--- description: Lack of electricity a bigger problem than rising violence title: Life in Iraq's City of Mosul Under ISIS Rule image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9bc7afdded2c71/69869b1eadae44ec4f544163/mosul-iraq.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Iraq](/tag/iraq/) ## Iraq Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # What Life Is Like in Iraq's City of Mosul Under ISIS Rule by [NBC News](/author/nbc-news/) ## NBC News Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 9, 2014 8:27 PM CUT  Iraqis walk next to the Al-Noori Al-Kabeer mosque in Mosul city, northern Iraq on July 9, 2014. Iraqis walk next to the Al-Noori Al-Kabeer mosque in Mosul city, northern Iraq on July 9, 2014.STR/EPA by [NBC News](/author/nbc-news/) ## NBC News Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 9, 2014 8:27 PM CUT When Sunni extremists seized control of Iraq’s second-largest city, many feared the militants would brutally brandish their new-found power and exert a reign of horror on the residents of Mosul. One month later, it appears that most in the city are far from terrified, their biggest complaint a lack of electricity rather than explosive violence. “We all thought ISIS fighters will hurt people, but they did not do so,” said shop owner Fahad, referring to militants from the [Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS)](http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/iraq-turmoil/isis-militants-rampage-across-iraq-what-you-need-know-n129436 "undefined"). “It is 100 percent safe here. The only thing we suffer from is the lack of public services.” [Read the rest of the story from our partners at NBC News](http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/iraq-turmoil/what-life-iraqs-city-mosul-under-isis-rule-n151461?cid=par-time-article%5F20140709 "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2970374/iraq-mosul-isis/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2970374/iraq-mosul-isis/"},"headline":"What Life Is Like in Iraq's City of Mosul Under ISIS Rule","datePublished":"2014-07-09T20:27:11.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T09:03:27.402Z","description":"Lack of electricity a bigger problem than rising violence","url":"https://time.com/2970374/iraq-mosul-isis/","keywords":["Iraq"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9bc7afdded2c71/69869b1eadae44ec4f544163/mosul-iraq.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"NBC News","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/nbc-news/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9bc7afdded2c71/69869b1eadae44ec4f544163/mosul-iraq.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Unrest in Mosul","caption":"Unrest in Mosul","creditText":"STR/EPA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/iraq/","name":"Iraq"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2970374/iraq-mosul-isis/","name":"What Life Is Like in Iraq's City of Mosul Under ISIS Rule"}}]}] ```