By Shweta Desai
PARIS (AA) - France announced Thursday the opening of a diplomatic mission in the former stronghold of the Daesh/ISIS terror group in the Iraqi city of Mosul.
“The upcoming return of a French Consulate General to Mosul is an important milestone in our historic and strategic partnership with Iraq,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Consulate staff will be operational in the embassy in Baghdad beginning in June and a permanent mission will be opened in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul by 2023.
The consulate will facilitate assistance in humanitarian, culture, education and research fields as well as strengthen ties with civil society in the Nineveh governorate, the statement added.
President Emmanuel Macron pledged to reopen the consulate and French-speaking Christian schools in the region during a visit to Mosul last August.
The ministry said France had a continuous presence for several centuries in Mosul -- which has been home to an Arab Christian population, particularly via a consulate that stood from 1828 to 1956.
The majority of the Christian population has dwindled because of continuous conflict and persecution.
Following the emergence of Daesh/ISIS in the region in 2014, there was a mass exodus of minority groups including Christians and Yazidis.
The terror group killed thousands of civilians, vandalized ancient artifacts and caused large-scale destruction in the historic city.
The French military was part of the US-led international coalition which mobilized alongside Iraqi armed forces to militarily decimate the group and liberate Mosul in 2017.