Iraqi children happy to be back in school and unlearning the Islamic State lessons of hate

The school walls have a聽fresh coat of paint and classrooms are crammed 国产视频撀燽ut it will take聽longer to undo the damage done to thousands of Iraqi children聽who lived under Islamic State for more than two years.

Although the school term began officially in September, only聽this week have pupils in the northern town of Qayyara been聽reissued with standard Iraqi textbooks, which the militants聽replaced with their own in an attempt to brainwash a generation.聽

Islamic State (ISIL) was driven from the town three months ago in聽the early stages of a campaign to recapture the city of Mosul,聽which lies about 40 miles聽to the聽north and is now under聽assault by Iraqi security forces backed by a US-led coalition.

As ISIL国产视频檚 self-proclaimed caliphate is eroded, a聽clearer picture is emerging of the group国产视频檚 project and the聽enduring mark left on those who lived through it.聽

国产视频淲e are happy to be back at school,国产视频� said eight-year-old聽Iman, who like most of her classmates stopped attending classes聽after ISIL took control. 国产视频淭hey wanted us to come but we聽didn国产视频檛 want to because we don国产视频檛 know how to study in their聽language, the language of violence.国产视频�

When the militants overran the area in the summer of 2014,聽they allowed schools to run as normal, local people said. But聽later they banned subjects they considered un-Islamic such as聽geography, history and civic education, and used boys国产视频� schools聽as a recruiting ground.聽

The following school year, beginning in 2015, Islamic State聽imposed an entirely new curriculum to inculcate children with聽their ideology. Maths exercises were expressed in terms of聽weapons and ammunition: 国产视频渙ne bullet plus two bullets equals how聽many bullets?国产视频�.聽

At that point, most parents stopped sending their children聽to school聽and many pupils who were old enough to make up their聽minds left voluntarily.聽

As a result, most children have been set back by two grades. And since some teachers have been displaced by the violence,聽there is only one teacher for roughly every 80 pupils at the聽girls国产视频� school in Qayyara. 聽

国产视频淭hey have forgotten their lessons国产视频� Now we are reminding聽them,国产视频� said their teacher Maha Nadhem Kadhem, pacing around the聽classroom, in which four girls are squeezed onto each bench made聽for two. 国产视频淲e don国产视频檛 want them to be illiterate and ignorant.国产视频澛�

The headmistress, who asked to remain unnamed, said Islamic聽State国产视频檚 vice squad known as聽the Hisba had made regular visits to聽the school to ensure compliance with the group国产视频檚 strict dress聽code for women and girls.聽Others such as Farouq Mahjoub, the assistant headmaster of a聽secondary school for boys in Qayyara, said he had been聽threatened with death unless he turned up to work, even though聽no pupils came to class by the end. 聽 聽 聽聽

国产视频淭he biggest impact is on children,国产视频� said Mahjoub, whose聽school was hit by an airstrike several months ago. 国产视频淐hildren are聽malleable; you can change their opinion and beliefs quickly.国产视频�

Mahjoub said children behaved more aggressively than before聽and that the games they play聽now are violent, estimating it聽would take no less than five years to reverse the damage, even聽if a plan to rehabilitate them was put into effect.

Missing from the classroom in the girls国产视频� school are dozens聽of pupils whose male relatives were associated with ISIL聽and are no longer welcome in Qayyara. Mahjoub said around聽10 of his own students had joined the militants.

Behind the school are the remains of a car bomb that has yet聽to be removed and the sky is聽dark with smoke from oil wells the聽militants set ablaze, making it hard to breathe and turning聽sheep black.