teleskof iraq inside newly renovate church saint george northern iraqi town teleskof hayat chamoun daoud lead children dress santa claus sing jingle bell aramaic like every resident teleskof daoud first christmas back home three years since islamic state militants overrun town forcibly displace 12,000-strong chaldean christian community special back church church get marry church raise children school headmistress say tear eye face choice convert pay tax die daoud like many christians nineveh plain choose flee seek refuge nearby towns cities many seek permanent asylum abroad though militants teleskof days residents begin return home early year sunday celebrate first christmas together town main church overflow hundreds congregants dress fine pour pray receive communion father salar bodagh late light traditional bonfire church courtyard symbol renewal say despite obvious joy able celebrate openly bittersweet christmas across nineveh plain epicenter iraq ancient christian communities trace history country back two millennia though iraq declare full victory militants two weeks ago brutal three-year war damage do christian enclaves extensive leave many wonder whether could overcome recent history islamic state ravage christian areas loot burn home church strip valuable artifacts smash relics damage qaraqosh town 15 km 10 miles west mosul also know hamdaniya extensive particularly town ancient church syrian catholic church immaculate congregants gather midnight mass sunday surround scorch blacken wall still tag islamic state graffiti also sit donate plastic chair church yet able replace wooden pews militants use fuel massive fire engulf church families require tens thousands dollars repair home replace steal goods say overcome material damage unlike force separation families militant onslaught qaraqosh large christian settlement iraq population 50,000. today hundred families return entire congregations move overseas syriac orthodox congregation church mart shmony saturday afternoon father butros kappa head qaraqosh church immaculate try hard summon sense hope deliver congregation christmas mass christmas mass like previous years year joy soak tear people leave iraq say father kappa hold mass sing upturned ruin church therefore important say remind everyone despite tragedies befall us still teleskof 30 km 20 miles north mosul one old continue christian communities world families skip mass altogether upset force dispersal usually celebrate entire family say umm rita prepare traditional christmas day dish pacha sheep head trotters stomach slowly boil home happy year brothers sisters even daughter husband child never meet move away community leaders estimate 7,000 teleskof residents scatter across iraq semi-autonomous kurdistan region unite state australia germany lebanon jordan amid ongoing tensions central government baghdad iraq kurds referendum kurdish independence hold baghdad objections september teleskof residents fear violence want live peace say umm rita anxious islamic state home community gutted say firas abdelwahid 76-year-old former state oil employee thousands seek permanent shelter overseas watch children play church bonfire felt melancholy expect past tragic present desperate well future us christians iraq iraq 's christians bittersweet first christmas home islamic state