As IS withdraws, Mosul residents face harsh conditions and seek government aid – i24NEWS (press release) (registration)

One resident of the war-torn Iraqi city tells i24NEWS that he longs for the return of dictator Saddam Hussein

Eastern Mosul has come back to life, despite the ongoing battle in the west of the city between so-called Islamic State fighters and Iraqi government forces.

It is a welcome beginning of normality for residents, but it is still far from what was once Iraq's second largest city.

Less than six months after Iraqi forces pushed IS militants out of this part of the city, huge efforts are going into rebuilding it. Municipal workers and builders are laboring day and night, trying to restore electricity and pave the streets.

In the shadow of destruction - buildings riddled with bullets, others flattened to the ground - construction workers are twisting steel and mixing concrete in an attempt to help the city rise again.

The old market is bustling with people, the shops full of goods and the sidewalks are bustling with street vendors and shoppers looking for a bargain.

One Mosul shopkeeper, Haj Ahmad Abu Hakam, told i24NEWS that he reopened his shop soon after the Islamic State left.

It is much better, under the Islamic State the situation was bad but now thank God it's better, there are more work opportunities available, and many people who left are coming back, Abu Hakam said.

But few people in the city are actually carrying bags full of goods. Abu Omar, a displaced person from west Mosul, said that the citizens are living off of handouts and that life is a struggle.

Since we fled, we only received sugar and cooking oil once and we paid for it. We are living on handouts, what people give us," Abu Omar said. "We dont pay rent, the owner lets me and my family live there for free. There is security but life is hard and is expensive.

Despite promises by officials, living conditions are only slowly improving.

Sabah Abu Faisal, who was displaced from the West side of Mosul due to the fighting, stated that he believes he was deceived by the new Iraqi authority.

Im sorry but they are all liars, they have no credibility, they act just in front of the camera, no food supplies, Ive been here for three months and I did not receive anything from them," Abu Faisal said.

Under a huge billboard of Kathem Asaher, the Arab world's most famous singer with the words love has arrived, residents of east Mosul are complaining about their representatives and there is no love for the government. Many have called for the old government to return like Mosul resident Abu Ali, who longs for the days of late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

Saddam was a dictator and they brought us democracy. We dont want democracy. Take us back to dictatorship. Take us back to the oppression of Saddam - we dont want democracy.

Abu Ali is uncertain about the future as many around him are unhappy with the lack of electricity, the shortage of water and the scarcity of jobs.

Another sensitive issue in the city is the presence of "collaborators" who reportedly helped IS militants as well as ex- IS fighters but Mosul resident Rafee Khoder Elias insisted that that situation is improving

Its good, its getting better ... 100 percent, with cooperation with the citizens its continuing to get better, God willing.

While on the other side of the Tigris River, in west Mosul, the fighting is fierce.

Iraqi government forces backed by a US-led coalition said they will soon be victorious there as well but, for the Iraqi government, the real battle is just beginning, and it's all about winning the hearts and minds of its own people.

Excerpt from:

As IS withdraws, Mosul residents face harsh conditions and seek government aid - i24NEWS (press release) (registration)