Iraq reopens historic Mosul mosque eight years after Islamic State destruction

Al-Nuri Mosque (Hadi Mizban/AP)

Iraq’s prime minister has presided over the official reopening of the historic al-Nuri Grand Mosque and its leaning minaret in the heart of Mosul’s Old City, eight years after it was destroyed by militants from the Islamic State group.

For some 850 years, the leaning minaret of the mosque stood as a famous landmark. In 2014, IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared the so-called “caliphate” there by delivering a Friday sermon and leading prayers.