Al-Nouri construction site.
"Houses, streets were destroyed, people were moved to camps
," says the 48-year-old father of five.
“Everyone has suffered.
There are those who have lost loved ones, those who have lost their house, their shop, their car.
Under the exhortations of his comrades, he refuses to speak of his deceased wife, a wound still raw.
Reconstruction and rehabilitation of infrastructure
Despite half-collapsed buildings, normality has regained its rights.
Cafes, workshops and bakeries have reopened.
At the bend of an alley, two women choose tomatoes and beans from the greengrocer, a few steps from busy workers around a cement mixer.
Alley after alley, houses are soon finished.
Some are between 100 and 150 years old.
Through the maze of terraces and interior courtyards, one finds elegant alabaster facades, carved with motifs of Ottoman inspiration.
"There are 44 housing units almost finished, they will be delivered at the end of March
," engineer Mostafa Nadhim told AFP.
Another 75 are to be rebuilt by the end of the year.
The project includes the rehabilitation of infrastructure:
"Electric cables, lampposts, water pipes, and the pavement of the streets"
, adds Mostafa Nadhim.
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A few months ago, Ikhlas Salim moved back into her home.
After the war, the building was completely destroyed.
The restoration had a
“therapeutic”
effect .
"It's the grandparents' house
," says the 55-year-old woman.
"We had lost hope of coming back."
In the courtyard, the linen dries in the sun, stretched out on a line.
Ikhlas is warming up beans for his two boys, who are coming home for lunch for the midday break.
They worked all morning on construction sites in the neighborhood.
