SINJAR, Iraq — Farmer Ato Choki feels bittersweet emotions following the liberation of his northern Iraq community this month from more than a year of brutal Islamic State rule. "I was very happy to see the city free, but it's all destroyed," he lamented.
The militants, who were ousted by Kurdish fighters on Nov. 13, left their mark everywhere in Sinjar — from graffiti-sprayed walls to tunnels dug through the floors of homes that lead to bunkers built to withstand airstrikes by a U.S.-led coalition. One resident returned to his home to find Islamic State uniforms and a Quran in his child's bedroom.
