Pope Francis will bless desecrated statue of Mary in Iraq

A statue of the Virgin Mary was decapitated in the Christian village of Karamles, between Mosul and Erbil, during the Islamic State’s occupation of the villages in the Nineveh Plains from 2014 to 2017. Iraqi Christians asked Pope Francis to bless the statue during his visit to Iraq.
Fr. Samir Sheer, director of Radio Mariam in Erbil, told the Italian news agency SIR that the statue remains “without hands because terrorists cut them off.”
“Originally, the statue was also beheaded, but it was recovered and reattached. Currently, the restoration is being completed,” he said.
Pope Francis is expected to bless the statue of Our Lady during a stadium Mass in Erbil on the 7th of March.
“After the blessing, the statue will return to the Nineveh Plains. The hope of local Christians is that Our Lady will soon return to hug her children in Karamles,” Sheer said.
Source: CNA