A mineral spa in northern Iraq is regaining popularity as renovation works have brought visitors back to a city once ruled by jihadists who carried out mass executions.
Hisham Khaled often visited the Hamam al-Alil baths with his father as a child, but since the facility’s restoration, he has come alone.
His father, a police officer, was executed by the Islamic State (IS) group near the baths in 2016.
30 kilometers (20 miles) south of Mosul, Hamam al-Alil – meaning the baths of the sick in Arabic – has built a solid reputation over decades for its therapeutic sulfur waters.
But the spa of the same name and the surrounding village are now also known for massacres committed by IS during its occupation of the area.
“I’ve lost the people I loved the most,” says Khaled, 21, who sits shirtless and in his briefs near the spa’s circular pool.
His father, a police colonel, was among hundreds of local officials rounded up and executed by IS. Their bodies were discovered in November 2016 in a mass grave near an agricultural college in the village.
“It hurts my heart. My father and I used to go to the bathroom together. Now he’s gone and I came here alone,” adds the 21-year-old father of twins.
– Modification –
As in other parts of the Mosul region, the slow pace of reconstruction five years after the jihadists were driven out is frustrating locals.
But the reopening of the baths on the banks of the Tigris last month is helping to return to normal, even if the scars of the conflict remain.
Khaled is now a massage therapist at the spa and bathes regularly. He says the sulfur-rich water cured him of an allergy and skin problems.
In the newly tiled rooms, men and children can enjoy a moment of soothing relaxation for 5,000 dinars ($3).
In underpants or shorts, they fill tubs with green, hot spring water, pour it over their heads and then vigorously rub their bodies – despite the nauseating smell of sulphur.
An old man gets out of his wheelchair and bathes in the water, stretching his arms.
Built in 1984, the resort can accommodate 75 to 100 people, with men and women using separate areas.
Makeshift stalls on the surrounding sidewalks sell plastic bottles filled with sulphurous mud.
Salam Adel Hassan has traveled from Baghdad and says he first visited the spa 20 years ago.
“The wellness area was very rudimentary, not like it is now. The renovation was a success, I’m happy,” says the 30-year-old with a smile.
“My brother has psoriasis. He could not come. I’ll bring him water and mud,” he says.
After the defeat of IS in 2017, the baths remained popular despite the building falling into disrepair with chipped tiles and broken windows.
In 2019, authorities undertook renovations that cost $500,000.
Construction materials have been carefully chosen to resist wear and oxidation from sulphurous waters, says Ahmed Aziz Ahmed, a spa worker.
“The day after the inauguration, we started receiving groups of visitors from every province in Iraq,” he says.
Families originally from Mosul but now living abroad have come, as have British and German tourists, he adds.
– mass grave –
In late 2016, months before being driven out of Mosul by the Iraqi army and a US-led international coalition, IS rounded up and executed hundreds of people.
The bodies of some of the victims were first found openly in the trash, leading investigators to the mass grave, which is estimated to contain “the bodies of at least 300 former local police officers,” Human Rights Watch said at the time.
Today, local officials denounce the slow pace in identifying the bodies as DNA testing is still ongoing.
The jihadists “worked at night, they were executed and buried with a bulldozer,” explains Ahmed, the spa employee.
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