Iraq News
Youth

In the streets of Mosul, young athletes run for peace

By Alaa Hussain in Baghdad

Iraqi youth from the Baghdad-based Sports Against Violence group take part in a peace run to show solidarity with the people of Mosul. [Photo courtesy of the Baghdad Marathon for Peace]

Iraqi youth from the Baghdad-based Sports Against Violence group take part in a peace run to show solidarity with the people of Mosul. [Photo courtesy of the Baghdad Marathon for Peace]

In recent months, even those who were most optimistic about Mosul’s future could not have imagined that the streets on the eastern bank of the Tigris would soon be transformed from a battleground into an athletic track.

But with a February 10th race through the Ninawa province city, the Sports Against Violence group succeeded in turning that dream of peace into reality.

Young people from across the country came together in the city for the run, to send a message to the people of Mosul and the world "that we wish to live in peace, love and security", media co-ordinator Ahmed al-Baghdadi told Diyaruna.

United in sports

The participants chose to express their message through sports, he said, "as sports unite people, offering a common language that speaks to people of all ethnic, religious, political and ideological affiliations".

The group of 20 traveled to Mosul in co-ordination with the Iraqi government and the security forces, who took it upon themselves to deliver the runners to Mosul University on the east bank of the Tigris, he said.

The university entrance was the starting point for the roughly three-kilometre run.

The runners included seven students from the University of Baghdad's College of Physical Education for Women.

They came from various parts of Baghdad, including al-Adhamiya, al-Zaafaraniya, al-Doura and al-Amel, he said, as well as from other provinces of Iraq.

They also belonged to various sects, which al-Baghdadi said was not a focus of attention or a cause of division among the runners.

"Believe me, we had no idea what each other’s sect was," he said. "We went with nothing uniting us except for our citizenship and the love of Iraq."

Mosul residents and the security forces responded positively to the runners and their message, he added.

Undeterred by setbacks

The runners were unable to run the whole planned length of the route due to "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL) shelling, al-Baghdadi said.

This forced them to relocate away from Mosul University, he said, but the run was able to continue in the nearby village of al-Salamiya.

A number of Mosul residents joined in with the run, along with several Iraqi soldiers and security personnel, said Mukhlis al-Hajiri, an Iraqi long-distance runner who in 2009 ranked fifth in the Arab world.

The support and reaction to the initiative exceeded expectations, he told Diyaruna, adding that beyond the support provided during the run, all relevant parties offered help during the preparations for the event.

"We were planning to pay for the travel costs to Mosul from our own pockets, but were surprised to receive support and funding from everyone, especially the security forces, who undertook to take the runners from Erbil airport to Mosul and back," he said.

The people of Mosul expressed their hope that the peace run would be repeated on the west side of the city once it is fully liberated from ISIL, he said.

Life returns to Mosul

The peace run is part of a popular resolve to strengthen the signs of peaceful civilian life on the streets of Mosul’s east side, where the local government has been working to restore services and return displaced people to their homes.

Dozens of schools have reopened, allowing more than 25,000 students to resume their education, Ninawa provincial council member Hosam Eddin al-Abbar told Diyaruna.

Work has resumed in 10 health centres in the city, and efforts are under way to repair damage to water networks and electric power lines, he said, adding that ration card items also are being distributed to local residents.

Mosul markets, restaurants and streets are once again full with life after more than two years under ISIL rule, he added.

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