Islamic State Releases Photos of Its Orphanages

The Islamic State today released a series of photos they say detail the orphanages that they now run in Nineveh, the heart of ancient Assyria and modern-day Mosul.

The series of photos titled “Orphanages in the state of Nineveh,” showing boys and girls holding an Islamic State flag, boarding a bus with an Islamic State flag, and riding bumper cars at a small fun fair, were released online by the “Information Office of the Mandate of Nineveh.”

It’s not known who the children are or how they came to be in ISIS’ custody. In one image, a jihadist’s face is blurred as he leads kids ranging from pre-schoolers to grade-schoolers in a chant or song in front of Islamic State flags.

ISIS forced Christians to flee the Nineveh plain starting in mid-July. An Aug. 17 report from the Dominican Sisters of Saint Catherine of Siena in Iraq notes how the nuns were forced from facilities they ran in the area. “We left nineteen places of ours, which include convents, schools and orphanages. Moreover, we have learned that our convent and the orphanage we own in Bartila have been taken by the ISIS,” states the report. “Also, our convents in Mosul and in Tal Kaif were taken (including a school and kindergarten).”