SW News: On April 14, the formerly Islamic State-held Iraqi city of Qaraqosh witnessed the first Holy Communion of 115 Christian children at St. John the Baptist church in Baghdida. The Divine Liturgy was presided over by Archbishop Benedict Younan Hanno of the Diocese of Mosul.

Fr. Karam Shamasha, a Chaldean Catholic priest, shared the Holy Communion pictures on Twitter. Captioning the images, he wrote, "The number of students was 115 students, where they received formation, Christian education and liturgy for about six months."

In 2022, he ecstatically announced the news of the First Holy Communion of 172 children in the “region that was heavily attacked by ISIS militants a few years ago to exterminate Christians.”

The city of Qaraqosh was almost completely destroyed when it was occupied by ISIS from 2014 to 2016. After the defeat of the terrorist organization in 2017, only half the population that fled has returned. Rebuilding efforts are going on with the help of various NGOs.

During his Apostolic Journey to Iraq in 2021, Pope Francis visited the Church of Immaculate Conception in Qaraqosh and addressed the faithful saying that "The last word belongs to God and to his Son, the conqueror of sin and death.” “Even amid the ravages of terrorism and war, we can see, with the eyes of faith, the triumph of life over death,” Pope Francis added.