Instagram user Hawar shows a different side to life in Erbil on her account, My Erbil Lifestyle. Photo / Instagram
Instagram user Hawar shows a different side to life in Erbil on her account, My Erbil Lifestyle. Photo / Instagram
It's within 100 kilometres of one of the most war-ravaged cities on the planet - but life for the other half near Mosul contains a level of luxury many could only dream of.
Erbil sits within around one hour's drive of Iraq's besieged second city that was only liberated from Islamic State control around one month ago.
As Iraqi forces work to rid the terror group from the north of the country, another side of life in Erbil has emerged online through a young generation trying to create a different narrative via social media.
They include Instagram user Hawar, who runs My Erbil Lifestyle - a glamorous account in which she shares pictures of lunches in garden restaurants, shopping trips, travel and cosmetics with her 4000 followers.
Tourism website Erbil Lifestyle also showcases a different side to the ancient city which it describes as "one of the fastest-growing travel destinations in the world".
The site features a local UNESCO world heritage site, shopping malls, luxury hotels, plastic surgery clinics and events like start-up bootcamps or family hip-hop battles. It boasts of the famed Kurdish hospitality that has led to economic opportunities and a strengthening business sector.
Iraq's first "gentleman's fashion club", Mr Erbil, formed by three local men, also operates in the city, with an Instagram account filled with hipster beards and stylish suits.
Founders Omer Nihad, Ahmed Nauzad and Goran Pshtiwan use traditional dress in their garments and want to change the way Kurdistan is perceived internationally through their work.
"It is a harsh time we are facing and we wanted to overcome it with positive thinking and social changes," Mr Nauzad told news.com.au earlier this year.
"We decided to come up with something that grabs people's attention, something they can relate to ... otherwise people wouldn't care or listen."
The images are a sharp contrast to the reality in other parts of the country as Iraqi forces work to drive IS militants out of Tal Afar - to the west of Mosul - in an enduring and bloody battle.
Islamic State still controls towns of Hawija, Qaim, Rawa and Ana near the Syrian border and has subjected locals to horrific conditions including death, imprisonment, sexual slavery, detention and beatings under its reign.
A Federal Police stands next to unexploded bombs left by Islamic State group militants on the western side of Mosul, Iraq. Photo / AP
This week, Oxfam said women and children fleeing Tal Afar district told of how they walked through the desert in 50 degree heat on a road that "smelled of dead bodies".
Ahlam Ibrahim told the charity he fled his village near Tal Afar when bombing began.
"We left because we were afraid of the air strikes. We were so afraid for the children. The road was steep and rocky and old people were dying," Mr Ibrahim said.
"It was so hard to walk and the road smelled of dead bodies. I lost my voice because I was shouting at my children to stay with me. They were so scared."
Iraqi security forces and allied Popular Mobilization forces fire artillery during fight against Islamic State militants in Fallujah, Iraq. Photo / AP
Save the Children Australia's regional media manager Alun McDonald said the contrast between the two regions is shocking with a quiet, bustling city near refugee camps holding up to 50,000 people who have endured unspeakable horrors.
"Erbil itself is very quiet and calm," he told news.com.au. "It's got shops and restaurants, good roads, busy airports, bustling markets. Just like a normal big city really. Security-wise it's fairly safe ... It's fine to walk around."
However across the river are huge refugee camps for those who have fled from Mosul with large families living in cramped conditions.
Displaced women and children sit on the ground at a collection point for displaced people west of Mosul. Photo / AP
"Aid agencies are providing the basics but there's not a lot to go around. They don't often have enough food and water just because of the sheer numbers of people who have fled the fighting.
"There are horrific stories," he said about children in the camps who have been denied a childhood and the chance to go to school while IS has dominated the town.
"They've seen their parents killed in front of them. Their brothers and sisters lying dead in the streets. Their house completely destroyed by bombing. They haven't been able to go to school for years."
Popular Mobilisation Unit fighters ride on the back of a truck on their way to fight against Islamic State militants in the airport of Tal Afar, west of Mosul. Photo / AP
The organisation is now working to help children severely scarred by shock and trauma while providing basic provisions for an area which has been virtually razed to the ground.
"It's really important we get them back to some normal life as soon as possible," he said.
